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"No, Alanna's right," Elliott argued. "I'd rather think Melissa did love Hunter, no matter how briefly, than to believe that she slept with him simply out of curiosity or lust."
Thinking them both romantic fools, Byron just shook his head and left the room.
"It never even occurred to me that they wouldn't believe us," Elliott said. "What shall we do now? You heard what father said about telling Ian, and he's so upset with us, I don't want to cross him."
"We won't have to do anything," Alanna mused thoughtfully. "One day they'll visit Charity Wade's, and the truth of Christian's parentage will be impossible to ignore."
Too restless to sit down, Elliott began to pace in front of Alanna's chair. "I don't mean to embarrass you, so please forgive me if I do. I've just always assumed that my mother explained everything a young woman should know to you and Melissa. But is it possible that Melissa didn't understand the consequences of being with a man?"
Alanna knew precisely to what sort of a conversation with her aunt Elliott was referring. Rachel had been vague to the point of obscurity, but Polly McBride had answered Alanna's and Melissa's questions in a straightforward manner. "From what your mother told us, she seems to have little understanding of procreation, despite having had three children, but Polly made things clear. Melissa knew what she was doing. It might be comforting to believe that she was too innocent to understand, but that just wasn't the case. She was as sophisticated as she appeared."
Elliott's shoulders slumped slightly. "It was just a hope."
"Save your hopes for Christian. I'm going to ride into town to see him. Do you want to come with me?"
"I guess it's high time that I took at look at him, isn't it?"
"You are his uncle."
"I'd forgotten that. Let's go."
Alanna was grateful for his company, and for the next week, the pair were the only visitors little Christian had. Byron asked about the little boy, but his grandparents did not. They appeared to be taking their cues from Ian, who asked no questions about anything, and when spoken to, replied with silent shrugs. When they all gathered for meals, he ate barely enough to survive. He got to sleep each night only with the aid of brandy.
* * *
Graham Tyler stayed away longer than he knew he should, but a week following the funeral, he finally came out to see when Ian would be returning to duty. Attentive servants had kept the young widower neatly groomed and dressed, but Graham was nonetheless astonished by the changes in his friend. Ian had always been such a good-natured man, but now his detached and sullen mood gave no hint of his former charm. When Ian made little attempt to follow his conversation, Graham hurriedly went to find Alanna.
"Ian isn't doing at all well," he complained.
"Yes, I know. We're very concerned about him."
"Has he seen his son?"
"No, not yet."
"Well, he can't just sit and stare off into space, while the boy grows up. Maybe if we took him into town and put his son in his arms, he would respond with a renewed sense of purpose."
"You're a very thoughtful friend, Captain, but your suggestion might simply create more problems. If you want to help Ian, why don't you just concentrate on him?"
"I thought I was."
"Well yes, of course you were. The weather's nice today, why don't you just encourage him to go out for a walk with you? Perhaps Ian might even like to go for a ride."
"Yes, it would do him good to get some exercise, wouldn't it?"
"Yes, I think so."
Wanting desperately to please her, Graham flashed a ready smile. "If I amuse Ian for an hour or two, will you have some time to spend with me?"
"Is this some kind of a bargain?"
"No, I really did come to see Ian, but I want to see you, too."
"Then yes, I'll invite you to stay for tea."
"Good." Pleased with himself, Graham not only succeeded in getting Ian to leave the house, he got him to agree to taking a ride. While Graham tried innumerable subjects in hopes of inspiring conversation, Ian remained listless. Finally deciding his original plan had been the best, Graham led his friend down the road into town. He had taken Alanna to Charity Wade's on the day of Melissa's funeral, and had no difficulty finding her house again.
"Come on in," he encouraged. "There's someone here I want you to meet."
