The Hellion and The Heartbreaker (26 page)

The only
real concern she had was telling her brothers.  They would be shocked and
angry, and of course, they would be disappointed.  They would also be
supportive, of that she had little doubt.  Her brothers loved her, and she
knew in her heart that they would never turn their backs on her, despite what
she had done and the circumstances she was now facing.

However,
when the news of her pregnancy spread, there was sure to be an enormous
scandal, especially after all of the attention she had received in
London.  Not only would her reputation be irreparably ruined, she would be
an outcast, and her entire family would be disgraced.  Despite her
situation, she had absolutely no intention of allowing that to happen. 
Dragging her family’s name and honor through the mud was unthinkable.  She
would do anything to prevent dishonor from falling upon her family and upon the
innocent child she carried.  She would find a way to preserve their family
honor and to protect her baby from the shame of illegitimacy.  She had
to.  There was no other choice.

Unfortunately,
going to Alec was not an option.  He had made his feelings clear. 
That, and her pride, would never allow her to force him into an unwanted
marriage, not even for the sake of their child.  He would always resent
her for it and perhaps their child as well.  She would never take that
chance.  This time,
she
would decide what was best for both of
them, or rather, for all three of them.

“That was
delicious,” Colin said, rising from his seat at the dinner table.

“Yes, Mrs. Crawley
outdid herself once again,” Scarlett agreed, hoping no one had noticed that she
hadn’t eaten a single bite of her scallops.  Once a favorite, the mere
smell of the succulent dish now caused her stomach to turn. 

“Shall we
move to the parlor for an after-dinner drink?” Conner asked, rising from his
chair and offering his hand to Scarlett.

Rory and
Gavin were presently in London, so for the time being it was just the three of
them at home.  Despite her fear, she knew that it was time to tell Colin
and Conner about her condition.  “Perhaps we should move to Colin’s
study,” she said, taking Conner’s hand and rising from the table.  “There
is something I need to speak to both of you about, privately.”

“Of course,”
her brothers both agreed, eyeing her curiously as they left the dining room and
made their way to Colin’s study.

She had
spent the past two days in deep thought, trying to come up with the best
possible plan to protect her family and her baby.  She had carefully
considered several different options, and giving up her child wasn’t one of
them.  She was keeping her baby, no matter what, and she felt confident
that the plan she had finally come up with was the best course of action. 
She could only hope that her brothers would agree.  Now, all she had to do
was to tell them, and that would be by far the most difficult part of all.

When they
reached the study, Scarlett took a seat on the small sofa, nervously settling
her skirts around her as Colin sat down beside her.  “Would you please
close the door Conner?” she asked, her voice little more than a whisper.

Conner did
as she requested, and then settled into the seat across from the sofa, his
expression slightly bewildered.  Colin too, looked uneasy as they waited
for her to speak.  Taking a deep breath, Scarlett looked hesitantly
between her two brothers and realized that this conversation was going to be
even harder than she had anticipated.  She opened her mouth to speak, but
the words lodged in her throat.  Despite her resolve not to cry, she felt tears
welling and squeezed her eyes tightly shut to try to stop them from
falling.  She felt Colin take her hand and tried to calm herself, drawing
in another deep breath.

“Scarlett,
what it is?”  Colin asked, his tone both confused and apprehensive.

She opened
her eyes and squeezed his hand, taking strength from the love and concern she
saw reflected on his face.  She looked across at Conner, and then back to
Colin.  There was no point in beating around the bush.  The words
came out softly, almost too quietly to be heard.  “I’m going to have a
baby.”  She looked down at her lap, no longer able to meet their eyes.
 The silence in the room was deafening. 

After what
seemed like an eternity, Colin spoke, his voice strangled.  “Are you…
certain?”

