Uleni's Gamble Read Online Free PDF

him tonight though, and she was looking forward to it. It was the one place she could always release all her worries, and just be with the man she loved. In that place she was completely submissive to him and his desires. It was an escape, a short time without responsibility.
    She took his hand, squeezed it, and led him into the second bedroom. When she turned to face him he dropped to one knee which almost made her giggle. Wasn’t that her position?
    He said, “It is a tradition on my world, that when a man asks a woman to be his mate, it is done from one knee. Nora, I love you and I always will, will you be my mate and have my children?”
    Nora’s eyes widened and she felt tears in her eyes. She asked in a weak voice, “Why are you asking me now, when there is danger coming.”
    He sighed. “I have wanted to ask all this past week, waiting for the perfect time. I realized tonight, my life will always be in danger. There will be no perfect time to ask, a safe time for you to accept. I am the hero to the church, and Abelaweth, no matter how uncomfortable that makes me feel.
    “But men who crave power will always see me as their greatest enemy, the obstacle that must be removed. Perhaps it is selfish for me not to wait, but what if there is always a threat, and it is never the right time? It is a risk, but I love you, and want you as my mate.”
    She was struggling with it, what if she got pregnant? She would have to choose who to protect, him or their unborn child. The idea of it made her throat close up in a panic. Wasn’t this supposed to be her relaxation time? A vacation from reality? She gasped in a breath when she started to feel dizzy. Perhaps safety was an illusion, but it was one she needed before she could say yes.
    At the very least, she needed time to sort it out, what if it was just her paranoia? But the idea of him being without her, for at least a few months before giving birth, and fighting battles, terrified her.
    She collapsed onto her knees and hugged him close.
    She whispered, “It is my greatest desire to be your mate and raise our family. Every part of me wants that. But illusion or not, I can’t do that until we aren’t being threatened. Vague threats I can deal with, but what we know is coming? If I got pregnant, I could never choose between you or our unborn baby, leaving you to fight without me or leaving to protect the baby would drive me mad.
    “I love you more than my life and will never leave you in this life, but I can’t be your mate, not yet, though my heart cries for it.”
    She wondered how he would take it. Would he be angry? Understanding? But she couldn’t even see his face through her tears.
    He kissed her softly and she heard him whisper, “Our children will wait for us love, just tell me when you are ready.”
    Despite the understanding in his voice, she felt bad for saying no, especially since she wanted it so badly herself. She deepened their kiss desperately and started pulling at his clothes, needing them off of him. They were very much in her way right now. All her conflicting emotions were turning to passion inside her, she needed to give herself to him in every way possible, in every way except that one.
    She was truly his, she just couldn’t give him a child, not yet. Not until Uleni had been dealt with.
    She heard his gasp as she finally got his pants out of the way and teased him expertly with her hands. Her lips locked with his as she explored his mouth with her tongue. She felt him pick her up and carry her to the bed where he put her down gently. They had always either made love, or she was extremely submissive to him, she was his perfect little slut and she loved being that.
    But this time, she needed to be the aggressor. She took her tunic off as he pulled down her breaches, but when he moved to mount her she wrapped her legs around him tightly and rolled to the side, plunging herself down on him, impaling herself with abandon when she reached the top.
    He