An Immoral Marriage Contract

"You haven't finished apologising, Sam," she told him seductively.

Sam could see in Sara's eyes what she meant, and he pulled her close and kissed her. From the first moment he had seen Sara in that gown, with her dark hair flowing down one shoulder he struggled to control himself. Their argument made things worse, he didn't know where things stood between them so didn't try anything in case it made things worse.

Sara had changed so much since they last met. She was quiet and insular, and how she dressed reflected that. Since the Christmas break, she became more confident, expressed her feelings more freely to him and her clothes got tighter which showed off her curves and reflected the newfound confidence she had in herself. Studying with her became more difficult as Sam found he had to spend a lot of energy controlling the urges that her presence was creating inside him. No matter how attractive he found her before, seeing Sara in this gown made him want her more. She looked like a goddess to him and now he was given a chance he was going to prove himself worthy of her.

Sam removed Sara's gown off her with ease and backed Sara onto the bed. Sara moved up to the bed and rested her head on the pillow as she watched Sam undress himself, her body betraying what she was feeling. Sam got onto the bed and moved on top of Sara. He seemed determined to please her. It felt to Sara like he was trying to make up for how he treated her and show what she meant to him. He had clearly been listening to her by giving her what she liked and wanted but he touched her with his fingers and mouth as he gently kissed her all over her body, in places where he hadn't before, did things to her that she had no idea she would enjoy with his tongue as he went lower down on her body. Pleasure overcame her body again and again and again as she orgasmed several times.

The pair of them were lying side by side breathing heavily. Sara was deep in thought thinking about what they had just done. No matter how angry she was with him all she just wanted him to do was hold and reassure her. Why couldn't he have seen that? But he had now more than made up for it.

Sara rolled on top of Sam and looked intensely into Sam's eyes,

"If you keep doing that, I will have to forgive you." Sara kissed Sam, fell back down, and snuggled in his arms, wrapping one leg around him and fell into a deep sleep.

Sam was lying still listening to Sara's soft breathing, he had given Sara everything he had. Hearing those words brought relief, knowing she still wanted him.

****************

The following morning, Sara found herself waking up next to Sam. She still couldn't believe where she was. Turned over and looked at the sleeping Sam, trying to work out what to do, thinking about the situation she was in. She had been effectively married off to the heir of the Lord of the Underworld (it had become easier to say that now instead of the Devil) before she was born by her parents who had no idea who they were marrying their daughter off to. What was unexpected was that she fell in love with him. The question was, did she love Sam enough to marry him? Beneath those rebellious good looks was a shy, clumsy, and charming boy who would do anything for and to protect her.

Sara moved her head to rest it on Sam's chest. It felt like they were no longer just boyfriend and girlfriend. It felt that after their argument their relationship was now stronger. Sara knew now that Sam was the one for her and she was sure he felt the same about her. She began stroking Sam's chest, his stomach and finally between his legs. When she could feel him harden and his breathing became shallower, she stopped. Last night was plenty, they didn't need to do anymore this morning.

Sam and Sara walked to the dining room hand in hand sitting down with Sophonisba and Lucifer for breakfast.

"So, have you decided what you're going to do Sara? Are you going to stay and marry Samael?" Lucifer asked impatiently.

"Lucifer! Don't be rude. Let the poor girl eat her breakfast." Sophonisba admonished.

"A contract was agreed, we need to know if it will be honoured."

"There you go with your stupid contracts, again. You tricked Sara's parents into signing it anyway so as far as I'm concerned there is no contract to honour."

Sara smiled. Sophonisba certainly did have power over Lucifer. Despite all the thousands of years they spent together they still loved each other and that convinced Sara what she wanted was the right thing to do.

"It's ok," Sara told Sophonisba. "I have decided what I want to do." Sara took hold of Sam's hand and took a deep breath knowing once said there was no going back, "I have decided I will marry Sam like what was agreed with my parents."

"Excellent!" Lucifer exclaimed happily.

"Ssh, Lucifer! Sara hasn't finished." Sophonisba admonished the Lord of the Underworld.

Sara smiled knowing that thanks to Sophonisba she had the power of the whole underworld at that moment.

"I have decided to marry Sam," Sara continued, "but I want Sam and myself to date for a while before we do, have holidays together, do things that normal couples do then Sam has to propose to me, with a diamond ring. I also want to regularly see my parents'; I want my mother to come with me to choose my wedding dress, I want them to know I forgive them for what they did so they can die in peace. They only have me and as they get older, they will need me more even if they won't admit it. If I am to produce an heir, I want them to see their grandchild. Once they have passed on, I will come here to live here."

At that moment Sara felt older and wiser than her years.

"Date? Propose? Diamond ring? What nonsense is this?" Lucifer said incredulously.