Scarlett
looked up and met her brother’s shocked expression.  She couldn’t speak
and simply nodded her head in response as a tear rolled slowly down her
cheek.  She stared at Colin for one long, agonizing moment before he
reached out and pulled her into his arms.  Suddenly she was sobbing
against the warmth and security of her brother’s chest.  “I’m sorry
Colin.  I’m so sorry,” she cried, holding on to him like a lifeline. 
As he cradled her against his chest, gently rocking her back and forth, Conner
rose from his seat and moved to sit on the other side of her, placing his hand
lightly against her back.

“Shhh,”
Colin whispered, softly stroking her hair, murmuring nonsensical words of
assurance as he tried to calm her.  “Shhh.”

Minutes
later, when she was finally able to stem the flow of tears, she sat back
against the couch and turned her head to look at Conner.  He leaned
forward and kissed her gently on the forehead.  “It’s going to be alright,
Scarlett,” he asserted, his expression sorrowful, but also reassuring.

She nodded
as she wiped the tears from her cheeks, watching as her brothers’ eyes met over
her head.  She knew what was coming, and she had prepared for it.

“Scarlett,”
Colin said, drawing her attention to him.  “Who is the father?”

“It doesn’t
matter,” she whispered, shaking her head.

 “Like
hell it doesn’t,” Colin refuted, showing his first sign of anger.  He
looked at her intently, the set of his features firm and uncompromising. 
“Who is he, Scarlett?”

“I’m sorry,
but I… I can’t tell you,” she managed weakly, finding it difficult to meet his
eyes.

“Was it a
stranger?  Were you forced against your will?”  Colin asked, his
expression horrified by the sudden thought.

“No, no…
it’s nothing like that,” she assured him.  “It’s just that I don’t
want…that is…I…I won’t tell you who he is, so please don’t ask me again.”

“Scarlett,
whoever he is, he needs to be held accountable for his actions,” Conner stated
adamantly, though his tone wasn’t quite as austere as Colin’s was.

“No, he
doesn’t.  It was my choice.  I wanted to be with him,” she admitted
truthfully.  “I am responsible for my own actions and the consequences
will fall on me.”  Her voice was stronger now, and filled with
conviction.  It was her fault and she would accept the blame that was due
her.

“Scarlett,
you don’t know what you’re saying,” Colin interjected, shaking his head. 
“Obviously you were seduced.  It’s only fitting that the blackguard who’s
responsible
pay
for what he did.”
 
His expression was outraged.

“No Colin,
it wasn’t like that,” she said, shaking her own head slowly from side to
side.  “I wasn’t seduced.”  She met her brother’s regard with a
steady, unwavering look of her own, despite her embarrassment.  “It was
me, I…I seduced him.”

He snorted
and rolled his eyes.
 
“Scarlett, that’s
ridiculous,” Colin stated forcefully, his tone indignant.  “For Christ’s
sake, why are you protecting him?”

Scarlett
looked at her eldest brother with as much calm and dignity as she could muster
under the circumstances.  “He told me no Colin.  He told me that we
couldn’t be together, truly he did.  But I didn’t listen, I didn’t
care.  I wanted him.  I wanted him and I seduced him.”

“Scarlett…”

“It’s
true.  He never lied to me and he never made me any false promises.  If
anyone is to blame, it’s me.  I knew the risk I was taking.”  Colin
looked like he wanted to argue that point, but Conner spoke first.

“Did
you?”  Conner asked doubtfully, his expression sympathetic.

 “I
loved him,” she said simply.  “I still love him.”

“If you love
him, then why…?”

“He doesn’t
want to marry me.  If I tell him about the baby, he will feel honor bound
to do the right thing.”

 “As he
damn well should!”  Colin stated emphatically.

“No,”
Scarlett stated firmly.  “I could never force him into something he
doesn’t want.  I won’t.  Please, try to understand.”  Her
expression was pleading.

“Jesus,”
Colin sighed, raising his hands to his head, pressing his fingers against his
temples.

“I know how
disappointed you must be, and I’m so sorry,” Scarlett said, her voice cracking.

