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The image of you and Zinnia never crossed my mind as particularly stimulating, yet discovering the two of you playing in your study while I watched from the hall... Well, let’s just say if you and a feline does something to my heart, I fear what will happen when I see you with our child.
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A TIED SCROLL RESTED on Owen’s desk in the study, along with the rest of the day’s post. Odd. Who sent scrolls these days?
Untying the black ribbon, he skimmed the short sentence scrawled in ink: You’re a disgrace to your father marrying that girl.
Anger, swift and lethal, punched him in the gut as he crumpled the sheet in his fist. Who would dare to send such a revolting reprimand? Especially after his wedding!
And to mention his father...
“There you are, my lord.” The butler entered quietly. “I see you’ve found the incoming post from today, quite a stack. Would you like me to send for Mr. Foreman to aid you?”
“No, thank you. But I would like to know if anything came with this particular letter?” He smoothed out the crinkled parchment, holding it aloft for the man to see. “I’m curious about its author.”
Marvin squinted at the words, eyes widening at the message, before shaking his head vigorously. “No, my lord! If I had known such vitriol blackened the note, I would’ve never let it cross the threshold!”
Jaw tightening, Owen trusted the man’s righteous outrage and waved him away. “If another arrives, see if you can discern who’s sending them before giving it to me. Say nothing of this to anyone, especially her ladyship.”
He didn’t need Lily hearing about someone writing ominous letters about their marriage. They were already on shaky ground with their own problems; no need to add an outsider’s.
Slumping into his desk chair, Owen recalled Lily’s bombshell—a baby was on the way. Their brief tryst had resulted in something, after all, and he wondered what she would have done if Laramie hadn’t forced the issue of their marriage.
Would she have even told him about the child?
They most certainly would not have married so easily, since he would’ve had to overcome Lily’s reservations.
The surprising meow of an animal drifted into the room, followed by his wife and a colorful fur ball clinging to her chest. Distracted from thoughts that would surely lead him down a path of frustration, he scrambled to his feet and asked, “What is that?”
“A cat, obviously.” Lily rolled her eyes heavenward and stepped closer to allow him to study the bundle of matted fur at its back. “This is Zinnia. I found her in the bushes in one of the gardens. Her poor paw was stuck, and I saved her. Will this be an issue?” A mutinous line formed on her mouth, challenging him to refuse her this feline friend.
Owen ran a hand over a patch of white fur and sighed. “Of course not, but make sure you have one of the maids clean it. I don't want you catching anything if it has fleas, especially in your condition.”
“I’m pregnant, Owen, not incapable of bathing an animal or taking care of myself.”
“I know, but indulge me. We have servants for a reason.”
“You have servants. Before yesterday, I tended to my own needs like most people.”
“What’s mine is yours, Lily-pad. Already forgetting those vows we took? Has it even been twenty-four hours?” he teased, his fingers accidentally tangling with hers in the midst of their petting. Her hand bounced away, but not before he caught the slightest caress of a finger over his skin.
When he’d awakened alone that morning, a wave of disgruntlement had cascaded through him. He’d wanted to see her lithe form sleeping beside his, not empty blankets like every day prior.
“Trust me, I remember, but it’s going to take time before I become accustomed to having aid whenever I call for it.” Switching back to Zinnia, Lily added, “She’s pregnant, too, you know? Seems fairly far along based on the swell of her tummy, though I’m not exactly a veterinarian.”
“So, we’ll have kittens before a baby. Fitting practice?” Their eyes met over Zinnia, and the ghost of a smile flashed before disappearing.
“Everyone adores kittens. I’m sure they’ll be taken off our hands before any practice starts. But I don’t mind. Zinnia’s the real keeper—my very own lap cat.”
“I wouldn’t mind having my very own lap wife.” He felt silly the moment the words left his mouth, but he pressed on, sliding an arm around Lily’s waist and gently urging her down to sit on his thighs as he returned to his seat. The supple weight of her bottom rubbing against his groin wrested a pained groan to well up as his cock hardened at the contact.
“Owen!” she hissed, wiggling in his hold. Zinnia disliked the sudden movement and hopped onto his desk, disrupting the stacks of work previously placed in an orderly fashion. He couldn’t give a damn. “What do you think you’re doing? Someone could see us... Your mother could discover us!” An adorable gasp trembled on her lips as her squirming persisted.
“Then they’ll all be scandalized and secretly glad to see the earl and his countess getting along so well.”
“But are we? Everything’s happened so fast in such a short time span. We’ve hardly had time to adjust to one another... as we are now and not... before.” Before. When youthful fantasies dominated their lives rather than the less-fantastical reality they found themselves in now.
He supposed the moment had come to clarify what happened seven years ago. To finally learn why she’d so cruelly broken his heart.
“Lily, why—”
“Apologies, sir, but there’s been a mishap at the Henley construction site. A beam slipped its holding and landed on Garrett Henley. The men are trying to excavate him, but they could use more help.” A harried-looking man ran a tattered rag over his ruddy face as Marvin stood apologetically behind him.
Dammit. Just when Lily and he were making progress, a wrench was thrown into things.
“Notify Dr. Pearson, if he hasn’t been already, and round up any spare footmen along with saddling my horse, Marvin. I shall ride out immediately.” Helping Lily to her feet, he appreciated the glow of concern emanating from her, resting a palm on her cheek before leaving.
A sturdier barn was being built at the Henleys, one better-suited to housing their livestock. He hated that their eldest son was now injured from the project.
I’ll help however I can. It’s what Father would do.
Owen headed upstairs to change into more suitable attire for manual labor before jogging outside to where his gelding, River, waited in the hands of a young stable boy. The Henleys were located on the eastern portion of his lands, and he took off at a gallop, the weight of his responsibilities chasing him across fields of green.
Husband.
Son.
Earl.
Soon-to-be-father.
Caretaker of his tenants.
The list grew longer and longer, and he wondered if his seven-year desertion wasn’t catching up to him. If this wasn’t punishment for being away for so long.
For abandoning his mother after the death of her beloved husband.
For choosing Lily against his father’s well-meaning advice.