Page 34 of My Highland Rogue
Evidently, this footman had decided to lurk around the guest chambers.
“Is there anything I can do for you, Lady Jennifer?”
For a fleeting second she debated what she would say, then reasoned that she didn’t need to offer him any excuses for being here past midnight. In the next moment she changed her mind, knowing that gossip flowed through Adaire Hall like whiskey at a clan gathering.
She was trying, desperately, to come up with some excuse when one of the double doors to the earl’s suite opened to reveal Lauren.
“Jennifer? Is everything all right?”
“Everything is fine. Are you feeling better?” Jennifer asked, walking toward her sister-in-law.
“I am. Mrs. Farmer says that what I felt was false labor. It’s very common, evidently.”
For a moment she wondered if Lauren would question her presence in the corridor. Instead, Lauren looked beyond her to where the footman stood, then glanced at the end of the hall wherethe Blue Suite was located. There was no doubt in her mind that her sister-in-law knew exactly where she’d been headed. The footman probably knew as well.
She was torn between disappointment, irritation, and acute embarrassment. It was one thing to decide to be a fallen woman without an audience. Quite another to have to come up with an explanation for her presence in the hallway wearing her bedclothes.
When Lauren turned and walked back through the open door, Jennifer followed her.
“Don’t worry, Mrs. Farmer isn’t here,” Lauren said, passing through the sitting room and heading for her bed. “She’s gone to bed.” She climbed the three steps up to the mattress, then sat heavily on the edge, patting the spot next to her.
“It’s not that I’m afraid of her exactly,” she continued. “It’s just that she’s very domineering.”
“I’m quite in awe of her myself,” Jennifer said as she went to sit next to her sister-in-law. “She has a presence about her.”
Lauren glanced at her, then away. “Nothing would dare go wrong with Mrs. Farmer around.”
“Nothing’s going to go wrong. You will have a healthy, happy baby. I can’t wait to become an aunt.”
“You should be a mother yourself, Jennifer. I don’t know of anyone who would be a better mother.”
She’d heard that comment before, but it had always been coupled with a recommendation for a husband. Lauren knew a great many people since her father was so wealthy. She was all formarrying Jennifer off and wasn’t the least bit shy about her intentions.
“Tell me about Gordon.”
“Gordon?”
“Yes, Gordon. The exceedingly handsome man whose room you were going to. The same man who’s made you starry-eyed.”
Jennifer didn’t know whether to faint, claim a sudden unbearable sickness, or pretend a blinding headache. None of those maladies, however, would be sufficient to keep Lauren from satisfying her curiosity.
“There isn’t much to tell,” Jennifer said. “He used to live here. We knew each other as children.”
“No, Jennifer. You forget. We’re friends. I’ve lived at Adaire Hall for a year now. During that time I’ve gotten to know you. I’ve always wondered why a woman as lovely and personable as you was unmarried. Is Gordon the answer?”
Jennifer slid off the bed and walked to one of the bedroom windows, parting the heavy velvet curtains. This room was almost oppressive in the richness of its furnishings. Everything was crimson. The curtains were crimson. The bedspread, even the skirt on the vanity was the same bloodred color.
Any other shade would have made the large room with its inlaid panels and ornate ceiling seem more welcoming.
To her surprise, however, Lauren loved the color, claiming that it was her favorite. She’d also been under the impression that Harrison liked it. To the best of Jennifer’s knowledge Harrisondidn’t care what color Lauren had redecorated their suite, as long as he didn’t have to spend much time in it.
“Yes. Gordon’s the reason.”
“You love him.”
She glanced at Lauren. Her sister-in-law wasn’t smiling any longer. Instead, there was an expression on her face that was oddly poignant, as if she understood in that moment. Maybe she did. Maybe Lauren realized that Harrison didn’t feel the same about her, that she was simply a wife, a life change that needed to happen.
Every young man married, especially a titled one. He had an obligation to bring an heir into the world and his wife was with child. After that requirement was satisfied, there would be no place for Lauren in his life.