“So what are
we going to do now?”  Colin asked, more to himself than anyone else.

“You needn’t
worry,” she said, wiping away the last trace of her tears.  “I know
exactly what we’re going to do.”

Fortunately,
after a great deal of discussion, some of it heated, her had brothers
ultimately agreed with her course of action.
 
And the following morning they set the initial phase into motion.
 
They had confided in Tess the night before,
and it had been decided that she would accompany Colin and Scarlett to one of
their other properties, a small estate in Northern Scotland on the pretext of
visiting relatives.  Tess had been shocked and dismayed by Scarlett’s
condition of course, but like Colin and Conner, she was also determined to do
whatever was necessary to protect Scarlett and the family from a devastating
scandal. 

Now, as she
and Tess set about packing her trucks for the trip, Scarlett thought through
the plan once again.  They would be leaving for Scotland in two days for a
supposed week long stay.  Once they were safely settled, Colin would
return to England with the news that Scarlett and Tess had decided to extend
their visit and remain in Scotland for a while longer.  Tess would later
send word that Scarlett had met and subsequently fallen in love with an
untitled Scotsman from a neighboring village. 

Then,
fearing that her brothers would promptly arrive to put an end to the
relationship and take her back to England, she would make a rash decision and
elope with her new love.  It was a bit farfetched, but time was of the
essence.  They needed a reason for Scarlett to be married as soon as
possible, in addition to providing her with a plausible reason for an
elopement.

In the
meantime, Rory and Gavin would be summoned home to learn the truth of the
situation.  Colin and Conner would then travel to Scotland to
confront
her and her new husband, determined to get the marriage annulled and bring her
home.  However, they would later return and inform everyone that she was
deeply in love and had been adamant about remaining in Scotland with her new
husband.  Despite their misgivings, they would accept that she was happy,
and begrudgingly agree not to contest the marriage. 

With
sufficient financial incentives, they should be able to secure both a valid
marriage certificate, and later a postdated birth certificate.  Scarlett’s
new husband would unfortunately have to die several months after the marriage
in a tragic accident at sea, his body never to be recovered.  Within a
year, she would return to Grey Oaks as a widow and a mother.  Of course
her reputation would be irreparably damaged from the scandal of the elopement
and her marriage to a commoner, but at least her child wouldn’t be labeled a
bastard and her brothers wouldn’t be completely disgraced.  It might not
be the perfect solution, but it was the best she had come up with.  Though
questions would surely arise, if they were careful, they might just be able to
pull it off.

Sighing, she
turned her attention back to the open trunks.  All she could do now was
play her part and hope for the best.

Hearing her
heavy sigh, Tess looked up and met her gaze.  Tossing a handful of
undergarments onto the bed, she stepped toward Scarlett and pulled her into her
arms.  “Everything is going to be alright dear,” she said, lightly patting
her back.

“I hope
you’re right Tess.”  She hugged her tightly, incredibly thankful for her
loving acceptance.  “I truly do.”

Two days
later, as their coach pulled away from Grey Oaks and started down the drive,
Scarlett once again had tears in her eyes.  It was a profound moment, for
her life was about to change forever.  Her youthful innocence was gone and
life as she knew it would never be the same again.  When next she saw her
childhood home, it would be as a mother.  Despite the momentary sadness
she felt at leaving, thinking of the child she was carrying brought a faint
smile to her lips.  Though she would love to have a little girl, in her
heart of hearts, she longed to bring a boy home to Grey Oaks, a boy who would
always remind her of Alec.

After
traveling for several long hours, their coach finally pulled to a stop outside
of a respectable looking inn shortly before dusk.  They could have made it
to the estate before nightfall, but had decided to spend the night at the inn
instead.  Colin planned to go on ahead the following morning to make sure
the house was in a habitable state, before returning for Scarlett and
Tess.  Though an older couple lived on the premises and maintained the
property, none of the McPhearsons had been there in years, and received only
periodic updates from the caretakers.