They were halfway there when Jeremy pulled up in front of a dilapidated shack, known to the locals as Sweetman’s Cottage. Josiah Sweetman had lived there on his own until he died of an apoplexy two years before, his body left to rot until the minister finally took it upon himself to check on the old man. Alys thought she could still smell the putrefaction and wrinkled her nose.
Jeremy helped Alys to dismount, then tilted his head, indicating that Peter should give them some privacy. Pushing open the door, he led Alys inside.
“Jeremy, why are we here?” Alys asked, keeping her voice low. The knot in the pit of her stomach had just grown into her chest, pushing against her ribcage like a boulder and making her breath come in gasps. Perhaps this was where Jeremy wanted her to come to kill their baby. He wouldn’t be keeping his promise now that he’d had time to consider.
“I know it’s not much, but this is the only vacant cottage on the estate just now,” Jeremy said.
“I don’t understand,” Alys muttered. She did, but she desperately hoped Jeremy wouldn’t confirm her worst suspicions.
Jeremy looked tense and apprehensive as he looked about the place, his shoulders hunched as if he were bracing for impact, but then he took a deep breath and faced her, a pleading look in his eyes. “Sweetheart, the only way for me to protect you and our child is through a respectable marriage.”
“And who am I meant to marry?” Alys demanded, the boulder growing so large, she could scarcely draw breath.
“Peter Warren. Hal has already obtained a marriage license in Chesterfield, and that’s where the nuptials will take place, or so we would have everyone believe.” Jeremy held up his hand before Alys could object. “I will give this cottage to you as a wedding gift, and it will be renovated before you move in. You will have a home of your own to bring up our baby in.”
“And what of Peter?” Alys demanded. “Does he not get a say in this? What if he wishes to wed where his heart tells him? And will he be expecting to exercise his husbandly rights?” Alys’s eyes were swimming with tears so that she could no longer make out the expression on Jeremy’s face.
“You will not be legally wed, nor will he lay a finger on you. Peter will continue to work at the manor and visit you every week to bring supplies. If anyone sees a man coming to see you, they’ll not think anything of it, assuming it’s your husband,” Jeremy said, using his finger to lift Alys’s chin. “But it won’t be Peter. I will come to you as often as I can. I will provide for you and our children. I will see to the boys’ education and future prospects, and I will make sure the girls are advantageously married. It’s the best I can do under the circumstances. Peter has agreed and will be handsomely compensated for his part in this. Please, say you agree.”
“And if I don’t?” Alys asked, feigning defiance.
“If you don’t, then I’ll throw the marriage license on the fire and we will be right back where we started. Sweetheart,” Jeremy said, laying his hands on her shoulders. “If I were free, I would marry you in a heartbeat. This is the only way to protect you and get you away from the manor without arousing suspicion. Please, allow me to do this for you. For us,” he amended.
Alys nodded miserably. What choice did she have? Jeremy was in no position to marry her, and there was no other alternative. He could hand her a purse and pack her off somewhere, where she could pretend to be a widow and raise her child in solitude, unless she met someone who wished to take her on. At least here, she’d be close to Jeremy, and to Will and Bess. She wouldn’t be alone. And if Jeremy believed Peter Warren could be trusted to keep their secret, then she’d have to do the same.
“All right,” Alys muttered. “I’ll do it.”
“Thank you,” Jeremy said, surprising her with his vehemence.
“What are ye thanking me for?”
“For not leaving me. For not murdering our child. For understanding the impossibility of my situation,” he replied. She could see he was overcome with relief, his eyes becoming moist. Was he crying? “Oh, Alys, how I wish things could be different. Had I known how things would turn out, I would have defied my father and turned my back on title and fortune just to be with you.”
“Would ye?” Alys asked, holding his gaze. “Would ye really give it all up for me?”
“Yes,” Jeremy said simply. “I would. Nothing means anything without you. I love you, Alys, and I will love you till the day I die.”
She nodded, and the stone beneath her ribcage vanished. She believed him and knew that he loved her. This charade was the ultimate proof that he was willing to do anything to keep her and their child safe.
“I love ye too, Jeremy,” she said, smiling up at him. “And I can’t wait to have a home of my own.”
“And now, I think you and Peter should go share the news with your family. It wouldn’t do for them to hear it from someone else. And I will go speak to Matthew Gage regarding the renovations. I will offer to pay any man who is willing to help so that this place is finished in time for the wedding.”
“And what if Will and Bess wish to come to the wedding?” Alys asked.
“Don’t worry; they won’t,” Jeremy replied. “Everything is going to work out exactly as planned.”
“Don’t make promises you can’t keep,” Alys said,
