A Desconian Marriage of Convenience (Siren Publishing Ménage Amour) (8 page)

“You claim she’s your intended mubella, but you haven’t even had sex with her yet.”

“What makes you say that?” Tosh asked, not actually denying the accusation. Jenelle had been the one to label their marriage as a “convenience.” If Jax, Baylen, or Tosh had been given a say in it, Jenelle would have slept in their bed every night since. As it was, she’d taken the bed on the far side of the room each night, willing to present the charade to the world in public but unwilling to intrude on their private lives.

“I say that,” Kallum said, watching Tosh’s face closely, “because as a doctor if you’d already had sex with her you’d know that her uterus has been removed.”

“Removed?” Tosh asked in shock. He’d wondered at the damage caused by the beating she’d endured, but he’d never considered that someone might do something like that without mentioning it to the patient. Earth was one very fucked-up planet.

“Yes, removed,” Kallum said with a frown. “There’s also a line of scar tissue that seems to be the result of tearing. It suggests some sort of trauma.”

“I know what happened,” Tosh said quietly. He didn’t want to go into details.

“I’m sorry,” Kallum said in a genuinely sympathetic tone, “but if you were planning to start a family, Jenelle isn’t the right mubella.”

“It’s okay,” Tosh said, hoping his friend would forgive him the small exaggeration, “but we love her deeply. Her infertility won’t change that.”

“But you haven’t had sex with her,” Kallum said in what sounded like a question but probably wasn’t.

“Not yet,” Tosh said with a forced grin. “Humans have different ideas about sex and sexuality. We’re easing Jenelle into our lifestyle gently. You’ve seen Jax in action.” Kallum nodded and laughed softly, seeming convinced by Tosh’s explanation.

“True. Your man is truly hot, but I can see why you might worry he’s a little intimidating.” The moment of levity passed quickly, and they were once again faced with the reality of Jenelle’s situation. “We’ll do some more tests and determine the extent of the damage. Do you want to break the news to her, or shall I?”

“I will,” Tosh said, even though he’d agreed not to be her doctor. He simply couldn’t let her hear such awful news from a virtual stranger. “Thanks, Kallum. I really appreciate your help.”

“Anytime,” he said again in an echo of his earlier statement. “And I really mean that. If any of you—Jax and Baylen included—need someone to talk to about this, please come back and see me. I can recommend a good counselor, but if you want to keep your wife’s medical issues private I’m available to help.”

Tosh nodded and then turned back to the medical exam room to deliver devastating news to a woman who deserved far better.

* * * *

It wasn’t until Tosh told her the exact news she’d been expecting that she realized how much hope she’d been holding on to. Knowing, absolutely knowing, that she was never going to have children hit her so damn hard she doubled over with the pain. Tosh held her, cuddling her close, pretending to be the concerned husband for their audience.

The ultrasound confirmed the diagnosis.

“I’m sorry, Jenelle,” Kallum said, obviously upset for her. Hell, he probably gave this sort of news to Desconian women all the time. In that regard she was nothing special. She shouldn’t be wasting his time like this.

“Th–Thank you, Doctor. I’ll…um…get dressed. Thank you for seeing me on such short notice.”

“No problems,” Kallum said as he gave her a sympathetic look. He briefly placed a hand on Tosh’s shoulder, perhaps as a silent offer of support, and then left the room.

Baylen ached all over. Even lying in bed between the two men who loved him, he couldn’t seem to come to terms with what had happened to Jenelle. She’d wanted to go back to the compound—probably to grieve alone—but Katarnia had thankfully already reassigned her room. It was probably a little cruel to be glad Jenelle had nowhere else to go, but he was grateful for the chance to keep her close and try to help her through such devastating news.

