Page 43

“ A re you quite certain you wouldn’t like another piece?” Nathaniel’s mother said as she stood up and reached for the platter in the middle of the table.

Evelyn shook her head. “No, really, I could not. Besides, I am told it will be a rather delicious dinner later, so I should rather wait for that and keep?—”

“Of course,” his mother said. “But you must eat. In your condition, it’s?—”

Evelyn placed one hand on her stomach and looked up. “How do you know?”

She winked at her. “A woman can tell. Does Nathan know?”

“Yes, I told him before we traveled here. Just in case—I was feeling rather ill.”

“Yes, there are a great many tinctures and remedies for that. I will help you, do not fret. I will go to the apothecary later and collect a few things for you. Now, are you quite certain you would not want anything else to eat? What about a cup of tea?”

Suddenly she smiled, but it was a sad smile, because Evelyn was overcome by a longing and ache in her heart she hadn’t felt before.

“What is it, dear?”

“Nothing. It’s just… You are so kind and sweet. You are so… you are everything I could have imagined in a mother. And my mother… It seems the last few weeks I have missed her much more than usual.”

“Well, this is quite normal when one is expecting a child. To know that she is not here with you, but she’s looking down on you and is very proud.

I know it. Just as I know that Nathaniel’s father is looking down at him and is just as proud of him and the man he has become, in no small part thanks to you. ”

“I have done nothing,” she said.

“Of course you have. Nathaniel has told me that you have encouraged him, that you have given him the strength to build his alliances, to make changes, to strive to be a better man than his uncle was. You have truly been a blessing to him.”

“I hope so,” she said. It was true. Nathaniel truly had grown these last few months.

Their alliance in the House of Lords had only grown stronger, and they had been able to pass the law they had sought to protect the poor, climbing boys.

In addition, he had introduced several other proposals that were far-reaching.

Not all of them would succeed, of course, but even if just a fraction did, it could improve the lives of many.

And she could not be prouder of him for that.

She glanced up and spotted the painting hanging above the fireplace.

It wasn’t the first time she noticed it.

It was the first thing she had noticed when they arrived here three days ago.

She had felt very ill that day, both from the journey and her advancing condition, so this was the first time she had a chance to truly observe it.

“It’s not Nathaniel’s father?” she asked.

Marybeth, her mother-in-law, nodded. “Yes, it is. He was a wonderful husband. I have been blessed. I have had not just one, but two wonderful husbands.”

“I cannot say the same,” she said. “I’m afraid I have only had one wonderful husband.”

“Yes, the first one was rather… peculiar, shall we say?”

‘Peculiar’ was a rather generous way to describe Bertram—but she did not want to talk about the man anymore.

“Do you think of him often?” she asked, and Marybeth nodded.

“I do. At first, I felt guilty about it. But now I think life is what it’s meant to be, you know? I think we all are exactly where we were meant to be.”

She sighed and nodded. “I suppose. But I do wish it had not been quite so difficult to get here.”

Evelyn placed her hand on her stomach, a smile on her lips. Perhaps she was right. Perhaps they were exactly where they were meant to be.

From outside, voices rose, and she turned. Nathaniel and his stepfather, along with their party, were returning.

“I’ll go greet them outside,” she said, and her mother-in-law smiled at her. Outside, Nathaniel spotted her and parted from his stepfather. He was at her side almost immediately.

“Hello, Lady Evelyn,” he said.

“Hello, Mr. Sinclair,” she replied, as he wrapped his arm around her. “I thought perhaps we could take a turn about the garden.”

“I would adore that.”

“How was the shooting?”

“It was good. Although I missed several times, so perhaps not that impressive. But it was enjoyable to be with my father and some of my old friends again. And you—how are you and my mother?”

“Getting along famously,” she said. “I wish I could bring Aunt Eugenia here sometime so she could meet your mother.”

“You are too kind.”

She glanced up at her husband. “Are you happy with the silence?”

“What do you mean?” he said with a chuckle.

“Well, I know it has not been exactly quiet at home, what with Aunt Eugenia, Charlotte, and Marianne all in our business.”

“Oh, that,” he said. “Yes. But I adore it. They are wonderful.”

After her last argument with her father, she had decided to do exactly what needed to be done. She had told her sisters and Eugenia that they should come and live with her and Nathaniel. Their father had to learn that he could not use them as pawns.

To her surprise, there had been very little opposition.

She expected that Charlotte, at least, would argue, but she likely also knew she would be a prime target for their father’s plans and schemes.

Thus, they had all moved into their home.

