The Proposal - Kitty Thomas Page 0,46

so they can pass their money along using me as a mere container for this wealth transfer. But it makes me so fucking wet I can barely stand to have the eyes of so many strangers on me while I process all of this.

“And what if I can't have children?” I ask.

“That's the next clause,” Soren says.

He's right. I look down to find a place I have to initial regarding submitting to fertility tests with a doctor of their choosing as well as steps which will be taken to ensure heirs.

“This is insanity,” I say. “You do realize that infertility isn't just a woman problem, right? Men can be infertile as well.”

“We've already had all the appropriate tests. All of our swimmers are in top competition shape, I assure you,” Soren says.

I look over to Dayne who hasn't said a word about all this, but I swear he's imagining my belly swollen with his child—or children, if Griffin's comment about twins is correct.

I continue reading. Should these unions break by their choice, I will be allowed to keep the children with me, but Griffin, Dayne, and Soren will have access to their children whenever they choose. All needs for the children and for me will be taken care of and amounts and percentages are stipulated. If I leave, they get full custody and I get visitation.

I wonder if they're worried their past threats aren't strong enough to hold me. Maybe they need the future threat of surrendered custody of my own children to superglue my life to theirs. Or maybe even Soren isn't cruel enough to put the mother of his child in prison.

“You won't have to do all the childcare duties. And of course we'll want to have access to you whenever we please, so there will be help at the estate to take some of the burden of motherhood off you,” Soren says.

Of course. After all, three little heirs could get in the way of the men getting all their depraved needs met inside my body. I cross and recross my legs, trying to stop the throbbing ache that's been going since this meeting started.

I don't say anything more. I just finish reading the contracts, then I hand them to my placeholder attorney because I'm supposed to. I'm mortified for him to also be consuming these words. He takes out a pair of reading glasses and takes his sweet time poring over each word—probably getting off on it. The room is pin-drop silent while he engages in this show trial.

Soren is back to stroking the back of my hand. I wish he would stop. It does things to me. It makes me want to be his little spoon for the rest of time. And I can't feel that for this man. I don't understand why these small acts of kindness—if they are kindness—ignites an urge in me to please him, to be close to him.

I'm confused by how things have shifted or what any of it means. Both Dayne and Griffin still inspire the same feelings in me as before. And we still have our time together, time that is just ours. But increasingly Soren is taking up more and more space in my mind.

Maybe it's because he's the one who will be my husband and the other two are... what? Illicit lovers? Extras on our porn set? I don't understand how any of this can work. But I just sit quietly like the good girl I apparently am, while my attorney finishes reading the contracts.

Finally he slides them back over to me and nods as if this means anything—as if my interests have really been taken into account in this joke of a meeting. But in truth, the contracts are better than I expected. They do protect me if these men abandon me, and while they want heirs, these would be my children as well. And they'd be going into a life far better than I did. I always wanted children—three, coincidentally—and now those children have a future. I have a future. If I can survive it.

I dutifully initial on all the pages marked by a thin neon sticky note, then I sign and date the last page of each contract. I stack them together and place them in front of me on the conference table. I stare at the papers. A strange visual pops into my head of me transforming into a dragon and burning the contracts to ash with my flaming breath.

“Livia,” Soren says, interrupting