But she’d thwarted them all by giving Tosh permission to tell Jax and Baylen everything and then had claimed a headache and gone to bed. Now, hours later, Baylen lay awake, waiting for her recurring nightmares to begin all over again, but it was becoming obvious that she wasn’t actually asleep. He wanted to climb into her bed and hold her close. He wanted to tell her she was safe and loved and wanted right here, yet he didn’t know if it would be welcomed. He wasn’t even certain she would believe him.

She’d agreed to marry them in name alone, and then only until they found someone of their own to love. It was obvious she believed herself as broken and unworthy of love.

The soft sob that sounded across the room proved that neither Tosh nor Jax were asleep either. Both men tensed, Tosh pulling Baylen closer as they listened to the quiet sounds of Jenelle’s grief.

Baylen held his breath as Jax rolled out of their bed and headed across the room. He lifted Jenelle into his arms, shushing her as she tried to speak. Without a word he placed her between Tosh and Baylen and then lay down behind Baylen and wrapped his arms around all three. Baylen held on to her, silently crying with her as she eventually cried herself to sleep.

* * * *

“Congratulations on your engagement, Jax,” one of the guards said as they passed in the hallway.

“Thanks,” he said, smiling at the very old human reference to the time between when Jenelle agreed to marry them and the mubella claiming ceremony. Not even humans used the expression anymore, but it seemed with more and more humans landing on the planet—and the sudden popularity of ancient Earth entertainment called “soap operas”—some of human culture was becoming a part of everyday Desconian life.

Ironically, Earth several hundred years ago wasn’t all that different to Descon today. From what he’d read, humans had embraced a “live and let live” attitude several centuries ago, but overpopulation and food shortages had sent many into despair. They’d gone looking for answers to society’s ever-increasing problems and embraced new attitudes and new ideals. Slowly they’d turned on each other.

In recent years they’d even gone as far as to segregate men and women, but that seemed to have created almost as many problems as it had solved. Children were discarded and left to fend for themselves, barely surviving in a world that saw no use for them.

Judging by the refugees still arriving on Descon, the attitude wasn’t yet planetwide, but it seemed only a matter of time. The most insane part was that without offspring the inhabitants of planet Earth were liable to die out in the next fifty years or less. As the population aged, skills would be lost and society as they knew it would grind to a halt. The most labor-intensive work would suffer first, so things like farming and mining would collapse, and the shockwaves would be felt throughout the population. It seemed extraordinary that no one was addressing the issues that they would surely face in their own lifetimes.

Jax found Tosh in his office finishing up some reports.

“Ready to go home?” Tosh asked when he glanced up to see Jax in the doorway.

“Anytime you are.” Jax stepped into the office and closed the door. “Have you heard anything else about the changes in the law?”

“Only that it seems likely to be passed next week. We need to claim Jenelle before then.”

“So the ceremony is still set for three days from now?” Jax asked, feeling a rush of excitement. Despite the fact that Jenelle had been in need of the comfort, it had felt very satisfying to have all three people that he loved in his bed last night. She may not realize it, but she’d quickly become one of their family, even if she didn’t usually sleep in their bed.

“As long as Jenelle doesn’t freak out on us,” Tosh said, looking worried.

“Why would she freak out?”

“Think about it,” Tosh said with a small smile. “The woman hasn’t had sex in over ten years, and even then we have no idea what exactly she experienced. Making love to all three of us in front of an audience is going to be overwhelming, but if the woman has never experienced an orgasm before, it could be terrifying for her.”

“Never had an orgasm?” The concept had never even entered his mind. Desconian adolescents were encouraged to masturbate and learn their own bodies. He should have realized it would be the exact opposite for humans. “So what should we do?”

“I was thinking seduction might be a good place to start.”

“I like the way you think,” Jax said as a myriad of exciting possibilities wound through his mind. “Hurry up so we can head home.”

* * * *

Jenelle smiled as Baylen brushed past her yet again. The kitchen wasn’t that small, so she got the distinct impression that Baylen was trying to get her used to having him around. Or maybe that was just how Desconians in the general population behaved. Jenelle had always known that the Desconians she’d encountered in the compound had been curtailing their natures. Desconians who dealt with humans every day, like Tosh did, understood how unnerving it was for them to be part of physical displays of affection.

