A Convenient Bride (14 page)

For some reason, this pleased him, though he knew he should be eagerly checking the mail every day for her post. He did not want the marriage any more than she did. The sooner it was over, the sooner he could be rid of her haunting presence, a constant shadow over his life.

He could still taste her lush mouth, remember her scent, and feel the way her body fit his so perfectly. Though he tried to eject her from his mind, he could not. She’d taken hold and refused to release him. Perhaps he should take a lover, a widow with no hopes for marriage. Yet somehow he could not take that step while his wife was still his wife. The thought of betraying Brenna left him with a sour taste in his mouth.

“Would you care to share your thoughts, Richard?” Miriam interrupted his musings. “You’ve been quiet of late. Well, quieter than usual.”

Smiling, he nodded. “I’ve not been a very attentive host,” he agreed. “My mind has been occupied elsewhere.”

Miriam scanned his face. “A woman perhaps?”

Richard met her gaze. Was it that obvious? “There is no woman. My mind is on business.” The half truth came easily. Brenna was gone forever, and soon he would be free. “I have a small property in Kent that I’m selling, and I should know soon if the buyer has agreed to my price.”

Whether she believed him or not, Miriam was too polite to question him. She was properly raised and would never consider proposing to a highwayman or chasing a runaway young woman all the way to Scotland. In truth, she was the perfect companion and would make an excellent wife.

Just not his.

G
ood lord, Daughter. You are with child?” Father’s face reddened, and Mother dropped onto the settee. The shock in their eyes and gaping mouths were to be expected. Brenna had known Lucy’s surprise would be nothing compared to what she’d face from her parents. In fact, she’d waited another week, hoping desperately for her flow to appear, before sadly accepting her fate.

“When did this happen? How will we explain your condition?” Father continued. “If we cannot arrive at a plausible explanation, you’ll be ruined.”

“It is not as grim as it seems, Father.” The sight of her father’s disappointment pushed down on her already exhausted shoulders. “There is much that I have not yet explained. The father will accept the child.”

“You are correct there, miss,” he said, the bloom of outrage in his voice. “Whoever the rogue is, I’ll see him horsewhipped and wed before sunset.”

“Walter, please,” Mother pleaded. She pulled Brenna down beside her and clasped her hand. “Let us speak of this rationally. We will save horsewhipping until Brenna has told us her story.”

Father was not about to calm himself. Brenna slid closer to Mother until they were nearly one. The comforting hand was a lifeline she clung to. Mother would see her come to no harm, figuratively speaking, from facing her father’s anger.

“I knew something was wrong when she went missing. Now we know why.” Father ignored Brenna and spoke directly
to Mother. “She was not with Primrose. She was traipsing all over who-knows-where with some scoundrel. And now he has stolen her innocence and left her carrying his bastard. I think horsewhipping should be the least of his worries.”

Overwhelmed and overwrought, Brenna felt the sudden irrational urge to laugh. She’d married and given her parents the grandchild they’d wanted. Still, she’d made such a muddle of things that none of the three of them had cause to celebrate.

Perhaps she should finish the tale before her father’s heart suffered a fatal seizure.

“There is no need to call the parson, Father.” Brenna braced herself. There would no longer be a secret marriage. The hunt for her perfect mate was over. “I am already wed.”

“What?” Mother gasped. Father stopped pacing.

Brenna nodded. “We wed in Scotland. It is a marriage of convenience, brought by his guilt over seducing me and the worry he may have gotten me with child.” Brenna shook her head. Richard had cursed her by speaking aloud of his fear of impregnating her. “His concern has come to fruition.”

Father stood frozen in place for several ticks of the clock. Mother stared at Brenna, worry on her face.

Finally, he said, “Tell me who he is, Daughter.”

For a moment Brenna considered lying to him. She knew that her decision would ruin a friendship and risk Richard’s life. Father was that angry. He would see Richard as having betrayed him. And Richard…he valued Father’s friendship. The loss would affect him deeply.

“You have to promise not to kill him,” she begged. “I do not want to raise this child alone.”

“I cannot make that guarantee,” Father said. His hands closed into fists.

Even now, Brenna knew her father was thinking of the worst possible way to make the man who ruined his child suffer.

“Then I will not tell you,” she said, with a stubborn lift of her chin. “I will just vanish, and you will never see me again.”

“Walter,” Mother said. “The man did right by her. He married her. Can you not consider that his penance?”

“And where is this pillar of manhood, this man who
married my daughter and left her bearing the burden of his child? If he is such a fine man, why is he not here standing at her side, instead of letting her face my wrath alone?”

“I’m certain he has his reasons.”

Both her parents stared at her. How could she explain without making the situation worse? “We realized rather quickly that we are not well suited. We both thought it best to keep our lives separate.”

“Are you jesting?” Father said. “You thought you could keep this secret forever? What if you wanted to marry someone else? Would you have two husbands?”

“Father. I would never allow it to go that far. I would have had to confess then or secretly have the marriage annulled.” She placed her hand on her stomach. “Clearly, there is no need for such measures now. The marriage will stand. The child
will
be claimed by his father. He has no choice.”

“See, all will be well,” Mother said softly. “Brenna is a wife, and soon she will be a mother.” She kept her tone light. “Is that not what we have always wished for her?”

“At the moment, all I want is to know the name of the man who is responsible for this situation. I can only pray that he is not some penniless bounder of low character.”

“Father, I am not so weak-minded as to fall for someone like that.”

“Then who is he?”

She had no recourse but to be honest. So she sat straight on the cushioned surface of the settee, summoned up her courage, and looked directly into her father’s eyes. “My husband is Richard Ellerby.”

I
’ll kill him.” Father’s voice was so low that it took Brenna a moment to realize what he said. Mother was quicker.

