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She blanched at that. “Kelling?” Her hand fluttered to her heart. “Buthighwaymen…”
“It wasn’t highwaymen,” Marc said more softly. Damn it. He hadn’t really meant to tell her that part. But he had, and perhaps she needed to hear it. “Highwaymen don’t do that. They’ll rob you at pistol point, and they may shoot you if you give them trouble. But what happened to Kelling and his family was an execution, it wasn’t a roadside robberygoneawry.”
“Kelling? He was anoperative?”
“He’s the one who recruited me away from Oxford. A decent fellow. An honorable one. And he deserved better than he got intheend.”
* * *
Caroline thoughtshe might be sick. More sick than she’d been in recent days, not that anyone else had noticed. Of course, she’d gone to some lengths to keep them from noticing, so it wasn’t entirely anyone’s fault that they hadn’t. But she knew what it meant. It may have been a while, but she distinctly remembered what morning sickness felt like. And if Marc had no intention of doing the honorable thing, she was going to have to sort out an undesirable solution onherown.
She and the girls could return to Benton Park on their own. She could finish out her confinement there and then…Her stomach churned at the thought of giving her child away. She couldn’t do that. She simply couldn’t. But neither could she brand the child a bastard. Neither could she tarnish Rachel’s name. Her daughter would come out next season and this situation could be more than enough to destroy herreputation.
Heavens, what in the world was she going to do? “Is that it, then, Marc?” she asked softly. “You’ve made up your mind and nothing willchangeit?”
He frowned as he stepped toward her. “I don’t like the sound of your voice,mylove.”
“Don’t callmethat.”
His frown deepened as a sigh escaped him. “Youaremy love,Caroline.”
“Yes?” she asked tartly. “Well, thenproveit.”
Livvie was expecting. The thought popped into Caroline’s mind as necessity began to wriggle through her thoughts. Her cousin was a few months further along that Caroline, and she was probably already spending her confinement at Everett Place. What if Alex and Livvie could be convinced to make everyone believe they had twins? A few months would matter a great deal in the beginning, but later on, no one could tell there was a difference in the children’s ages. If they could just keep people from seeing them the first year or so, that could possibly work. And she could still see her child, be in its life, and Alex and Livvie would be excellent parents. That might work. She could head for Everett Park and send her girls to stay with Robert in Dorset so they wouldn’t notice her increasing, because the last thing she needed was for Rachel to see this sort of example for how to navigate her life. Sharing a bed with a man who had no intention of marrying her. Finding herself with child. A fresh wave of nausea washed over her. What if Alex refused to go along with the plan?Whatif—
“…are you going to answer me?” Marc asked, annoyance flooding hisvoice.
“What did you say?” Whatever it was, she’d missed it completely as she tried to sort out a solution to the mess shewasin.
His light blue eyes narrowed on her. “I said are we done with thisdiscussion?”
Yes, she supposed they were, and that made her more nauseous than any morning sickness ever had. “I can’t stay here, Marc.” She turned away from him. “I’ll have Rachel and Emma pack their things. I’ll see you reimbursed for everything you’ve spent onus,and—”
“Reimbursed?” he said the word as though she’d insulted him. Though he had no reason to be insulted about anything. He was the one who’d led her down a merry path without having a decent plan about how they’d go on. “I can’t even believe yousaidthat.”
“Shall I say it again?” she asked tartly, because her heart was breaking and sounding any other way would be nearly impossible at themoment.
“Caroline.” Marc grabbed her elbow, and stood at her back. “You cannot leave. Itisn’tsafe.”
“Neither is staying here,” she breathed out. And the faster she got to Hampshire, the faster she would reach Alex andLivvie…
* * *
Goddamn it.Marc was not going to be manipulated, not even by her. “You arenotgoing anywhere.” She was being completely ridiculous in suggestingotherwise.
Caroline snorted and yanked her elbow from his grasp. “You are not my lord and master, Marc. And as you have so plainly explained, you never will be. So whether I stay or go will not be dictatedbyyou.”
Damn stubborn woman. “You are making too much of this, Caroline. Everything has been going so well. I don’tknowwhy—”
A scratch came at the door. “Lord Haversham?” Mrs. Dawson called throughthedoor.
“Oh, bugger off,” he grumbled under hisbreath.
Caroline glared at him over her shoulder. “I believe we’re done here,mylord.”
Oh, they were farfromdone.
The scratch cameagain.