Their father hadn’t been able to do much about it.

Nathaniel far outranked him, and if her father cared about one thing, it was his reputation.

He would not have wanted to be known as the wretched man who put his children after his business desires.

Even though that is exactly who he was.

She hadn’t seen her father since, but she thought of him often—alone in his house, stuck with nothing but his servant and his own thoughts.

There had been some movement recently. He had approached Nathaniel at the House of Lords and asked him if they could talk about their proposal. He hadn’t yet, because they had planned this trip to Scotland. But once they returned, Nathaniel would sit with her.

“Do you think my father will agree to everything we have demanded?”

“I think so. He looks a picture of misery every time I see him in Parliament. I think he misses you—all of you.”

“I hope he does. You don’t think I’m being too harsh?”

“No, not at all. After everything he has done to you? No. You are kind and generous, my dear. More than he deserves.”

“Do you think it is a mistake to take over his holdings?”

“No. Something needs to be done before he spends it all. And if he’s willing to put me in charge, there might be a real chance. At least he may not bankrupt himself.”

“At least there is that,” she said. “I think Marianne and Charlotte miss him. Aunt Eugenia, too. Sooner or later, they will want to go home.”

“I know it. Once we have made peace with your father, they will be able to. I certainly shall not keep them prisoner if that is where they want to be.”

“I would never make them stay.”

“I know,” he said and kissed the side of her head. “I spoke to Julian just recently. Have you heard the latest? Julian has written to me and told me that Lady Charmaine and Lord Halston have been seen together.”

“Goodness gracious,” she said. “That I did not see coming.” She laughed. “But they do make a good pair. Although heaven have mercy on whoever they set their sights on.”

“Well, it will not be either one of us, that is for certain. They will never come near us again.”

Indeed, Julian and Lady Annabelle had ensured that Lady Charmaine received the talking-to from her father that she richly deserved. After a thorough dressing-down, she had written a letter of apology to Evelyn and Nathaniel and vowed to stay away from them from now on.

Halston, on the other hand, was not quite as apologetic.

But since he was not yet a peer in his own right, they would not have to worry about him for some time.

His father—still young at fifty years old—was going to keep his title and position for a very long time.

Besides, Nathaniel had finally shared the truth about Halston and his actions with several of his new allies, and thus freed himself from that burden.

Once he had spoken up, other people had said similar things about Halston, and his reputation was currently teetering on a very sharp edge.

“We can hope that the two of them will decide to move elsewhere and leave London alone. Given neither of them has stellar repute.”

“That is true,” she said. “Annabelle did mention that Charmaine had designs on France.”

“Let the French have them,” he laughed. “Although I think right now is probably not a good idea, what with the war.”

“Indeed. Let us not talk about them anymore. I saw you had a lot of letters from Lord Pendleton?”

“I did. We have made further progress on the climbing boys. There will be tight regulations on their working conditions. And a workhouse will be established where they can sleep and eat each evening. They will be able to wash and rest properly and not on warm coals.”

“Good. But it isn’t quite enough.”

“No, it isn’t. But it’s a start. And sometimes that is worth something. Also, I hear you have set your sights on teaching the underprivileged to read?”

“I have. It is dreadful that there are so many who do not know how to read. We will assemble a collection of books to be used for teaching. We will have free classes once a week. Each lady is going to teach two or three poor souls to read and write. It is so beneficial for them to know how to do so.”

“Indeed, it is,” he said and smiled at her. “You are marvelous. Do you know that?”

“Once upon a time, you did not think so. You rather thought me a pain in the side.”

“You are. And sometimes you still are,” he said.

“But you are my pain in the side, and thus, I do not care.” He stopped and took her hands in his.

“I cannot wait for our child to be born. We will teach him or her everything. We will raise them upright. We will make them strong. We will teach them to fence and to speak for themselves, and to read and write, of course—and to be righteous.”

“You sound as though we are going to raise a king or a queen.”

“Perhaps we will,” he said with a smile. “But whatever we do, I want to be sure that our child knows it is loved and valued for who they are—and not for what they can do for our position.”

“Indeed,” she said. “We both know the burden of being the heir or the eldest. I never want my child to feel such a burden.”

“Our child won’t. None of our children will,” he cupped her face, “because they have a magnificent mother who will teach them to roar like a lion if they?—”

“And a father who can teach them to use their words wisely.”

“Indeed,” he said.

Then he placed his lips on hers. Her eyes fluttered shut, and at once, butterflies stirred in her stomach, filling her entire body with a pleasant, warm tingle of love.

The End?