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“You are correct,” she kept her voice steady. “The child is not my husband’s. Nor would I claim it is such. Even if I were to be so foolish, I doubt anyone in London would believe me, least of all the new Lord Masterson.” Her hands curled around her mid-section.
Leo’s child. The one he doesn’t even want to know about.
“Please, Your Grace. Your discretion in this matter would more than fulfill any debt you feel you owe my husband. I’m sure it is much more than he did for you.”
“You would be surprised. Masterson and I weren’t friends. Barely acquaintances. But he did me a very great service long ago, one I have never forgotten. And as far as my discretion, you have it. I see cruelty in Masterson’s nephew, which is why I grow more concerned for you. Especially given the circumstances you now find yourself in. The law would favor him in all matters. You understand?”
“I do.” Georgina looked down at her hands, still holding the duke’s handkerchief. “I’m well aware of what it means to be female in a world governed by men.”
What was she going to do?
“The child’s father—”
Is your son. A bastard for a bastard.Georgina almost giggled hysterically and had to bite her tongue to stop herself.Oh, Leo.I would love to watch you calculate the odds of the coincidences I now endure.
“The child’s father,” she interrupted, “would not be interested to know I am with child.”
I’m to tell Peckham to send me to an apothecary.
“Our relationship was brief,” she continued.
Only the physical aspect.
Georgina blinked back another flood of tears which threatened to stream down her cheeks.
“I see.” His voice was filled with sympathy.
Her hand stretched over her stomach. A child lived beneath the press of her fingers.Leo’schild. She wouldn’t be sending a note to Peckham. The very idea was abhorrent. How badly she wished to tell Marcus Barrington she would bear his grandchild, but she could not. No one must guess. Leo might force her to get rid of this growing life she already loved. Harold would certainly do something horrible. Her parents would either declare her a whore or announce their daughter would be giving birth to a future earl.
“You are not the first lady to find herself in such a situation. The wisest course is for you to leave London. Are there friends you can visit? Perhaps here or in America?”
“No, Your Grace.” Georgina pulled the steel into her spine. Her only friend was Welles, and she most certainly could not tell him. “But there is a place I can go. Far from London.” Masterson’s hunting lodge in Scotland. Harold had shown little interest in the property thus far, which she assumed wouldn’t change, at least at present. But Harold liked hazard, and Clarissa spent lavishly. And there were those markers still sitting in Elysium’s safe. The lodge was destined to be sold at some point.
Harold.
Blinding panic assailed her. Her hands trembled at the thought of Harold finding her, swollen with child. She must hide before her condition became apparent. Careful arrangements must be made. “My husband owned a hunting lodge in Scotland.”
“I have a better destination for you,” the duke said. “One Lord Masterson won’t be inclined to visit as he might the hunting lodge. You must allow me to handle the arrangements. Far easier for me to accomplish such a thing without suspicion than you.”
“Why would you help me, Your Grace? You don’t even know me.” Georgina was not ungrateful for the offer of assistance; it was only that the duke’s kindness was so unexpected.
“I told you, I’m trying to be a better man than I once was. Haven’t you been listening?” He quirked a brow at her. “And you are in desperate need of a friend, I think. I’ll consider you penance for my past sins. At the very least, I can get you out of London and help you hide. My duchess would never forgive me if I didn’t offer assistance. Were she aware of your situation, she would insist I do so.” He gave her a reassuring look. “But I won’t tell her. You have my word.”
“Thank you.” Georgina looked up into the Duke of Averell’s beautiful face, so like Leo’s, and promptly fell into a weeping fit the likes of which she hadn’t done since she was a child. His arms, solid and full of protectiveness, held her while she sobbed.
There would be no forgetting Leo Murphy now.
