“Rachel is as dear to me as one of my own daughters. She’s been with me since she was six years old. It’s my duty to protect her from harm and scandal. I’m sure you understand my concern over such behavior. If word of this got out, her reputation would be in shreds. And I may as well be blunt…” He turned his eyes on Rachel, directing his next question at her.
“Do we know that there won’t be a child resulting from this—this indiscretion?” Gavin twisted in his chair to look at Rachel. Her blue eyes were wide and rounded. Her mouth was parted, as if she wanted to speak but couldn’t. The silence stretched without a denial.
“I was afraid of that,” Tucker continued, his gaze swinging back to Gavin.
“But even if that isn’t the case, I’m afraid we must demand that you do the honest thing by my sister-in-law, Mr. Blake. I believe we can arrange for the wedding to take place without much delay, just in case there is that added… complication.” This wasn’t what he’d wanted. He didn’t want Rachel to be forced into marriage. He wanted her to come willingly. Gavin jumped up.
“Judge Branigan-”
“I think, under the circumstances, you should feel free to call me Tucker.” He also rose from his chair. He rested his knuckles on the desk and leaned forward.
“Let me make this clear to you, Gavin. You have no choice in this. If you refuse to marry Rachel, I will see that you’re ruined. A judge’s power stretches far, and I will use it if I’m forced to. Maggie and I insist that you do right by Rachel.” Was it something in Tucker’s voice or a subtle expression in his eyes? Something caused Tucker’s words of just minutes before to echo through Gavin’s head. Sometimes they don’t see what’s best for them, even when it’s as clear as the nose on your face. Sometimes they have to be forced to see it. Do you understand what I’m saying, Mr. Blake? Yes, he did understand. Now. Gavin sat down.
“All right. I’ll marry her.” Rachel stared at her hands in her lap. Could she be pregnant with Gavin’s child? When was her last monthly flow? Not since before she was ill. Not since before..
Gavin’s baby. Gavin’s son. He would have his father’s black hair and gray eyes, of course. And he would be tall and strong like his father too. Wouldn’t his sisters adore him! She could just imagine Sabrina and Petula leaning over the cradle, talking and fussing over him. A baby… Good heavens! What was she thinking? It wasn’t possible. They’d only shared that one time together. Surely… “All right. I’ll marry her.” Her head snapped up as Gavin’s voice intruded on her thoughts and she realized what Tucker had been saying. He was forcing Gavin to marry her. And Gavin was agreeing to it! Her traitorous heart knew a moment of joy. She would be Gavin’s wife. She would live with him and Sabrina and Petula. She would bear his children. She would… She rose from her chair, her chin held high.
“Do I have anything to say about this?” The men turned to look at her.
“What if I don’t wish to marry Mr. Blake? We don’t—” she steeled herself against the warm flush moving up her neck—“we don’t know that there’s a child.” Maggie spoke for the first time.
“Tucker is right, my dear. We can’t take a chance. If there is to be a child, it would already be difficult to conceal its untimely arrival, but it might be possible, with you living so far from Boise. Besides, even if you are not expecting, if word of this should ever get out, your chances of marrying well would vanish forever.” Rachel couldn’t believe this was happening. Tucker was forcing Gavin to marry her. Maggie was in agreement, concerned that her sister wouldn’t be able to find a suitable husband now that she was “ruined.” And Gavin had acquiesced under only slightly veiled threats of losing his ranch, perhaps going to jail. And no one cared a whit about what she felt or wanted.
“I won’t do it,” she said emphatically, her gaze moving from Maggie to Tucker to Gavin.
“If she won’t have me-” Gavin began.
“You’re not getting away with this so easily, Mr. Blake,” Tucker said.
“I warned you.” It all seemed so unreal. The gravity of Tucker’s voice shook her to the core. He meant it. He would ruin Gavin. And it was as much her fault as his. Instinctively, she knew she could have stopped him from making love to her. He never would have forced himself on her. He’d given her ample opportunity to stop it from happening. And now he would be the one who was punished. What would happen to the children if he went to jail or lost his ranch? It would be because of her. She couldn’t let that happen to them. Her eyes met Gavin’s. She couldn’t let it happen. No matter how much she tried to tell herself he might deserve it, she couldn’t let it happen.
“If there’s no other choice,” she whispered, “I’ll marry him.”
She wasn’t aware of the pleased smiles exchanged between Tucker and Maggie. The minister had arrived. The guests were gathered in the parlor. In a few minutes, Rachel would descend the stairs and become his bride. He wished he’d had some time alone with her, just a moment to tell her that he was a willing participant in this marriage. It had seemed logical in the judge’s chambers to make her think he was only doing it to protect himself. It didn’t seem so logical any longer. But there hadn’t been a chance to talk with her. He’d spent the same amount of time with Rachel in the ten days since he’d agreed to this marriage as he had in the days between his first visit to the Branigan home and that fateful meeting in Tucker’s office. Which amounted to exactly no time with her at all. He glanced toward the stairs, wondering how much longer it would be before Rachel appeared on the second floor landing. She should know how he felt. She should know that he wanted her for his wife. Maybe you love her. Love her? No. He’d decided long ago never to allow that emotion to surface for a woman. He wanted her. She was the most desirable creature he’d ever seen. He admired her. She was intelligent and had grit and stamina and wasn’t afraid to face life head-on. He liked her. She could make him laugh with her delightful sense of humor, and she was warm and caring with the children.
But love? The word wasn’t even part of Gavin Blake’s vocabulary. Except, of course, he loved the children. There was no avoiding loving those two. But that wasn’t the same thing. Maybe he’d loved Dru, but that had been different too. She’d been his friend. She’d been in need. There hadn’t been any risk in loving Dru. Loving Rachel would be a terrible risk, especially if she didn’t love him in return. She had loved him once. He’d seen it in her eyes, if only he hadn’t been too blind to recognize it. But what if she could never love him again? What if she was trapped into this marriage and grew to hate him for what he’d done? No, he couldn’t love her. But he could let her know he wanted her to be his wife. He wanted her with him, not just to take care of the children, not just because she could be carrying his child, not just to keep house and help him with the ranch and to make her
brother-in -law happy. He wanted her with him just to be with him. Rachel stared at her reflection in the mirror. Swirls of white satin floated over and around her. Delicate lace edged her throat and wrists. Pearls studded the cap of her veil and the train of her gown. She could stop the wedding, of course. She could tell Maggie that she wasn’t pregnant. Her monthly flow had come and gone during the past ten days. There was no reason to go through with this travesty. Outside of the four of them, who would ever know of Rachel’s indiscretion? Perhaps, should she decide to marry in the future, her husband would guess. But if he loved her, he would forgive her. Only she didn’t want another man’s forgiveness, and she didn’t want to be another man’s wife. She sighed and moved away from the mirror, stopping beside the open window. Although March was still a week away, there was the fresh scent of spring in the air and a renewed strength in the sun. The trees beside the river were full of birds, and the first new colt had arrived in the Branigan barn only three days before. She took a deep breath, hoping against hope that it would clear the confusion from her head and heart. She loved him and he’d hurt her. She was glad he’d come to Boise, yet furious with him for his reasons. She wanted to be his wife, but hated the way it was happening. She could stop it if she wanted. So why didn’t she? She heard the door opening.