Page 32 of Always the Chaperone
There was no answering shout from the butler, and a frown of confusion creased her brow until the sound of the front door opening echoed. He had already seen them, and as Charlotte peered through the window, she saw the elderly butler open the door to the carriage and offer a hand.
She watched as Tabitha stepped down, straightening her pelisse as she stood and waited for her husband to dismount from the carriage on the other side. It was still too early for anyone who did not know Tabitha to see that she was with child, but if you knew what you were looking for, it was clear as day. The gentle curve of her stomach, the way she cupped it with her hand. Protective. Nurturing.
Charlotte rose and smoothed down her own gown. She had been looking forward to their visit for days, and this was no time to start becoming envious. This was excellent news for her brother and sister-in-law.You will not tie yourself in knots about this,she warned herself silently.
A few steps brought her into the hallway where the couple stood.
“I wish you would be more careful, Tabitha,” Richard was saying sternly as his wife threw herself into Charlotte’s arms. “Now, really!”
Charlotte laughed at the suddenness of it all, and the sisterly affection she was showered with by a woman who, really, she barely knew. Her courtship with her brother had been so short, there was barely time to become acquainted before they traipsed up the aisle.
“I am careful,” shot back Tabitha as Matthews helped her out of her pelisse. “Do not concern yourself, Richard, you will give yourself gout.”
“Gout! You are the one who is in a delicate state, not I!”
Tabitha rolled her eyes and winked at Charlotte as she removed her bonnet. “Nonsense.”
Charlotte glanced at her brother, who looked apoplectic. “Please, Tabitha, go and sit down in the drawing room.”
“Sit down? I have been sitting down in a carriage for this very age! The last thing I wish to do is sit down.” Tabitha smiled at Charlotte and continued, “Now Charlotte, you must tell me—wait a moment…”
Charlotte and Richard waited as Tabitha’s voice trailed away, her cheeks went pale, and she put a hand to her mouth.
“You must excuse me. Matthews, I need a bowl!”
She rushed down the corridor toward the kitchen in a whirl of skirts, and the door slammed behind her.
“Should we go after her?” Charlotte asked anxiously. “Is she quite well?”
“No,” said Richard heavily. “But that does not stop her from attempting to act like she is.” He saw his sister’s worried face and smiled. “You know Tabitha is with child. According to Doctor Lawrence, this is a completely natural stage of the process, but if you ask me, it feels like hard work. I do not know why any woman bothers to put up with it!”
She returned his smile. “I think once the baby has arrived, you may think a little differently. Tabitha certainly will.”
“We were delayed two hours because of all this stopping and vomiting out of carriages. I shall be glad to see the end of it.”
Their conversation was interrupted by a figure coming down the stairs.
“Ah, Danvers,” Charlotte said.
Her lady’s maid stopped at the foot of the stairs and bobbed a curtsey.
“Would you mind seeing to the Duchess of Axwick?” Charlotte said quietly. “She is in the kitchen in search of a bowl and requires assistance?”
Danvers blinked. “A bowl, my lady?”
Richard smiled. “My wife expects to be confined by the end of the summer.”
Understanding was swift. “I shall go and look after Her Grace this moment,” said Danvers with a nod.
“And in the meantime, let’s sit down,” Richard said, not bothering to wait for Charlotte’s reply before turning to step into the drawing room.
They seated themselves on either side of the fireplace, the fire blazing. Charlotte’s mind was with Tabitha in the kitchen. What was it like to know there was a child growing inside you? How did it feel to have one’s body utterly taken over to the needs of a baby you had not even met yet?
“I do not believe I have given my congratulations in person,” she said hastily, aware that her role as hostess was being neglected. Really, it was strange to play host to one’s brother in the place where you had once lived together.
“You have not,” her brother replied with a grin. “Do not worry about it, we have been inundated with congratulations from all. And really, until the child arrives, I am attempting not to get too excited.”
“You are not?”
