Carnal Rites by Ines Johnson (learn to read books .TXT) 📕

canting on its axis. "There's something different about you. Your face is flushed. Your eyes look glazed. You're lips are..." She tilted her head upright.

"What did you need, my lady?"

"I..." Merlyn continued to study him. But then shook her head, shaking off any blooming idea. "I have something to show you." She waved him over to the scope. "I added a dye to the spermatozoa that breached the war wall. I figure we can note which egg gets fertilized with each colored spermatozoa. Then when the fetus develops we'll know which sperm."

"I don't think that will be necessary."

The frown on Merlyn's mouth reminded Liam of a pouting child. Her hands on her hips pushed up her breasts. Liam almost pulled her to him then. Instead, he stepped away from her and went over to his desk in the corner.

"I found something when I was doing calculations on Darwin 152's specimen." He pulled out his notes. "It appears that there's a difference in the mass of some of his sperm. There were some sperm that were pushed deeper into the fluid of the culture than others. I looked closer at the sperm that sank, in an effort to determine why." He pointed to his numerical findings. "Do you see it?"

Merlyn regarded the paper. "I see your math, but I do not understand your conclusion."

Liam led her back to her microscope. "Tell me if some sperm have sunk lower than others."

Merlyn peered into her scope. "Yes, some are swimming lower than others."

Liam turned up the magnification on the scope. "Now, look closely at the low swimming sperm. Do you see a difference?"

He waited while she studied the specimen.

"Is that...?" Merlyn's head came back, then she leaned forward to the scope again. "I see something... extra."

"It’s an extra leg. I read in a twentieth century medical journal that the chromosomes were marked as X and Y."

The medical document was banned research from the twentieth. The only way Liam had gotten his hands on it was because Merlyn's cousin, Lady Chanyn, now volunteered in the Parchment Office of the Chamber of Records. She'd come across the documents and thought they might be of interest to Merlyn. They lay untouched on Merlyn's shelf for weeks before Liam came across them.

"I thought the X and Y were only labels," Liam continued. "But I realized it wasn't a markation."

Merlyn straightened from the scope. Her eyes brimmed with understanding.

"I think," Liam said, "the male sperm are in the shape of a Y, and female sperm are an X, which would make the female's heavier because they have an extra leg."

Merlyn's eyes went wide, her face flushed. Her breath came as short pants. Her hands trembled. "You've found it, Liam. You've done it."

The way she looked at him, as though he were the sun itself, Liam breathed in the look, committing it to memory. "No, we did it. Together."

Merlyn beamed at him. It caught his breath. He would blame his next move on the fog in his mind. Liam's head was still fogged from his time at the brothel. Fogged with thoughts and sensations he hadn't had the time to investigate. That was what made him make his move.

Liam reached out his hand. He'd never touched her before. She was softer than he imagined. He felt her warm breath on his thumb as he ran his finger across her lip.

She jerked away from him. "What are you doing?" Her eyes were as round as saucers as she looked at his hand.

Liam's joy deflated. "I... I..." he stammered.

"Was there something on my face?" Merlyn wiped at her face.

Liam took a deep breath. "Yes." He reached his hand out. Merlyn not only allowed his hands on her person, she leaned into his hand expecting him to wipe away the intrusion on her face. Liam brushed his thumb over the bottom of her lips once more.

"Liam?"

Liam stepped closer and placed his other hand on her waist. He tilted her chin up with his thumb, then snaked his whole hand around her nape.

"Liam?" Merlyn's eyes were wide once more, but she did not pull away. "Liam, what are you—"

Liam firmed his grasp and tilted her head back. Her hands came up to his chest, but she didn't push him away. For the first time in his life, he was in charge. The last thing Liam wanted to do was to go slowly or gently. But slowly, lightly, his lips descended to hers. He caught her lower lip in a gasp. He peppered light kisses at the corner of her mouth.

At first, she was stiff and still. But then it happened. She relaxed into his arms and her head moved incrementally, trying to anticipate his moves. Liam knew what to do. Jaspir had told him this, that she'd think and try to anticipate his moves. He'd learned the lesson, he knew he had. But he couldn't recall it. He had Merlyn in his arms, and she was kissing him back.

She tilted her head to the right and he mirrored her movement. She tilted her head to the left and he followed, chasing the sweetness of her. It was over far too soon.

Merlyn took a step back, taking her lips with her. She stared at him dumbfounded. That's when Liam felt a huge sense of accomplishment. Merlyn was never at a loss for words, those words usually being logical ones. She was speechless now.

He'd done it. He'd not only kissed her, he'd kissed her in a way that he knew she'd remember. Maybe he wouldn't need the rest of Jaspir's lessons after all.

The door jerked open. Liam and Merlyn sprung apart.

Lady Angyla entered.

"Mother." Merlyn found her voice. It was a wobbly voice. "Good news. We've determined a way to identify female spermatozoa."

Lady Angyla looked between the two of them. "Show me."

Merlyn took her Mother to the scope and explained Liam's findings. "It's mainly due to Liam's mathematical—"

"This is simply brilliant, Merlyn. Do you know what this does?"

"Yes," Merlyn said. "Gender selection is now a reality.