Page 74 of My Highland Rogue
“You must tell me if you were importuned, mydear. There are things that I can give you that would prevent any scandal.”
It took a minute or two for Jennifer to understand what the midwife was saying.
“Thank you, Mrs. Farmer. Truly, but it’s not necessary. No one did anything to me.”
The midwife didn’t say anything, merely kept holding Jennifer’s hands as if she expected another tearful confession in a moment. There was nothing to confess. She’d done nothing. Neither had Gordon. They’d been innocent in this horror.
She gently pulled her hands free.
“Thank you, Mrs. Farmer, for your care of me. Please thank Mr. Campbell, too. And now I think I’d rather be alone for a while, if you don’t mind.”
She had every intention of crying some more and didn’t want a witness.
The older woman stood, nodding down at her. She had the feeling that Mrs. Farmer understood exactly why she wanted to be alone.
“Thank you, again.”
“You’ll let me know if there’s anything I can do to help you?”
If there was anything anyone could do, she’d be grateful for their assistance. She would beg them for it. Nothing, however, could make the situation better.
Nothing at all.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Jennifer gave orders for tea to be delivered to the Mackenzie Parlor, named after a friend of the family several generations ago. All she truly wanted to do was remain in her rooms, but Mr. Campbell had asked her to meet with him. Why, she didn’t know, she only hoped that their meeting would quickly be over.
She hoped Mr. Campbell didn’t want to talk about Harrison. She had no influence over... Her thoughts stumbled to a halt. He wasn’t her brother, was he? Even so, she didn’t have any influence over Harrison. No one did.
She’d chosen this room because the Mackenzie Parlor was distant enough from the rest of the public rooms that they wouldn’t be disturbed.
“Lady Jennifer?”
She looked up to find Mr. Campbell standing in the doorway. She smiled her welcome as he entered the room. Surprisingly, Lauren followed him and behind her was the nursemaid with little Mary.
Lauren sat on the end of the sofa, opposite the chair where Jennifer was seated.
“This is your first outing,” Jennifer said. “How was it?”
Lauren smiled. “Other than the staircase, it was fine. I shall have to take my time with the stairs, however.”
She hadn’t been as good a hostess as she should have been in the past two days, preferring to stay in her room rather than see anyone. However, good manners dictated that she push her own grief to the side for a little while. She had the rest of her life to think about Gordon’s words.
When she asked Mr. Campbell about his recent trip to the United States, he surprised her by being an excellent storyteller. He told of visiting Niagara Falls, and how he wanted to expand his travels to see the Grand Canyon.
Harrison entered the room and Mr. Campbell’s story stopped, long enough for the older man to send him a look of barely veiled contempt. Lauren wouldn’t glance in her husband’s direction at all.
What had happened in the past two days?
Mr. Campbell concluded with a comment about how young the United States felt. “Everything is new. I find that I miss the history there.”
History was one thing Adaire Hall had in abundance.
“If you have any time today and would like to see more of the Hall, I’d be happy to show it to you.”
“Thank you, Lady Jennifer, but I’m afraid our plans will prevent that.”
He and Lauren shared a look, one that excluded Harrison.
