193356377X-Savage-Shores-Wildes by sirenpublishing.com

hair,
    his gaze at once tender and compelling. “Do you also understand
    that when a woman has her courses, it is because her body readied
    for conception, but it didn’t happen? But if her flux does not come,
    and she has had sexual intercourse frequently , it is likely she is
    going to have a child.”
    His emphasis on the word frequently sent the blood into her
    neck and cheeks. Suddenly she felt as if the world slipped out from
    under her and she stepped back abruptly, shaking free of his hand,
    her mind whirling. It was a fact that she hadn’t bled in the regular
    way for a long time.
    Could it be true ?
    “Jenna.” The way he said her name was gentle. “Are your
    breasts a little tender? They look fuller, even more enticing than
    before. And you are sleeping in the afternoons, resting so you can
    grow this life within you. I don’t think there is any question of
    your condition.”
    “I’m going to have a baby?” She wasn’t sure how to feel, her
    legs suddenly weak.
    “I think so. In fact, I am quite sure.”
    A thousand thoughts slid through her mind in a second.
    “Here?” she said suddenly fearful. “With snakes and leopards and
    God knows what makes that horrible sound in the night…”
    “We’ll protect you and the babe,” Jonathan said, his gaze
    steady. His smile was almost tentative, a difference from his usual
    arrogant expression. “Are you upset?”
    “I don’t know,” she answered honestly. Her hand went to her
    stomach, feeling the taut skin there, flat against the very gentle
    swell. It seemed suddenly that what he said made complete sense,
    all of it, and that maybe somewhere deep she had known
    something was happening to her body. “You must think I am an

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    ignorant fool to not have guessed this myself,” she mumbled. “Do
    Anthony and Charles know?”
    “Yes—at least Anthony does, and Charles will not be
    surprised.” Jonathan smiled wider, catching her and bringing her
    close, encircling her with his strong arms. “You are not a fool,
    Jenna, but a product of your upbringing. We are all not only older,
    but vastly more experienced. And as for myself, I am pleased with
    your condition.”
    “You are?” Tilting her head back, she studied his expression,
    resting against him. He looked sincere and relieved maybe that she
    had not flown into a bout of hysterics. Then a thought occurred to
    her and she flushed. “You can’t even know it is yours,” she said
    reluctantly.
    His long fingers caught her chin, tilting her head upward. “Do
    you want this babe to be mine?” he asked in a husky voice, his
    azure gaze mesmerizing.
    She did, heart and soul. “Yes,” she admitted.
    “Then as far as I am concerned, it is. If for no other reason than
    it grows inside you.”
    For the first time since she had offered herself to them all what
    seemed a lifetime ago, he kissed her when it was not going to be
    his night, his mouth warm and gentle, his tongue slipping inside to
    taste and caress. She capitulated with joy, her bare body against his
    strong tall form, her arms clasping his neck. It was a long, tender
    embrace and when he broke it, he smiled again, not looking in the
    least like the jaded aristocrat she knew, nor like the impassioned
    lover of her dreams. “I am going to be a father,” he said with open
    wonder.
    * * * *
    The animals, too, seemed to know something monumental was
    going to happen. The underbrush of the jungle was unnaturally

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    Emma Wildes
    silent, the usual constant rustling and movement gone. Even the
    birds ceased their insistent racket, a hushed silence hanging like a
    pall over the leaves and twisted vines.
    Anthony moved purposefully in front, knife in one hand, spear
    in the other. Vigilant, he led them through the dense growth,
    finding his way by the markers they had left on previous
    excursions. Behind him Jonathan followed, carrying Jenna in his
    arms, her golden head resting on his shoulder. Charles made up the
    rear,