Stud (14 page)

“A what? A whore? A prostitute? A surrogate mother?” Grimacing, she felt suddenly ill, which would have been a terrible waste of perfectly good corned beef. “They’re all true.”

Tarq’s horrified expression surprised her—and was just a little frightening, particularly in light of his glowing catlike eyes and fangs. Get him truly angry and he’d be downright scary. “You don’t really believe that, do you?”

Lucy shrugged. “I honestly don’t know
what
I believe right now.” She gave him a wry smile. “A lot has happened in the past few days.”

Tarq nodded as though he understood. He handed her a bottle of water. Cold.
Ice
cold. The thought of how warm her own water would have been after sitting out in the sun all day almost had her kissing him. Almost. She didn’t want to give him the wrong idea.

Funny how losing one’s virtue was usually the most significant factor associated with being alone with a man. Until now. Her virtue having been already lost, she was in much greater danger of losing her heart. Tarq was nice to her, had made love with her in the most astonishing manner, was the most handsome man she’d ever seen, and was the father of her children. What was not to like?

Stupid question, she reminded herself as she sat down on a nearby rock to eat her lunch. It wasn’t a matter of her liking him, but of him having the option to be with practically any woman who tickled his fancy. She wouldn’t even make the top ten. Lucy still hadn’t figured out why he’d asked her to call him in the first place, though perhaps it was because he thought she’d be a good mother—
and
be able to successfully carry triplets. For once in her life, she was thankful for her relatively wide pelvis.

Just as she should have been thankful he’d found her and offered her a ride. However, one surreptitious glance at him was enough to remind her why she’d been so hesitant. He was only leaning against a rock licking a drop of mayo off his finger, but it was all she could do not to fall at his feet, begging him to toss her a few crumbs of his affection. How was it possible for any man to be so appealing?

Just
don’t look at him, Lucy. Keep your eyes on the ground.
She stared at a fascinating pile of stones until she finished her sandwich.

“Want some pie?”

Despite her best intentions, her eyes flew up to meet his. No, he wasn’t tossing her crumbs, he was holding out a piece of her own chocolate pie—on a plate, no less. There was even a fork. His impish smile sent a shock wave through her resolve, destroying it completely.

Lucy was surprised she could even speak. “I probably would’ve brought some of that myself if I’d had a way to carry it.”

“Well, I’m glad you left it for me then. But I’m willing to share.” His smile widened into a grin, and Lucy blinked, momentarily stunned by the full effect. If he had any idea what he was doing to her, he was being terribly inconsiderate.

She took the plate from him. “Thanks.”

“You’re welcome.”

With the first bite, Lucy had to stifle a moan. She didn’t often get to eat the pies she made and had forgotten how delicious they were.

No, she decided, Tarq wouldn’t be inconsiderate, not if he was willing to share the pie he liked so much. He was simply unaware of the lethal nature of his appeal, or the danger it posed to susceptible females. Getting to her through her stomach had to be inadvertent too; he couldn’t possibly know her favorite foods.

“So, where does this friend of yours live?”

Thankful for a neutral topic, Lucy was able to respond normally. “She and her husband have a farm on this side of Yalka. She always told me it would be the first place I came to after crossing the Malturn.”

“Shouldn’t be hard to find then.” He paused for a moment, savoring a bite of the pie. “What if you get there and she’s changed her mind?”

“Nat wouldn’t do that,” Lucy said with more conviction than she actually felt. She wouldn’t admit that she hadn’t heard from Nat for a while. A woman with a farm and animals to care for was bound to be too busy to write. Or call. Or visit.

“Let’s say she does. What would you do then?”

“I’ll go into town, get a room, and look for a job. Thanks to you, I’m not dependent on charity.”

“Glad I could help.”

He didn’t seem glad. He seemed… irritated. Lucy was about to ask if he wanted his money back, but knowing how important it was to her children’s welfare, as well as her own, she kept silent.

Tarq finished his pie and put the plate into a compartment in the speeder. “Are those your only options?”

“Well, yeah, I guess so. I mean, what else is there?”

“I just think you’re limiting yourself. You’re pretty smart—a lot smarter than I am. You could do lots of things.”

“I’m not that smart. All I’ve ever really done is clean houses, cook, wait tables—stuff like that.”

“Bet you could run your own café.” His irritation was gone, replaced by a warm smile. “Best chocolate pie in the galaxy. You could put that on a sign. You’d have more customers than you knew what to do with.”

Lucy felt herself blushing. “I could probably steal Jublansk from my father. Then I’d have the best pie
and
the best salads—not to mention the best bread. Not sure about the fish, though I
have
watched him make it a million times.”

“You could do it.”

“Maybe, but getting a restaurant going takes time and money—and energy. Not sure a pregnant girl would be up to it.”

Tarq frowned. “What if I—” He stopped; his frown deepened, his already slanted brows becoming almost vertical.

“Helped me? No, Tarq. You’ve already helped me enough.”

“I could be a partner—you know, put up the money and reap all the benefits?”

The gleam in his eye told her he was teasing, but the words “partner” and “benefits” had Lucy’s thoughts headed in a direction they shouldn’t be taking. “Sounds like you’d be taking advantage of a poor, pregnant girl.”

His attempt at suppressing a smile failed miserably. “Ah, Lucy. I’d never do that.”

Lucy suspected he already had—though probably not the way he thought. He’d taken advantage of her aloneness, her vulnerability, and the fact that somewhere along the line she’d fallen head over heels in love with him.

