Page 36 of The Pregnancy Pact

“I vowed to be faithful to you.”

“So did he.”

Frustrated, I struck one fist into the opposite palm, clenching it to restrain my anger. It seemed impossible to make progress with this woman when she was sober. All she wished to do was argue. Was there another way to change her mind?

“I will be faithful to you,” I said, walking over to her. This time, I did not stop until I was close enough to wrap an arm about her waist. I drew her close, whether she liked it or not. “And if you agree to lie with me whenever I wish, I promise it will be well worth your while.”

She strained away slightly, but not enough to break my hold. Her focus was fixed on me. I detected a subtle change in her breathing.

“Is that so?”

“Oh yes,” I replied, lowering my face to hers. “It is very much so.”

Before she could open that mouth in more protests or angry words, I closed it with a kiss.

Chapter 20

Lorelai

He was kissing me.

By all that was good and holy in the universe—or by all that was temptation and evil—he was kissing me. I had no idea what to think. Last night, swept away on a cloud of alcohol and desire, I’d hoped this beautiful alien Overlord would kiss me. I’d imagined it. Imagined far more, actually. Now? Now there was no alcohol, only a slight hangover, I was stuck with him as his friggin’ wife, and I’d been trying to gain as much of an upper hand as I possibly could throughout our negotiations.

If he was trying to effectively cut off dialogue, or to regain the upper hand, he’d definitely found the way to do it.

Damn him.

The instant his mouth landed on mine, my eyes flared wide open in surprise. Then, almost as quickly, they shut of their own volition. I felt my toes curl inside my shoes. His arm drew me in tighter to his body, and my fingers reacted by seizing the front of his shirt, gripping the soft fabric as if to ground me in reality while the stars spun by outside our window.

Have mercy.

Did his mouth have to capture mine in a way that threatened to bring me to my knees? Did his tongue have to tease my lips apart? His tongue slid into my mouth and I felt mine instinctively rise to meet it. And the way he used his lips and tongue—caressing but also demanding. Imploring but also suggesting. Threatening while pleading. My entire body started to tremble. What was this? Charlie had never kissed me like this. Ever. The last several years of our marriage, we hadn’t bothered kissing at all. What sex we did have was stale and impersonal. Once I’d figured out the painful truth—that sex wouldn’t keep him by my side or faithful to me—I’d given up trying to please him and accepted that, if my own husband didn’t find me desirable, nobody else would either.

I’d been wrong.

This kiss wasn’t simply telling me that a beautiful alien Overlord found me desirable, it was screaming it. It was screaming through in the way he abruptly turned, pushing me back against the wall. I gasped against his mouth, our connection momentarily broken but immediately reestablished when he covered my mouth with his once more. I felt his free hand shift to my hip, the curve of my waist. Exploring. As if my body entranced him enough that he wanted to feel more of it. His hips pressed into mine.

If I’d doubted his desire before, that one movement proved me wrong.

He was ready.

Insanely enough, I was ready.

Are we going to make a baby right now?

A wild thrill shot through me.

With my Overlord husband’s hips grinding against mine, his chest pressing against my breasts, sensual, heated visions flashed before my eyes. They were almost unbearably alluring, until—

Wait. We haven’t signed anything yet.

The pact. The agreement. We hadn’t fully concurred on the terms, had we? We hadn’t signed anything. If I let him bed me now, if I got pregnant the first time we had sex—which might be a bit of a long shot, but certainly could happen—he’d have the upper hand completely. I didn’t know that he would take advantage of me like that, refusing to honor any verbal commitments. I didn’t know that he wouldn’t, either. And I’d been burned too often by one husband to trust a brand-new one so soon.

Just then, Ellax’s wandering hand found my breast. I gasped again, this time jerking my face away, and my body as well. I tore free of his embrace in a sharp, hasty motion, squeezing out from between him and the wall, leaving him gazing at me with a confused, almost wounded expression. An expression he quickly concealed as he smoothed his clothing, regaining his perfect, icy control.

“I told you I would make it worth your while,” he said with a pleased little smile.

I wish I could have argued. I wish I could have claimed I hadn’t enjoyed his kiss at all. Since that would have made me appear foolish, I cleared my throat roughly, raising my chin while I straightened my own rumpled clothing.

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