Casey kicked off the boots they'd given her, reaching for her waist. She unfastened her pants and walked toward the door after kicking them off. She decided to just sleep in a shirt. She wished that the Zorn had bras and underwear but Ariel had said they didn't make them for women. Zorn women rarely wore clothing at home. They hated anything tight against their bodies.

She eyed the room again before waving off the lights. Casey found the bed and had to climb into it, literally, since it was so high. She was exhausted. She hated that she thought about Argernon, but she couldn't stop. He was awake and he was going to be fine.

He'd wanted to talk to her. He'd asked Ahhu to give her a message. He'd wanted her to know that he'd never meant to keep other women after he'd bound to Casey and asked if she would please see him. She didn't want to talk to him. She sure didn't want to see him. She was done being hurt. What kind of man just tossed aside three women who depended on him anyway? Her opinion of Argernon was in the toilet.

She wondered as she curled on her side on the comfortable bed if Argernon was still at the medical building or if he was currently snuggled up in a bed with his three lovers. It hurt to picture that. She hated the jealousy that caused her so much pain. She kept telling herself that she was better off without him. Her hand reached down to curl over her stomach through the thin shirt she wore to bed. Argernon's baby rested inside her. The shock hadn't worn off yet.

Casey couldn't deny that kids had always been a dream of hers. She'd always pictured a wedding first, some nice guy who worked a nine-to-five job as her husband, and the excitement of painting a baby's room. She would have cried, but she was out of tears. Instead she was having an alien's baby, one who had too many damn women in his life, and she was on a planet where she'd have to hook up with a stranger to even have a room to put her baby in when it was born.

She didn't even want to think about that scenario.

Of course her mind wasn't listening to her. She'd have to find a Zorn man to marry. They called it bound to. It would be like a job interview in Casey's mind. She'd interview men for the position, telling them what she wanted in a man, what she needed, and then have to go through the candidates to see who best could fill the role. It bit the big one. Depression hit her. She couldn't return to Earth with a Zorn baby and no way in hell was she not having the baby. She wanted it even if the baby's father was a lying asshole.

Rolling over, Casey blindly stared upward at a ceiling she couldn't see in the dark room.

Her head turned to the large window. It was still too dark out there to see anything, even after her eyes had adjusted to lights off. Zorn had three moons but it was a very cloudy night, so they weren't visible. Ariel had promised her a terrific view when the weather was better. It didn't matter. Casey shut her eyes. She needed rest. Tomorrow she'd deal with all of this shit when she wasn't so wrung out.

A door slammed somewhere in the house. Guilt hit Casey. She must have woken someone when she'd come in, no matter how quiet she and the guard had been. She listened to the silent house before relaxing again. She took slow, shallow breaths trying to relax enough to drift to off to sleep. It was the best thing for her. Tomorrow she wouldn't be so exhausted, and her brain might function right.

Something outside the bedroom door made a noise. Casey tensed but then forced her body to relax. It was probably Ariel's husband getting his pregnant mate something from the kitchen. Maybe he was making sure the doors were locked. A gasp escaped her as the bedroom door was suddenly opened. Light from the hallway blinded her as she jerked upright. Argernon stood braced in the wide-open doorway with the lights on behind him. Shock slammed into her at the site of him.

"Welcome home, beautiful," he growled softly to her. His voice was husky. "I'm sorry for the measures I went through to get you here. I know you don't want to see me, but I want to see you."

A shirtless Argernon was staring at her. Casey was speechless as she stared back at him.

His hair was loose, running down his chest and arms. He gripped the doorway for long seconds, before he slowly walked into the room. He waved his hand along the wall to trigger the lights on.

He moved his hand again so they dimmed enough that the room was almost shadowed but she could still see him really well. His glowing blue eyes were fixed on her.

"Did you really think I'd let you go, Casey? Did you really think that I would keep other women when I had you? I was going to make arrangements for the three of them to go elsewhere to another home. I thought I had time to do it, so they would be gone by the time we reached Zorn." He took another step closer. "You are the only woman who is in my bed and you are the only one who will be there from now on. You look perfect in it."

She looked at the bed she sat on, the color draining from her face. His bed? Her gaze jerked upward. He was closer. He put his hands on the end of mattress. Blue eyes stared at her intensely.

"You are everything to me, Casey. You carry my offspring in your belly. You belong to me and we both know it. Our offspring knows it. I apologize and regret the shock you suffered because I was unable to prepare a home for you that you would welcome happily, but I have fixed that. The house helpers are in new homes. I have arranged for an older house helper to come in the morning. Her duties never include touching me. She will take care of our home and our meals. She will keep you company and be your companion. All I require is you."

The shock was wearing off. Anger was slowly building in her. "You think it's that simple?"

He nodded. "I bound you and my seed planted in your body. I am thrilled, my Casey.

Lord of the Moons, you make me proud."

"That was so the wrong word to use."

He frowned. "What word?"

"Proud. Let me tell you what I think of you. You should be ashamed of yourself and I think you're lower than a pile of dog shit."

His frown deepened. "I know ashamed and I apologize. I made mistakes, but I corrected them. I know shit, but not what a dog is." His eyes narrowed. "I understand the insult and I understand that you are angry with me."