Tarq watched the subtle changes in Lucy’s expression with interest. Her wince served as proof that she didn’t like his partnership suggestion; either that or she was in some sort of pain. “The offer still stands. Promise me you’ll at least think about it. Okay?”

She nodded, but the way she bit her lower lip didn’t bode well for the outcome. He wanted another night with her so very badly. Just one more—maybe two, if he was lucky. It wasn’t too much to ask, especially if that was all he would ever get. He longed to scoop her up in his arms right now, to kiss away her pain and fears and any doubts she had. He would give her anything. If only she would let him.

“We should get going.” He took her empty plate and put it in the cleaning compartment. The sequence began as soon as he pushed the top closed.

“This thing has a
dishwasher
?”

Tarq nodded. Too bad she wasn’t the type to be won over by a guy with a cool speeder. Seducing her would be much easier—that is, if seduction was his only goal. “It does a lot of things. I’ve practically lived out of it for almost two years.”

“I never knew they could do all that.”

“Most are made for short-distance travel. This is one of the more recreational types. I’ve even got a tent.”

“I saw that.” She glanced at the harsh landscape around her and shuddered. “Don’t suppose it’s big enough to share, is it?”

The thought of sharing a tent with Lucy made his cock twitch. It was already hard—and had been ever since he found her. “What’s the matter? Afraid of the dark?”

“It was… a little spooky last night when I was awake and walking. I hadn’t realized how different it would be sleeping out here alone.”

“Never camped out before?”

Lucy rolled her eyes. “I’ve never done
anything
before.”

Tarq could think of at least one rather significant “thing” she’d done recently. Something entirely new. Even so, this was overshadowed by the realization that he would be able to hold her in his arms again.
For
the
entire
night.
He couldn’t stop smiling.

“It isn’t funny,” she said, glaring at him.

Not wanting to seem like an insensitive idiot, Tarq sobered instantly. “That’s not why I’m smiling.”

“Oh?”

“I’m remembering
something
you did for the first time—three nights ago.”

Her blush jacked Tarq’s temperature up a few degrees. How was he ever going to wait until dark?

“Yeah, well, that was different.”

Tarq was intrigued. “How so?”

She gazed up at him with those soft brown eyes he was beginning to realize he couldn’t live without. “I wasn’t afraid of
you
.”

A lump formed in his throat, which might have kept him from speaking—if he’d had any idea what to say.

“Nervous, perhaps. But not afraid.”

Tarq held his breath.

“I mean, you knew what you were doing. You weren’t some creep or a bumbling teenager.”

“Oh.” Her steady gaze never wavered from his. “And that’s a good thing?”

“Well, yeah,” she replied. “Why wouldn’t it be?”

“Just checking.”

So she wasn’t afraid of him and he wasn’t a creep or a bumbling teenager. It was a start.

***

Tarq’s jeans weren’t what you’d call tight, but he couldn’t believe Lucy hadn’t noticed the lump hiding beneath the zipper. Then again, maybe she was purposely ignoring it. Tarq wished he could do the same, but as the day went on and the kilometers flew by, he was beginning to think he wouldn’t survive the night, whether he held her in his arms or not.

She’d dozed off again—either that or she was pretending to sleep so he wouldn’t talk to her. He wasn’t sure why she would do something like that, but the niggling fear persisted.

Late in the day, they came upon a stream bisecting the trail and Tarq didn’t bother to wake her. He aimed the speeder along the banks until he found a relatively smooth spot where a few small trees grew. Even with the water source nearby, the trees were still stunted and gnarled, as though they’d been there for centuries, growing only millimeters at a time.

As the speeder settled on its wheels, Lucy began to stir.

“Good place to camp,” Tarq said in response to her curious expression. Getting out of the speeder, he uncovered the cargo hold and pulled out the tent. “This’ll just take a second.”

Unrolling the tent, he pressed the erect button and the tent slowly unfolded and rose from the ground. He had only to press the same button again to lower it, but he found himself wishing he had a button like that on his dick. It would have made things simpler. At least he could’ve disguised his reaction to her—and her scent.

Even with the speeder’s canopy open, he’d still caught enough occasional whiffs of her to keep him aroused all day. Being together in the tent would be torture if she didn’t take pity on him.

“That’s pretty neat,” she remarked.

Tarq shrugged. “It’s come in handy a few times.” He was feeling irritated. Maybe taking a little walk by himself would help. At least he’d lose his erection when he couldn’t smell her. He’d never been around a pregnant woman for any length of time and wasn’t sure if this effect would last throughout the entire pregnancy or if a fuck a day would keep the hard-on away. Maybe after a few months…

“Hungry?”

“Um, yeah. I’ll be right back.”

She went behind a nearby rock, presumably to pee. Tarq was about to follow her just to catch her with her pants down but decided that wouldn’t be very romantic, or considerate. Her absence did, however, ease his cock a little bit, which was a relief. If he’d had any idea how he was going to feel, he might not have tried to find her.

No. That simply wasn’t true. He’d gone looking for her, hoping she’d want him. Obviously she didn’t. Her pregnant scent was fooling him into thinking she did. Not a creep or a bumbling teenager. Oh yes, and she wasn’t afraid of him. She should have been. He was feeling about as surly as a vrelnot.

He pulled her blankets out of the back of the speeder and pitched them into the tent. His own stuff was already in there. His and hers. It wasn’t like they’d actually share.

His dick might have felt better while she was gone, but his irritation level increased. She’d been gone much too long. He was about to go looking for her when she finally returned. “What do you want to eat?”

“I’ve got some bread and cheese,” she began.

“You need better food than that,” he snapped. “More nutritious stuff. Like vegetables and fruit.”