The Pregnant Bride. Crystal Green

on the hill was visible even in the dark. It loomed with the profile of a sorcerer’s hat topping a bald head. No wonder all the kids told scary stories about her and Aunt Valentine.

      She saw a pale object stretching along the side of the road. When she went over to investigate, Nick grabbed her hand. The contact sent a shock wave up her arm, the zing shivering into her lower stomach.

      “What’re you doing?” she asked, breathless.

      He let go of her, as if he’d touched a live electrical wire. “You’ve got to be careful, Meggie. You can’t go traipsing into ditches.”

      “We knocked-up damsels are pretty much able to make our own decisions.” She lifted her chin into the air, watching Nick from the corner of her eye. “Whether they’re good or bad.”

      He was grinning again, for heaven’s sake. She hadn’t been sure she could get another one out of him.

      He used the advantage of his long legs to move ahead of her, and she stood back, as he lifted the object.

      Clouds uncovered the moon as he spread it wide. “We miss you, Chad” was painted in red and blue lettering. One of those darn banners the ladies’ auxiliary had been hanging all over town. She wondered if the wind had blown this particular sign away from Main Street, or if someone felt as strongly about Chad as she did, tearing down the banner and tossing it into what Nick would’ve called a “ditch.”

      Nick stared at it a moment, then crumpled it to the ground, stepping on it as he clutched her hand again. His grip almost smashed her finger bones.

      “That hurts,” she said, keeping her voice as level as possible.

      He glanced at her hand, lifted it, and ran his fingers over hers. Meg almost melted to the dirt with a rush of liquid heat.

      “Sorry,” he said, his voice purring down her skin. Then, he patted her hand as if she were a five-year-old. They started walking again.

      “Why are those signs all over town?” he asked.

      She sighed heavily. Chad again. “Chad went to Europe in order to learn part of the family trade. A branch of the illustrious Spencer family runs several banks over there, and he’s learning from the best. I guess they want to expand the bank business once he returns to the States.” There. She’d said it without tripping over her words, without letting on that Chad had ripped out her heart.

      Nick seemed to know anyway. He stopped their progress, taking her shoulders into his hands, watching her carefully, his mouth set in a line. He seemed like a shadow, so tall, mysterious, intimidating. She swallowed, the sound much too obvious over his silence.

      He ran his index finger under her chin, cuffing it playfully. Meg wanted to grab him right there and then, giving in to the promise of her afternoon fantasy. Darn pregnancy hormones.

      He said, “I have a bad feeling that King of the World hurt you, Meggie.”

      Moonlight. His low, pint-of-whiskey voice. His shadow lingering over her. It was all enough to make her want to run away because he’d changed so much. Changed into something she couldn’t ever hope to have in her life.

      “No, you’re wrong,” she said, hoping she sounded as airy as she had when she used to dress like a rock-and-roll Gypsy girl.

      He settled his hands on her upper arms, cupping them, leaving her weak. She could tell by the tone of his voice that he’d gone on to a more serious subject. “I don’t live here, so trust me. Spencer’s the father. Am I wrong?”

      “Yes. I mean, yes, you’re wrong,” she lied.

      She hadn’t fooled him, judging by his hangdog look of disappointment. “I knew it.”

      He knew. All the work she’d gone through to hide it, and he’d guessed her secret right off the bat. She’d never confirmed the rumors in town about her baby. For all the people of Kane’s Crossing knew, she’d gotten pregnant when she’d gone upstate to settle Aunt Valentine’s estate five months ago. But she knew better. Obviously Nick knew better, too.

      A black look crossed over his face, and her heart seemed to stop from the intensity of it. He took a couple of steps back, away from her.

      “Don’t look so sad. We’re going to make things right.”

      She shook her head. “No one can know the truth, Nick. When Chad comes back to town, I’m afraid he’ll want my baby.” She choked, thinking about what she’d done to get kicked out of her parents’ house. If Chad were to discover her ineptitude, he’d pounce all over her, maybe even drag her through a custody battle. She’d lose her baby for certain.

      “He’d never marry me—the witch who lives on haunted hill. What if he took my baby, and I never saw my child again? You know he can do it. His family has so much money and power…”

      “Get out of town.”

      “And where would I go? Not back to San Diego, to my parents, you can be sure of that. I’ve got nowhere, Nick. Everything I own is here.”

      “Sell the house.”

      If only she could. “That place has been in my family since eighteen sixty-two. I promised Aunt Valentine before she died that I’d never sell it.” She laughed. “I’m between a rock and a hard place. Do you understand?”

      Nick ran a hand through his hair. Was he nervous about something?

      “Nick?”

      He cleared his throat, looking so lost in the middle of a town that hated him. The sight made her want to hold him and never let go.

      “Meggie, you can give your child a name. It’s the only solution.”

      There was no solution as far as she was concerned. “Thanks for the optimism, but I have no idea what to do.”

      He took a deep breath. “You can marry me.”

       Chapter Three

       M eggie looked as if a slight wind could’ve knocked her over.

      “Did you say something about marrying you?”

      Nick couldn’t believe he’d said it himself, but it made sense. He’d come to Kane’s Crossing to dish out revenge and, at the same time, right some wrongs. This was a perfect way to start. “Wouldn’t it help, Meggie? You said yourself that you’re afraid Chad will take the baby from you. How could he do that if we’re married?”

      “Because you’re not the father.” She turned away from him, tucking her hands into her coat pockets.

      Moonlight gleamed over her curly hair. He wondered how she’d react if he ran his hands through it, but he nixed the idea. Nick had never been one to lose his heart to a woman; as a matter of fact, he’d spent his life insulating himself from love. As with the string of foster homes he’d left in his wake, he’d never allowed himself to settle down with one person. He couldn’t believe he was about to do it now.

      He corrected himself. It wasn’t as if he was going to pledge his heart to Meggie. This marriage would be more like a business arrangement, a protective gesture to keep Meggie and her child safe from Spencer’s games. The King of Kane’s Crossing had already shaded his summer friend’s eyes with sadness. Nick wouldn’t allow him to do any more damage. Not if he could help it.

      He aimed his words at her back. “Who in this town knows that I’m not the father? You’ve made it a point to keep his identity a secret.”

      “What’s in it for you, Nick?”

      He watched her back, her red hair cascading over the enormous coat that swallowed her whole. She was so small, so alone. Nick hadn’t found many bright moments lately in his life, but now he actually felt a glimmer of hope. Maybe he could be useful to Meggie. Maybe he could matter.

      But she was right. What was in it for him? His dark soul had a ready answer. Revenge and justice,