Michael Lee and Angela Peang can hardly wait for the birth of their first child — even if it results in them spending time behind bars.
The husband and wife from Eagle Mountain, Utah, are first cousins: Peang’s father is the older brother of Lee’s mother.
Since the baby’s existence proves they had sex, they could face up to $10,000 in fines and five years in prison, because intercourse between cousins is illegal in their home state, due to the long-held fear of birth defects. (According to a 2018 Columbia University study, the chances of cousins having a genetic disorder is 4 to 7%, compared to 3 to 4% for non-related couples.)
But the 38-year-old parents-to-be, set to appear in an upcoming episode of the WeTV series “Extreme Love,” are confident that their little boy, due May 22, will be delivered safely and in good health, following tests to rule out any disability.
“We had to do our due diligence because everyone was saying to us, ‘No, don’t do that,’ and ‘It’s so risky and irresponsible,'” Peang, who’s five months pregnant, exclusively tells The Post. “So we did genetic testing and found out it was OK for us to parent together.”
The controversial couple stick to the “Mind your own business” defense when it comes to their marriage — “I feel the same about gay marriage, even though I’m not gay,” says Peang. They also point out that unions between cousins are legal in more than half of US states, including New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, California and Colorado. (Canada and Europe also allow first cousins to wed.)
They avoided problems in Utah by tying the knot on a day trip to Grand Junction, Colorado, last March.
“We got married, not because we’re religious, but to protect ourselves legally,” says Peang, a stay-at-home mom who has three children from her first marriage. “We also wanted to legitimize our relationship to console members of our family, hoping it would put them at ease.”
Indeed, it has been an uphill battle securing the approval of relatives. Some have been suspicious of the bond between Lee and Peang since the cousins were fresh-faced second-graders.
The lovebirds didn’t meet until they were 7. Peang’s father, who worked for the State Department, was often stationed overseas, so she grew up in places as far afield as Pakistan and Japan. Lee, meanwhile, lived close to Salt Lake City in Utah.
That fateful first encounter happened around 1989, when Lee’s family visited the Peangs at their home outside Washington, DC.
“There was an instant connection between us,” says Lee, a car salesman. “We were very much simpatico.
“Angie was smart, adventurous and curious,” he says. “While other kids were into video games, she was interested in making little things or playing little games that were very much unique and different from those of other children.”
Peang remembers their first clandestine kiss and cuddle, at just 7 years old, in a darkened closet.
“We were slow-dancing together and I was kind of worried we’d get caught and be in trouble,” she says. “But it just felt right.”
So much so that Lee told his mother that he was going to one day marry his crush.
“My aunt said, ‘No, you can’t marry Angie,’ ” Peang says. “‘But you can be good friends.'”
The youngsters met again a year later and the spark reignited.
‘I was kind of worried we’d get caught and be in trouble. But it just felt right.’
“We were inseparable,” Peang recalls of that family reunion in Oregon. “The adults wouldn’t say, ‘Where is Michael?’ They’d say, ‘Where are Michael and Angie?’ It felt like a soul connection — as if I could see myself reflected in him.”
The cousins went to separate colleges before marrying their respective first spouses. Peang gave birth to two daughters, now 17 and 16, and a son, 12. Lee and his wife, who were married for four years, had no children.
Social media drew them together after they each divorced, Peang in 2010 and Lee two years later. In October 2018, Peang, who had since settled in Utah, was delighted to find out on Facebook that Lee was living there, too. She sent him a birthday greeting and they stayed in touch.
Soon, they were reunited at their grandma’s Christmas party.
“I went simply to see Michael,” admits Angie. “I don’t really mesh with the personalities of that side of the family because they’re a lot more stubborn, conservative and abrasive.
“But, as soon as I set eyes on him again, I knew I’d done the right thing.”
It was love at third sight. The cousins couldn’t stop talking and, by the end of the party, were getting physical.
“I put my arms around his waist and held them there for a little longer than you would with a typical family member,” says Angie. “My body language was signaling to him.”
At first, Michael proceeded with caution. “I didn’t want to set myself up for heartbreak,” he explains.
Nonetheless, the cousins started dating and didn’t try to hide it from Peang’s children. “Instead of telling them, we let them observe what was going on by cuddling and holding hands,” says Peang. “My younger girl was pretty upset and started crying — probably because she was going to have to adjust to a new person coming into the family — but now she is cool about our relationship.”
The couple’s parents gradually came around to the idea. But last January, when the sweethearts posted a graphic photo on Facebook of themselves French kissing, a small but vocal number of family members labeled them “disgusting.”
They include Cathy, a cousin in Wyoming who also appears on “Extreme Love.” On camera, despite their protestations of love, she disowns them.
“I couldn’t care less,” says Lee. “People [like Cathy] should only get angry about things that actually affect them.”
Unabashed, the duo launched a petition to legalize marriage between cousins in Utah. They’ve so far secured 1,500 signatures, but they need tens of thousands more to be taken seriously. 
“Our strongest argument is that Utah is in the minority with this law,” says Peang, who, like her husband, was raised Mormon, in which a small fraction of adherents still practice polygamy. “You’d think they’d want to be more mainstream and less strange, considering what they already do with polygamy.”
The newlyweds were delighted when blood tests confirmed it would be safe to conceive a child. “It was such a relief,” says Peang. “Now we are planning for a wonderful future together.”
Meanwhile, she says, their sex life is smoking.
“We have a strong attraction and it’s very mutually satisfying,” concludes the mom-to-be. “You have the erotic side, the friendship side, the family side and the spiritual connection.
“It’s a supercharged relationship.”
The episode of “Extreme Love” featuring Peang and Lee airs Jan. 17 at 10 p.m. on WeTV. All other “Extreme Love” Season 2 episodes will air Fridays at 10/9c on WeTV.