The door to her room opened, and she smelled the familiar cigar smoke. “Please, Father, the smoke makes me feel sicker,” she told him as he came into the room. He stepped out into the hall and put out the cigar, then came back inside, coming to sit by her side. She waited for another tirade, but her father seemed calmer now.
“I have decided what to do,” he said, sounding heartbroken.
Her heart pounded with dread. “I’m sorry I disappointed you, Father, but I’m not sorry for loving Lloyd.” She remained lying very still, afraid that if she moved the nausea would return.
Zane Parker sighed deeply. “The boy took advantage of you. I don’t blame you now for any of it. I should have kept a closer eye on what was going on. I was gone too much, gave you too much freedom. It’s been hard, Beth, trying to raise you without a mother. I took it for granted that a couple of weeks every summer with your Aunt Trudy and winters at the girls’ school here in Denver would make up for it.” He leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. “Something has to be done. I’ll not have this child bearing the Harkner name. I don’t even want other people to know who the real father is. I’ve already sworn the doctor and your aunt to secrecy.”
More tears started to come. “But I have to marry Lloyd. I can’t have a baby out of wedlock.”
“That’s right. You can’t, and I won’t even consider an abortion. Women die from such things, especially young ones. You’ll have this baby, and you’ll be a married woman when it is born. He or she will carry a reputable name and will never know he was conceived out of wedlock or carries the blood of an outlaw.”
“I don’t understand,” she sniffled.
The man cleared his throat. “I have a friend in Chicago, a widowed druggist. He’s thirty years old and very wealthy in his own right but also comes from a wealthy family. He owns several drugstores in Chicago. He never had any children by his first wife, but they always wanted them. You met him at the spring party. He was visiting in Denver and came to the ranch. You played the piano for him the night before the party. Do you remember? His name is David Vogel.”
A terrible dread began to creep through her blood. “Yes,” she answered quietly. She remembered an attractive young man whose hands seemed too white and clean when he sat down beside her and joined her in a tune. He had smelled like scented perfume instead of leather and the out-of-doors. He had seemed pleasant enough, a man of moderate build who wore very expensive suits. He’d had a bright smile, a pleasant personality.
“He’s still here in Denver, on an extended stay because of an older brother of his who is dying of some kind of cancer. I remembered he was quite infatuated with you at the party. I had a lengthy talk with him last night, and he is willing to marry you and take you back to Chicago. He will allow everyone to believe the baby is his, and he has promised not to touch you until after the baby is born, and then only when you are ready.”
Beth slowly sat up. “You want me to marry a perfect stranger?”
“He’s not a total stranger. He’s a very nice young man, wealthy and responsible, and, I might add, very generous to do this. Not many men will marry what they consider soiled goods.” Pain showed in his eyes. “I don’t like to put it that way, Beth, but you should know how most men look at something like this. It’s a cold fact of life, and David is being very noble. You’ll marry him, and that’s that. It sickens me that you won’t be able to attend that finishing school or travel to Europe, that you won’t be able to do any of the things I had planned for you. Maybe David can see that you take a trip to Europe after the baby is born, and he has plenty of servants, so you’ll have help with the child.”
Beth just stared at him, feeling cold and damp and abandoned. “It’s Lloyd I should be marrying! I love Lloyd! I can’t be some other man’s wife!”
“You have no choice. You’ve got to think about the baby now, not yourself. You’ve heard the charges against Jake. I’ve wired home, and Lloyd has left for St. Louis. God knows how long this thing will take, and if you’re going to fool people about this pregnancy, you can’t wait around. It’s important to marry as quickly as possible so people will believe the baby is David’s.”
He leaned closer, his eyes drilling into her. “No matter what happens at Jake’s trial, Beth, the charges against him are not going to go away. They will follow him and Lloyd both wherever they go. You can’t do that to your child, nor can you take the risk of people calling him or her a bastard. The child is all that matters now. If you love the baby in your belly, you’ll do what’s best for him and forget about what you want! David is a good man. After a time you’ll appreciate what he’s done, especially when he loves that baby like his own. You’ll learn to love him and be a wife to him. That’s the way some marriages are, Beth. Not everyone marries out of childish passion, and that’s all you had with Lloyd. When you’re young, it isn’t always easy to control your emotions. Lloyd should have known what he was doing was as wrong as it could be, that you were much too young for him to be taking advantage like that.” He let out a sigh of disgust and leaned back in the chair again. “Sixteen! My God!”