The Earl's Secret Read Online Free PDF Page B

marrying him. His masculine pride took a hard hit, but another part of him was relieved. He knew he didn’t love her, and she was quite honest about her lack of feelings for him.
    â€œOur marrying,” he remembered her saying coldly, “would be stupid. I’ve already told Sir Isaac, my fiancé, about the problem. He’s fine with it. Really. As long as we publicly let on that the baby is his, for the time being.”
    At first this had seemed fine to Christopher. He’d been let off the hook. But when Lisa was born, he couldn’t stay away from the hospital. And at the instant his gaze settled over her tiny pink face and crystal-blue eyes, he lost his heart. From that day on he had done all he could, without going back on his promise, to see his little daughter and support her in any way he could.
    He became an official friend of the family. As soon as she could speak, Lisa took to calling him Uncle Chris. If he was lucky, the nurse would bring the little girl down to greet houseguests, which often numbered in the dozens. Lisa grew from fragile infant to delightfully rambunctious toddler, to a charmingly intelligent child who favored wearing her riding jodhpurs and helmet over white eyelet and pink ribbons. He never tired of talking to her or reading her stories. And she always seemed just as happy to see him.
    When she was old enough to go to school, he offered to pay her tuition. All her mother had to do was choose the school. Much to his dismay, instead of selecting one of the better London institutions, Sandra Ellington chose her own alma mater in southern Scotland. So very far from London, where he lived.
    Determined not to lose contact with Lisa, he had secured a position for himself on the board of regents at St. James School for Girls. He had been present at nearly all school functions in the past year that she had attended, particularly when Lisa’s mother couldn’t be, and he dropped in on the campus whenever possible. He aggressively solicited funds for the new addition to the school from his many social contacts while sharing Lisa’s triumphs with pride.
    Time passed so very quickly. Christopher prayed for the day when Sandra would do as she had promised him years before and tell her daughter about her real father. “I’m just waiting until she’s old enough to comprehend all of this. It’s a delicate issue for a young girl,” she reminded him whenever he asked.
    Now he was beginning to wonder if she ever would reveal his identity to Lisa. Fear alternated with helpless anger. His hands were tied, his silence expected, and emptiness gnawed at his soul.
    He knew it wouldn’t be right to act without permission from the child’s mother. After all, she must understand her daughter better than anyone. What if he risked revealing all to Lisa, and the girl refused to believe him? Their warm relationship would be destroyed. Worse yet, she might feel betrayed because he had lied to her all of these years, pretending to be an honorary uncle when he really was her father. She might hate him. He couldn’t bear that.
    And so he continued to wait and hope for a timewhen he could embrace his daughter and tell her how much he loved her…had always loved her.
    As it turned out, Lisa’s class was on a field trip that day and he couldn’t see her at all. Disappointed, he picked up his copy of the builder’s contracts for the addition from the administration office, then drove back into the city. He would need to review them before the board meetings. The urge was stronger than ever to cherish and protect the little girl who might never know his secret burden.
    Â 
    â€œThe Royal Mile was wonderful!” Jennifer cried when she saw Christopher waiting for her outside the Caledonia. “I bought a ton of great stuff, and I almost never shop while leading a tour!”
    He had been under such an oppressive cloud since he left St. James that