The Panther's Surrogate: A Paranormal Pregnancy Romance Read Online Free

Kheem said in a smoky voice that made her melt like butter in his presence.
    “They’ll never give it to us,” Josie said to him with all the truth and honesty she could muster. He knew it too. She could see it in his dark eyes; the darkness of the room couldn’t hide it. She ran her hand over his chest, standing close to him. “Give me some time to think about it,” Josie said after a moment.
     
     
     
     
     
     

Chapter 2
     
    “You got big plans tonight?” Karen asked Josie with the kind of light, friendly personality that Josie envied from her.
    Karen was the kind of woman that Josie would kill to have at the Tiki, but she was over at the Luxario, working for Josie’s rival in the industry. Karen had the charm and the personality that everyone wanted in their staff at a bar. There was something magnetic about her and the way she effortlessly made people talk and feel comfortable was something to envy. But, the Luxario was her first hire and Karen was loyal. That was something that was both incredibly infuriating and respectable to Josie.
    “Nah,” Josie said, stirring her overly fruity drink and staring across the courtyard to the Tiki where she hoped she could get a glance of Kheem, but there wasn’t much hope. She was hopelessly smitten by him but it was important to the two of them that no one found out about it. So she looked back at her drink and stirred it methodically, staring at the fruit speared on the plastic sword. “How about you?” Josie asked Karen.
    Karen had been a culinary star in America where she’d been rising through the finest spirits establishments and gin joints only to end up at the Royal Palace after her husband died. She had since been dedicated to her craft and was constantly getting interviewed by foodies and journalists in the industry.
    They wanted to know why so many people were coming to the small island of Tarobi in the Caribbean to have a drink from her. The praise and the attention were definitely deserved and Josie wished she’d ended up at the Tiki. Having Karen around after a long night at the bar was a dream come true.
    “I’m here until closing,” Karen scrunched up her nose and gave a little shrug. “Beatrice has Chloe though, so no playing for the rest of the night. I’ll probably head home and open a carton of ice cream with her.”
    “She’ll still be awake?” Josie furrowed her brow.
    “Oh yeah,” Karen grinned, thinking about her daughter. “She wakes up the moment I come home. She can hear the door and boom, she’s up.”
    “That’s sweet,” Josie grinned at the thought of having a little, tiny person at home waiting for her.
    That wouldn’t be such a bad thing. That would be something she could actually get onboard with. What would it be like to have a child who was totally dependent and eager to see you? It was like you were both their slave and their god. She shook her head at the thought of it.
    “Karen, did you guys plan Chloe or was she a surprise?” Josie asked her.
    If Karen hadn’t been one of her closest friends on the island, there was no way she would ask such an upfront question. But they were close friends and it seemed like Karen was the best person to get an opinion from. Karen looked at her and then stared at the ceiling, diving into her memories and drudging up the thoughts that were escaping her.
    “You know, I think we both wanted to have a child,” Karen said with a nostalgic grin on her face. “But, I don’t think either of us were really expecting it seriously when I took the test and found out, you know? Like, it was real at that moment and we’d just been flirting with the idea up until then. It was really a powerful moment. So, honestly, I think it was a surprise for the both of us. Like a good surprise, you know? I hate it when people say they’re children were accidents.”
    “Yeah,” Josie could agree with that.
    No one accidentally gets pregnant. She’d been safe up until this moment, mostly because