With the mubella claiming ceremony only three days away it was probably a good thing. Unless the proposed changes to the immigration laws were defeated—and it seemed very unlikely that they would be—Jenelle, Baylen, Jax, and Tosh would somehow need to convince everyone watching the ceremony that they were deeply in love. She had a feeling that there would likely be harsh penalties if someone discovered their “convenient” timing—especially if her infertility was ever to become common knowledge. The last thing she wanted to do was get any of them in trouble.

“Bay?” she asked, not really sure how to phrase what was on her mind. In the end she settled for simple and direct. “Would you kiss me?”

He looked surprised but quite pleased as he stepped closer and wrapped his arms around her waist. “It would be my pleasure,” he said a moment before he lowered his head and brushed his lips against her own. It was rather nice. She sighed softly as a feeling of contentment wound through her mind. Baylen lifted his head, watched her a moment, and then dipped lower to press his lips against hers again.

But this time he pressed a little harder, his tongue caressing her lips as he pulled her just a little bit closer. Again he lifted to look at her face. “Okay?” he asked.

“Yes,” she whispered in a voice gone husky.
What the hell?

Baylen smiled, his hand sliding higher up her back, pressing her closer to him. She licked her lips this time as he lowered his head, his soft groan setting off tingles in her belly. He brushed his tongue against her lips again, gently pushing past her teeth and into her mouth. She moaned softly, the strange kiss oddly appealing.

“That is a beautiful sight to come home to,” Jax said behind her.

She almost fell over trying to escape Baylen’s embrace. What the hell had she been thinking? Baylen was married to two wonderful guys. Her planned marriage was one of convenience. She shouldn’t be kissing anybody.

“Hey, don’t stop,” Tosh said as he stepped up behind her, essentially trapping her between his hard body and Baylen’s. She gasped, unsure why she couldn’t seem to take a full breath—they weren’t
that
close. Surprisingly she wasn’t scared, actually felt quite safe between these two men, but oh heavens, they were both all muscle. Why on Descon would she notice that now?

Baylen smiled, his hand trailing down the long piece of hair beside her face. “It’s okay, sweetie. Jax and Tosh want me to kiss you.”

“And,” Tosh said, punctuating his words with soft kisses against her shoulder, “we plan to kiss you when he’s done.”

“But…” She managed to glance in Jax’s direction, but he didn’t seem to be upset that his husbands had their lower bodies pressed hard up against her.

“No buts, baby girl,” Jax said as he moved to a position where she could see his face clearly. “We’re going to make love to you. Consider it an ‘undressed’ rehearsal for our mubella claiming ceremony.”

“Are you sure?” she asked nervously. “The law might not get changed.”

“Doesn’t matter,” Tosh said, his hands skimming slowly up each side of her waist. “We plan to claim you anyway.”

She tried to hide the pleasure that thought gave her. She knew it was just pretend. She knew they were just protecting her from a law that could see her thrown off yet another planet. She absolutely knew that they didn’t love her, no matter what they called what was about to happen. But she couldn’t deny herself the pleasure she felt inside.

Baylen leaned forward to kiss her again, this time his tongue pushing into her mouth over and over, mimicking what they planned to do. Tosh moved his hands, cupping her breasts gently as his thumbs played over her nipples. She was almost embarrassed by the stiff, beaded peaks—it wasn’t actually cold in here—but the slow touch felt so incredible she couldn’t find the energy to worry. Amazingly it felt even more incredible as the nipples pulled tighter.

Gasping for air, Baylen moved back, placed his hands on her shoulders, and encouraged her to turn around. Tosh grinned a moment before taking her lips in his own and nibbling on them gently. The strange kiss made her knees shake, her belly seeming to quiver with nervous excitement, as he finally swept his tongue into her mouth.