Jacie and the Alien Bodyguard (Intergalactic Brides 6) by Jessica Coulter Smith Read Free Book Online

elevator up after she’d shut him out downstairs? Or were there stairs somewhere that she didn’t know about? Either way, he was a sneaky bastard.
    “That isn’t entirely true,” he said.
    “Which part?”
    His lips quirked on one side. “Oh, the part about Myro being an asshole was accurate. But it doesn’t matter to me how many children you’re having. One child would have been just as much of a blessing to me as four. The way I see it is that four would be a blessing to you , if you were to mate with me. Because if you’d only had one, you might have always wanted another, and I’d have been incapable of giving one to you.”
    “So four babies instead of one doesn’t make me any more attractive to you?” she asked.
    He hung his head a moment before that penetrating gaze clashed with hers. “Jacie, I think we both know that I desire you. I can barely refrain from touching you and the evidence of my arousal when you’re near is hard to ignore. The fact you’re pregnant is just a bonus, but I want what’s best for you, and I’m not entirely sure that’s me. I’ll watch over you as long as you need me. But if you still want a mate, I’ll help you find one. There has to be someone on this planet who wouldn’t mind claiming four children as their own. I’m going to have the council speak with Myro, when his mate and child aren’t around, and tell him about the babies. And then I’m going to have them request that he sign away his rights to the children and any claim he may have had on them.”
    “Barimere, I don’t know you that well, but from what little I’ve learned, I think any woman would be lucky to claim you as her mate. The things you think make you a bad mate actually make you a great one. No woman wants to worry that her man has gone off to war and might not return. Instead of attending grueling training day after day, you could spend time with your mate and kids.” Jacie folded her arms over her chest. “You have to admit, I make a good point.”
    Barimere sighed and straightened.
    “Don’t argue with me,” she said. “You’ll lose.”
    His lips twitched as if he fought a smile.
    “Look, I’m not saying we have to ride off into the sunset together,” she said, “but what if we just spent some time together, get to know one another a little better, and kind of test the waters? The more time we spend together, we’ll either grow closer or we’ll be at each other’s throats all the time.”
    “And if we grow closer, then you think we should become mated?” he asked.
    “Well, it makes sense. We already have sexual chemistry going for us. If we become friends too, then we’ll have the best of both worlds. On my world, people go their entire lives searching for the right mate, and sometimes they’re lucky enough to find him or her. But only a small, blessed number of people are lucky enough to marry their best friend.”
    His lips did tip up that time. “And you think I could become your best friend?”
    “Would it hurt to give us a chance to find out?”
    “I’m going to speak with the council about housing and let them know the latest development, as well as discuss the Myro issue. When I get back, we’ll talk about how things are going to work between us. Until then, I suggest you rest. If you’d like to watch the Vid-comm, press the orange button to turn it on. Hold the yellow and blue buttons in at the same time to pull up the list of available movies, and then use the arrows to navigate through the list and press the green button to select something.”
    “And if a call comes through?” she asked.
    “The purple button on the left.”
    “Thank you.”
    His gaze caressed her before he tipped his head to her and backed out, letting the door close behind him. Jacie walked over to the Vid-comm and followed his instructions to choose a movie. She was halfway through the list when the Vid-comm made a weird noise. Not knowing what else it could be, she pressed the