Best Friends (New Species #15)(90)

“You’re my mate.” He smiled. “Probably my pregnant mate.”

“I better not be.” She turned and hurried toward the door again. She only got about nine more steps before his arm slid around her, and he pulled her against his body. She had to let go of her towel to grab at his arm under her breasts.

“I’ll allow your parents to meet our cub. They will probably just run away when they see him anyway. Maybe they’ll fear being bitten.”

She closed her eyes, trying to get a handle on her temper. One. Two. Three. Four. Fi―

He suddenly lifted her off her feet, burying his nose against her throat. A low growl came from him. “I want to bite you, but you would enjoy it.”

Her eyes flew open and she wiggled in his hold. “Put me down!”

“Never. You’re mine, Mary. I want to pet you.”

“And I want to smack you.”

He chuckled. “I like how spirited you are. I’m glad that you aren’t afraid of me anymore.” He lowered his face and placed hot, wet kisses on her shoulder. “Such a sexy mate. Let me take care of you.”

She didn’t fight him. It felt good to be held at that moment. What if she had gotten pregnant with his baby? No, a cub, she mentally corrected.

Part of her wanted to believe him when he said sweet things like he’d just stated. He might want to keep her and think he could care for a family, but he was kind of childlike if he thought life could be that simple. It wasn’t.

The NSO might have given him some kind of safe haven inside the massive room designed to be his home, but she doubted whoever was in charge had learned she was with Lash yet. Otherwise, they’d have come to get her and kicked her off Reservation.

“Mary? What are you thinking right now?” He lowered her to her feet.

She fought tears, and won. “It can’t work out between us.”

“It will.”

She twisted in his arms, and he loosened his hold enough for her to face him. His height had her tilting her head back a lot meet his gaze. His eyes were beautiful and so intense. “You have no idea what you’re talking about.”

He surprised her by lifting her off her feet again and holding her against his chest to put their faces almost at the same level. “I take mating you very seriously. Species don’t lie, Mary. This isn’t a game. I’m nothing like the human males who have hurt you. This is a lifetime commitment I’m making. Do you understand? I don’t want another female, and I’ll never leave you. I also won’t let you go. Don’t fear having my cubs, either. The NSO has some of the best doctors, if that’s a worry. Other Species babies have been born, and all of them, along with their human mothers, are healthy. There’s nothing for you to be afraid of. Just stay calm and relax. I will allow your parents into our lives if they want to be. Your happiness matters to me.”

She put her hands on his shoulders and wished she could believe him. He might mean it at that moment, but he’d regret everything later. It was just crazy to meet someone and make those kinds of outlandish promises. They were too different for it to work out between them in the long run.

“You don’t seem convinced,” he rasped. “Tell me what you doubt or fear. You look a bit afraid to me.” He sniffed. “You smell that way, too. I won’t hurt you.”

She took a deep breath and gripped him tighter, liking the firmness of his shoulders under her hands. “You keep talking about the way Species are, but you’re forgetting that I’m not one, Lash. What if you discover we’re too different? We are, you know. What happens if we break up after we have a child together? Is the NSO going to shove me out the gates with our kid, or worse, not let me near my own baby?” That nightmare situation frightened her even as she spoke. “Oh my God. Could they do that? Keep me from my own child? The laws don’t apply here, do they? Those walls that surround this place will keep me from seeing my own baby!”



Lash growled low and turned, glancing around. He carried Mary to the food they’d abandoned and sat, putting her on his lap. He firmly kept hold of her with one arm while reaching for the brownie on the plate. He offered it to her. “Eat this and breathe, mate. Females like chocolate, I’ve been told, and it makes them happy.”

She didn’t accept it. “Are you serious right now? Put it down before I shove it in your face.”

He placed the brownie back on the plate and held her with both arms. “No one would kick you out of Reservation or keep you away from our cubs. That’s silly human talk. So is thinking that we will break up. I know the term. Species don’t do that once they mate. We’ll fight sometimes but we won’t ever be separated from each other. I’m aware that you’re human, but you’re with me. I’m stubborn enough for both of us. Did you hear me when I said I’m never letting you go? That’s the truth. You are getting upset about things that won’t happen.”

She closed her eyes.

“Mary?” He hoped she wouldn’t cry. He’d seen tears in her eyes, and her tone hadn’t been one he liked. “I would never allow anyone or anything to hurt you in any way.”

She leaned against him and rested her cheek on his chest. “You make it sound so easy, but nothing ever is.”

He felt frustrated that she wasn’t listening to him. Humans could be so irrational. He knew that. “It is here with me.”