"Lucifer! The world has changed. It isn't like when we got married. Women are educated, they aren't married off to strangers anymore."

"Her parents did marry her off to a stranger," Lucifer pointed out.

"Be quiet Lucifer! Let the women make the decisions so the right decisions are made. You have interfered in Sara's life enough" Sophonisba said taking Sara's side.

A thought struck Sara at Sophonisba's words.

"Lucifer, are you the reason I never had friends?" she asked.

"Actually, no. That was bad luck. I had to keep Samael away from the world while he was growing up. There was a real risk of Samael killing someone with his temper but for you, it was bad luck. I cannot control people's feelings or relationships. Everything the two of you feel for each other is your own. Why did you stop trying? Your fate is your own, Sam's has been decided since birth."

Thoughts raced through Sara's head at Lucifer's words. Sara was relieved but disappointed at the same time at being told not being able to make friends was nobody's fault but in the end, it was bad luck and her fault for giving up. She had no one else to blame but herself. She hadn't thought to see things from Sam's point of view. His fate was decided at birth. She had the option to say no, but he didn't. It must have been hard to tell her who he was. Perhaps she was a little hard on him, but he was dishonest, so a little punishment was required.

Getting back on the subject, Sophonisba said, "I think that is a wonderful plan, Sara. However, if you are to produce an heir the baby must be conceived and born in the underworld. May I suggest that you stay with your parents while you and Samael are dating and once you are married you can conceive the baby here in the underworld and live with your parents during your pregnancy before giving birth here. Once the baby is born you can regularly visit your parents."

"I think I can do that, but I will need to be with them when they pass on."

"Of course, Sara. Lucifer, darling, we will need you to watch over Sara's parents so Sara can be with them when they need her."

"What? It is not as if I don't have other things to do. Do you know how busy I am?"

"We need Sara to be happy. It is not a lot to ask, and we need Sara. You will get your heir quicker if she is pregnant in the world and it will spare Sara the pain of a two-hundred-year pregnancy like I had to endure."

"Oh, all right," Lucifer grumpily agreed.

"Wonderful! We have a decision. Well done, Sara. When do you plan to leave?"

"After breakfast."

"Okay, remember time moves slower here than in the world. For you it has been one night, in the world it would have been a few years." Turning to Sam, Sophonisba told her son like he was a small boy, "You are going to live with Sara's parents. Remember to behave yourself. Take Sara straight to her parents' house. Right, you both best get going.

"Before I forget, give this to your parents to pay for your upkeep." Lucifer gave Sara a small box. She gasped when she saw it was full of precious stones. "I know they are very valuable in the world, but they are just lying around on the floor in their thousands here," he said with a shrug.

Chapter 6

Sara and Sam walked through a door and reappeared just inside Sara's parents' house.

"Mother? Father?" Sara called.

Felicity walked out of the living room and nearly fell backwards in shock, "Oh my God! Sara is that really you!?"

"Yes, mother," This was not the reaction Sara was expecting.

"Where have you been?"

"I have literally spent the night in Hell."

"The night? You've been missing for five years," Felicity looked at Sam and knew Sara was telling the truth. "Michael! Michael! Sara's here!"

Michael came quickly to them and held Sara tight. "You've come back!" Sara could see her father had been sick with worry.

"I have a lot to tell you and I think I have a lot to catch up on. Shall we go to the living room?"

"I'll make some tea." Sam offered.

Sara looked at her parents. They looked older than the last time she saw them. Her disappearance had really affected them. For Sara, it was just a week since she last saw them and one night in the underworld but for her parents it was five years. Sophonisba told the truth.

"How is this possible? You haven't aged at all, Sara." Felicity said after Sam brought the tea.

"In the Underworld, time moves a lot slower there than here," Sam answered for Sara.

"It is true Mother. Sam's mother is the daughter of Hannibal Barca and is over two thousand years old but looks like she is in her forties."

"What, the Cathargian Hannibal! The man who crossed the Alps and defeated the Romans is Sam's grandfather! I don't believe it!" Michael said incredulously.

"It is true," Sam confirmed. "Though I never met him. I can tell you the story of my mother if you would like later," remembering the previous time, he was in this house he felt like he needed to treat Michael and Felicity more compassionately.

"It is all true, but we have something to tell you." Sara took a breath to deliver her big news, "Sam and I are getting married."

Sara told her parents what had happened to her and what she had decided.

"The Underworld isn't what the religious books say," Sam said trying to reassure Michael and Felicity again. "It is there to rehabilitate souls, to relieve them of their guilt so they can go to heaven. We will be doing some great work. Helping lost souls in death find what they couldn't give themselves in life."

"If I am with Sam, I will be happy. I should be angry with you for what you did and for not telling me. What you did was unforgivable. I have been pulled in one direction all my life without anyone asking if I am okay with it, but I have taken back my fate. But despite it all, I do forgive you and don't feel guilty for what you did because it ends in my happiness and if I am with Sam, then I will be happy."