“Walter, be reasonable,” she said. “The deed has been done, and they are wed. We must look at this as a positive outcome. Our daughter is married to a fine man, and we will soon have a grandchild. This is excellent news.”

“That reprobate ruined her,” Father said. “He was my friend, and he did not hesitate to take advantage of my child.”

“I am certain that Brenna had a hand in some of this,” Mother replied, frowning at Brenna. “At least he is not a pirate.”

Mother—always the reasonable one.

“When did this happen?” Father continued unabated. “Did he take you in the coach on the day you met? Was his letter a ruse to cover his misdeeds?”

“No, Father. He did not touch me then.” How could Brenna explain this? She wrung her hands. “When you pressed me to find a husband, I thought he’d be perfect for a marriage of convenience. When I went to find him at Beckwith Hall, he was gone, on his way to Scotland to find his sister. I chased him down and insisted he take me with him.”

“See, Walter, Brenna was equally responsible for what happened,” Mother said.

“Tell me everything,” Father pressed ahead.

“I made him a proposal. If I helped him find Anne, he would marry me. Unfortunately, we did not find Anne and were victims of a robbery. When we took shelter at this ghastly inn to tend our wounds, well, something happened—” Her voice caught. The rest of the story was too shameful to admit. “We married in Scotland.”

“You were robbed?” Mother pressed a hand to her heart.

“We were.” Brenna nodded. “Richard killed a man to save me from being kidnapped.”

“Good lord.” Father shook his head. “Could this get any worse?”

“The situation is more complicated than you think, Father,” Brenna said. “Richard is an honorable man. I’m married and saved from disgrace.” “Honorable” was carefully chosen to keep Father from going off to Beckwith Hall and strangling her husband. Brenna had different, less kind words for the man, her husband.

Husband and wife, that they would stay. There was no other way. Once society discovered her pregnancy, the news would be out, and she’d have to explain her actions. Her friends would be shocked, though not overly so. They considered her a rule breaker. The rest of the Ton, well, she did not give a fig what they thought.

Her hand slid down to her flat belly. She had greater concerns now than her reputation. She was to be a mother. This terrified her more than facing the wrath of her father.

“He married and abandoned her,” Father was saying, when Brenna returned her attention to the conversation.

“We both know Richard,” Mother interjected. “He does not race around England seducing young innocents. I am certain he has an explanation for what he’s done, and we will hear of it soon enough. For now, we need to decide what is best for Brenna and the babe.”

Brenna stood. She crossed her arms and faced her parents with firm resolve. “The decision is mine, and I have made it. Tomorrow I leave for Beckwith Hall. It is time to take my place as Richard’s wife.”

“I think that is best,” Mother said, before Father could voice his opinion. She smiled. “I cannot believe I’m to be a
grandmother.” She glanced at Father. “And you a grandfather. What a blessing.”

Father grumbled under his breath. “The only blessing here should be for Ashwood’s continued good health. If he mistreats my child, he will know the full wrath of an outraged father.”

“Yes, dear,” Mother said, with a wink at Brenna. “I know just the right story to spread about this unexpected marriage.” She rubbed her hands together. “We shall tell everyone that you and Richard met last January when we were in Brighton for the holidays. He was instantly smitten, but you were not yet ready to accept his suit. When he discovered you were with Primrose, he took the opportunity to see you again, away from the protective eyes of your overbearing father.” She smiled at Father. “It was then that you realized you desperately loved Richard, could not wait to be married, and ran off to Gretna Green.”

“This will keep her reputation unsullied?” Father said, clearly skeptical.

Mother nodded. “Even the most vicious gossip will not be able to overcome such a grand love story. By the time I am finished weaving this unbelievable tale, Brenna and Richard’s story will have everyone, down to the most stalwart heart, swooning.”

Brenna sniffed and slipped into her mother’s arms. “You are simply the greatest mother.”

“I will not allow my precious child to be shunned for one misstep in judgment. It will all work out. I promise.”

Brenna left her parents and went off to direct the maids to begin packing. With nothing for her to do at the moment, she decided to return to the courtesan school and make her good-byes. She knew the likelihood of ever returning there was slim, and she’d grown fond of Sophie, Cook, and Lucy. Even the butler, Primm, and the ever-stoic man-of-all-positions, Thomas, had found their way into her affections.

I
shall miss you, Brenna,” Lucy said, hugging her tight. “It is dull here without you.” She drew Brenna down on the settee. “And with my husband delayed for a few more weeks in Paris, I will have no one to share my adventures.” She scanned
Brenna’s face and dropped into an exaggerated curtsy. “I suppose I should call you Your Ladyship, Your Ladyship.”

Brenna screwed up her face. “I shall be put out if you do. This is the only place where I can be myself without my title. Lady Brenna has no place here.”

Having said her good-byes to everyone else, she’d saved Lucy for last. They’d become close over the last weeks, and the former courtesan would be the hardest to leave behind.

What a turn her life had taken.

“You have been a good friend,” Brenna said. She blinked to keep back tears. “I will miss your wicked humor and the way you manage to make even a dark day brighter.”

Lucy took her hand and snorted. “We are a pair. The lady and the courtesan.”

“Former courtesan,” Brenna reminded her. “You are a wife now, Mrs. Pruitt. Soon you’ll have ten children and your past will be all but forgotten.”

“Ten children.” Lucy groaned. “I dearly hope not.”

Touching her stomach, Brenna could not believe she was with child herself. “Perhaps we should both begin with one.” Her thoughts turned foreboding. What would Richard think when his unwanted wife showed up bearing his heir?

Hoping to keep from pulling a pillow over her head and letting her trepidation overwhelm her, she tried to keep positive. Certainly her husband would not turn her away.