Page 42

Wolfebourne Lodge

Binnocksbourne, England

“T hey look the same to me,” Connor said. He pointed at the cradle to the right and then at the one to the left. “I bet the dogs don’t even know which is which.”

“The ribbon on that headboard plainly says Remus Jamison ,” Sissy said, “and that one says Gwyneth Jennette. ”

“Dogs can’t very well read, now can they?”

“They don’t have to read. The babies smell different. Grace said so.”

Wolfe knew if he didn’t quiet those two, his beloved infants would soon scream their displeasure at being disturbed to all of England.

Then poor Grace would have yet another nap interrupted, since she had yet to find a nurse or nanny she trusted.

He hurried into the nursery and caught hold of his brother and sister by the shoulders.

“If you two awaken the little ones, I shall inform Mrs. Perridone that you volunteered to help the maids scrub the chamber pots.”

The twins stared at him in horror, then Connor pointed at the crowd of dogs with their noses propped on the cradles, avidly watching the babies sleep. “What about them?” he asked in a loud whisper.

“They help Remy and Gwynnie sleep,” Grace said from the doorway, “because they make them feel safe.”

“Gads alive, my love.” Wolfe hurried to wrap an arm around his exhausted wife so she might lean against him. “Forgive us for waking you.”

“You didn’t wake me.” She meandered closer to the cradles and smiled down at her children. “I’ll need to feed them soon. That is what woke me.”

“Does your stomach growl or something when theirs gets empty?” Connor asked.

“Something like that,” Grace told the child while giving Wolfe a pointed look.

“Why don’t you two run along now?” he suggested, taking her hint to heart.

“See if Lady Merry’s carriage is anywhere in sight.

Her letter said she should arrive today to see the babies and also bring along a prospective nurse and a nanny Lady Fortuity found for us to interview.

A nurse and nanny that successfully survived the Broadmere gauntlet. ”

“Last one to the gate is a warty old toad,” Connor said before shooting out the door.

Sissy rolled her eyes. “Since we have Remy now, can we please send Connor off to boarding school? I truly believe he needs it.”

“No one is sending anyone off,” Wolfe said as he escorted her out and closed the door behind her. Turning back to Grace, he asked, “Are you certain we didn’t wake you?”

She had already stretched out on the sofa in front of the windows beside the cradles.

“You didn’t wake me. This uncomfortable fullness did.

Hand me Remy. He’s already wolfish with hunger, working his little feet back and forth and getting red in the face.

” She loosened the ties on the makeshift robe she’d had the village seamstress create for her.

Wolfe picked up his squirming son. “Hush now, young man. Don’t wake your sister if you wish to eat your fill first.”

The baby grunted and growled even louder, making Wolfe laugh. He couldn’t remember ever feeling so content, complete, or exhausted.

“While I know you enjoy being unconventional,” he said as he settled the babe in Grace’s arms, “a wet nurse would be a godsend for you. Don’t you agree? Doesn’t an entire night of uninterrupted sleep sound absolutely decadent?”

“It does.”

But Wolfe could tell by her tone that she was not yet ready to hand off the feeding of her babies to another, no matter how socially expected it was for her to do so. “It’s entirely your decision, my love. Whenever you are ready.”

She hitched with a jaw-cracking yawn, then smiled at the babe rooting at her breast. “Soon, perhaps. When they are a little older. Two weeks just seems so early.” She patted the cushions beside her. “Come sit with us before Gwynnie needs you or Gastric beats you to the spot.”

Wolfe eased down beside her, then rubbed a finger across the velvety softness of his son’s dark hair. “I believe he’s doubled in size since he came into the world.”

“The way he eats, I’m not in the least bit surprised.” She looked up from the babe with concern. “Don’t you need to return to Parliament? The session just started a few weeks ago.”

“They can go to the devil,” he said, meaning every word. “My family needs me.”

“So, you don’t miss the quiet of your life before? The carefree routine of an unmarried duke?”

He cupped her cheek and gently stroked his thumb across it. “That was no life, my love. That was sheer and utter loneliness.”

She leaned into his hand and smiled. “I’m so happy.” She added a teasing wink. “And I promise to give Nellie time to run a brush through my hair today. I’m sure I look like something that should live in the bushes.”

“You are more beautiful every day, my love.” He leaned across his grunting son and kissed her. “Remy and Gwynnie are fortunate to have been born to a most glorious woman.”

“I’m blessed by all of you.”

An indignant yowl rose from the cradle. Gastric and Hector yipped sharply, and the remainder of the hounds darted back and forth between Wolfe and the baby’s bed.

Grace laughed. “It appears someone has realized her brother is eating without her.”

“I’m coming, Gwynnie.” Wolfe wove his way through the dogs.

“Apparently, I do not move quickly enough for her or her guardians.” He scooped up his impatient daughter and cradled her to his chest. “Yes, dearest. I know Papa is slow, but grant me some grace. I’ve never been around such a tiny beauty before.

” He settled her to Grace’s other breast, then gently nudged a pillow beneath each of the babes to make things easier.

“You’ve become quite adept at this, Your Grace.”

The regret in her eyes gave him pause. “What is it, my love?”

“I need to find a nurse, a nanny, and a wet nurse to help me. For your sake, more than mine. Keeping you here at my side is like caging a wild animal.”

Her eyes filled with tears, as they often had for little to no reason at all since the babies came. Thankfully, Mrs. Perridone and Nellie had both assured him that was sometimes the way of it with new mothers.

He knelt at her side and stroked her mess of curls back from her face. “I love you, and there is no other place in creation I would rather be than at your side.”

Her tears overflowed, and she leaned her head into his hand. “I never ever used to cry, and now I weep when the wind changes. What the devil is wrong with me?”

“Nothing is wrong with you, my love, and if it makes you feel better to cry, then do it.”

“You are a most patient husband.”

“With such a wondrous family, patience is easy.” He kissed his son’s head and then his daughter’s. “Merry will be beside herself with these two. I’m surprised Joy, Felicity, and Serendipity aren’t coming, too.”

“Marriage Mart. Remember?” Grace arched a brow.

“Chance gains a percentage of the coffers upon the happy marriage of each sister, but not the entirety until all are married. Since Merry is the youngest, she is the safest—for now. Joy is next on the chopping block, and the Season is now in full swing.”

“What about Serendipity? She’s the eldest.”

“She promised Mama she wouldn’t wed until the rest of us were firmly settled in our happily-ever-afters.

When Mama passed, Seri became the matriarch, seeing to everyone else.

” Grace twitched the slightest shrug. “Since Joy is a year younger than me, Chance will set his sights on getting her matched next. If he finds a man able to beat her at the gaming tables, he should be set.”

“Somehow, I doubt that. I don’t see Joy taking well to losing.” Wolfe huffed a soft laugh to keep from disturbing the peacefully nursing babies. “Heaven help the man who ever challenges Joy and wins.”

Grace grinned. “They used to say that about me, and just look at us.”

He stretched and kissed her cheek. “Yes, my love, just look at us now.”

“Yes,” she said softly. “We’ve both won.”

“Indeed we have.”

The End