Felicity and Michael felt relief as the guilt they carried was lifted from them after all those years. They could see Sara was happy being with Sam who they could see worshipped their daughter.

"How long are you going to stay for?" Felicity asked.

"I don't know. It will be for a few years; it all depends on how long it takes Sam to propose. That is if you'll have us."

"Of course, this is your home. You can stay as long as you like," Felicity said happily, wiping away a tear.

"You will be sleeping you separate rooms." Michael quickly returned to his role as the overprotective father.

"No, Father. We both will be sleeping in my room." Sara said. "We are getting married, remember."

Michael looked at his daughter. When did his shy, quiet little girl grow into this confident woman before him?

"What have you been up to since I was away? Are you still prime minister?" Sara asked although in her gut knew the answer.

"No, there was a financial scandal involving your mother. It was completely made up, but I had to resign because of it. We fought those lies all the way and won but it took so much of our energy that we decided to retire from politics and dedicate ourselves to the community. My replacement is a good friend and he helped keep our reputations intact."

"I am so sorry," what her father told her reminded her of Sophonisba's story. She was glad that politics wasn't as violent as in the days of Hannibal. At least she still had her parents, unlike Sophonisba.

Felicity and Michael insisted that the four of them went out for dinner. When they got home the four of them went to bed early.

"Thank you for trying with my parents," Sara told Sam. "I know they aren't totally happy with the situation, but they know I am happy with you," with that, she kissed Sam down his body, and she decided to reward him again. Instead of finishing him off, Sara mounted Sam so she could enjoy them being together too.

For the first time in their lives, Sara and Sam felt companionship. Their lonely lives until they met were not unhappy as they didn't know any better but being together showed them what friendship, love, and happiness were.

For Sara, she knew that her fate was her own. She was choosing Sam, not their parents, not a contract that she was traded for. Sam was clumsy and tended to get it wrong, but she knew he would protect her and love her for the next few thousand years and for that, she was more than happy to live in the Underworld. For Sam, he knew Sara was his partner, the only one who could support him in the role he was born into and even if he wasn't she would have still been the one for him.

Epilogue

Two voices interrupted her relaxation. One unfamiliar sounded like a scared young woman, and one familiar sounded like it was pleading with the first.

"Luci, Where I am? Where have you taken me?" she heard the first say which sounded like a young woman.

"Don't worry. It's fine. It's my home," the second more masculine voice said whom she recognised as being her son.

She knew exactly what was happening. Her husband fortunately wasn't here so she could handle it without interference.

"Lucifer, is that you?" She called over and over. She found them on the balcony. The girl was crying, he was looking away looking hurt. Memories flooded back to her.

"Lucifer!" she embraced her son. "Aren't you going to introduce me?" she asked on seeing the girl.

"Mother, this is Clarissa. The girl I was telling you about."

"You, mean she's your girlfriend," she said with exasperation, the feeling of history repeating itself was becoming stronger. "If she is your girlfriend, you should say so!" Holding out her hand she warmly welcomed the frightened girl, "I am so pleased to meet you. Lucifer has told me so much about you." Turning to Lucifer she told her son, "Take Clarissa to change into something more comfortable, then come back as I want to talk to you." Returning to the girl, "Let's have a chat over a cup of tea when you have changed."

When her son returned, she made him fully aware of his mistakes,

"Did you ask for her permission before bringing her here?"

"She wouldn't believe I was trying to convince her who I was."

"You mean you didn't and how long have you been seeing this girl before you told her who you were?"

"About a year." Her son said knowing he was in trouble.

"A year! And you only decided to tell her now"? So, you brought her here to tell her!? Didn't you think about how she would feel, how she would react!?" she was furious with her son. He was so much like his father.

"Well.....she needs to know if we are going to get married."

"For a smart boy, you can be completely clueless sometimes. You should have told her a long time ago. What if she doesn't want to marry you, now she knows? Did you think of that? You have been dishonest with that poor girl."

"She has to marry me; her parents signed a contract. Father told me."

She rolled her eyes,

"Of course, a contract, there is always a contract. That contract is meaningless just like the one my parents signed. It is a stupid trick. If she doesn't want to, she doesn't have to marry you. Her feelings can't be controlled. Didn't your father not tell you that?"

The silence told her he hadn't, and it didn't surprise her.

"Go find your father, I want to talk to him."

As her son left chastised, the tearful girl returned. She reminded her of herself all those many years ago, in the same situation, frightened and confused.

"Come and sit down my dear," she said pouring two cups of tea. "I am sure you have many questions but before I do let me tell you, my story. My name is Sara Beatriz Nugent, the daughter of a British prime minister and I have been married to the Lord of the Underworld for over a thousand years."