"But it isn't."
"It is," she said faintly.
Mark's breath hissed as he gasped. Jennette was blushing all over her body, heightening the golden color of it. He let her go, and she slid off his lap onto the shadowed grass beside him. She bit her lip. "I didn't really mean to tell you—yet."
There was silence. Mark said quietly, "That's all right, Jennette."
"You aren't angry with me, are you?"
"No," he said slowly. "Not angry."
"Mark—"
"Yes?"
"Now that we're into this thing," she asked hopefully, "why don't we try this marriage agreement—you know, like the ancients did. It seems like such a beautiful thing to do when two people like us—you know."
"I don't know." Mark shook his head doubtfully. "I just don't know about it."