For some reason Lina had a half smile on her face, one she quickly wiped away when Charlotte glared at her. "Let me get this straight, dearest. You won't marry him because he doesn't love you, is that it?"
"You heard him. Love has nothing to do with what's between us," she said angrily.
"But we know differently, don't we? You're in love with him. I'm not sure why, but I accept your choice. ”
"It's not my choice. He doesn't want me for the right reasons, and I won't take him for the wrong ones. " She could feel the tears welling up again, and she dashed them away. “And why am I crying all the time? I never used to be so pathetic. "
"Another sign of pregnancy, Miss Charlotte," Meggie said in her practical voice. "Anytime me mum got knocked up she'd start bawling all over the place. I used to think it was just because she didn't want another bastard clinging to her, but she told me no, it came with the baby. You're pregnant. "
Enough was enough. Charlotte stopped fighting it. She burst into tears, flinging herself face down on the bed. And it wasn't until later that she realized that Lina had quietly slipped out.
Adrian made it as far as the stables. He spun on his heel and turned back. He was making a habit of this, he thought wryly. She really did have the ability to make him insane.
He was damned if a child of his was going to be born a bastard. She didn't like it-she could damn well make the best of it. The best of a title, a fortune, belter sex than she'd ever find in her life. There were worse fates for an overtall spinster with red hair and freckles. He didn't care what she wanted or didn't want.
Except that he loved her rich, coppery hair. He loved her creamy skin and the flecks of gold that danced across it in the most deliciously unexpected places. He hadn't gotten around to discovering all those places, and he was never a man to leave a job only partly done.
And what if she wasn't pregnant? He thought, strolling back into the house as if his very future weren't at stake. Then he'd do his best to ensure she soon would be. He wanted her to be pregnant, he realized with a sense of shock. Wanted her to be carrying his baby. The thought of her, round and waddling, heavy with child, filled him with an odd sense of what might almost be cal
led delight. Not that he would go that far. But his father would probably appreciate an heir if she had a boy, and his mother worried about him incessantly. If he were married she might calm down a little.
Of course his mother wanted him to fall in love. He could lie to her, though she tended to see through his prevarications even more quickly than his father did. But he imagined he could do a pretty good approximation of a man besotted. The kind of man who'd wake his godfather up in the middle of the night, demanding a special license. The kind of man who'd then jump on a horse and ride all night after her, ignoring the fact that he'd just been bashed in the head and leg and couldn't walk without limping. The kind of man who'd drag a woman off and shag her senseless in the middle of the day in an abandoned nursery.
The kind of man who wouldn't admit how much he needed her.
Simon Pagett was coming out the front door just as Adrian was about to enter. He had a troubled expression on his face, and when he spied Adrian he didn't look particularly pleased.
"You really are a vicar?" Adrian demanded abruptly.
“No, I wear the collar because it limits my fashion choices," he replied icily. "What do you want, Rohan?"
Adrian reached in his pocket and pulled out the crumpled license, handing it to him. Pagett frowned, looking it over. "How did you manage this?" he said finally.
“He's my godfather. "
"It's dated today. "
"I know when it's dated, man," Rohan said irritably. "I went and woke the old man up right after you left me. He wasn't best pleased with me—I'm not expecting much of a wedding present. "
Pagett surveyed him for a long moment. "I didn't realize you knew she was pregnant. "
"Bloody hell, did everyone know she was pregnant but me?" he exploded.
"If you didn't know she was pregnant why did you get the special license?"
Adrian said nothing.
Author: Anne Stuart
"If I'm going to marry you I'll need an answer. "
"You know, you're a pain in the arse," Rohan shot back. "You'd think you'd spent your life being a saint. ”
“You're never too old to change your ways," he said. "Why?"
“It seemed like a good idea at the time. "
"And Miss Spenser agreed?"