Six Months Later

“How’s the sickness now?” Marion asked.

Eleanor smiled as she rubbed her swollen belly. The baby shifted a little and kicked against her hand.

“It comes and goes now. If I don’t move too quickly, I’ll be fine.”

Marion shuddered. “I can’t imagine being nauseous while you’re pregnant. Is that normal?”

“Mr. Fallowfields says it is, but I doubt it.” Eleanor shook her head. “Father said Mother was never this sick, and Nathan said that his mother didn’t have sickness as bad as this when she was pregnant. But I suppose every pregnancy is different.”

“Which means some women suffer more than others,” Marion muttered.

Eleanor couldn’t agree more. She had become pregnant very quickly after the wedding, and she could still remember the moment she told Nathan. He had picked her up and spun her around the room, which had resulted in Eleanor almost throwing up all over him. Her husband was still beaming a week later.

Even now, he was still smiling, walking across the lawn of their country house with Simon, and their English sheepdog jumping around them like a mad thing. Eleanor had been insistent about getting a dog, a dream of hers for some years now. Her father had refused to get a dog, claiming that her mother didn’t like them, and they made him sneeze. Nathan had been too happy to oblige, and Samson was an adorable pup. Eleanor didn’t think she could love anyone more.

Except her husband. And now her baby.

“I can’t wait for the baby to arrive.” Eleanor rubbed slow circles over her belly. That seemed to settle the discomfort a little. “Just a few more months to go.”

“From the look of it, Captain Reynolds can’t wait, either.” Marion smiled. “He still hasn’t gone back to France, and I thought he would be heading back once he confirmed you were pregnant.”

Eleanor smiled. “He says he’s been given permission to stay on leave for another year. I think he just doesn’t want to leave me when I’m this sick.”

“You think?”

“He has been sticking closer to me when you’re not around.”

Which he had. Nathan was being a very attentive father-to-be, doing anything he could to make Eleanor feel better. Eleanor had told him several times that he could go back and carry on fighting against the French – they did need him – but Nathan had simply responded that his priority now was his wife and child. Nothing was getting in the way of that.

For a man who was very set in his ways and determined to go back to France, that was a big step. Eleanor had never thought she would hear that. While she did feel a little guilty for Nathan not serving his country, she wasn’t about to complain. She would make every second count.

There was a series of barks, and Eleanor watched as Nathan picked up a stick and threw it, Samson charging after it. She smiled.

“If I’m honest, it’s nice to have him around.”

“I can imagine” Marion murmured. “At least you know you’re married.”

Eleanor glanced over. Her friend was sitting beside her on the terrace, staring out across the lawn. Eleanor didn’t need to guess who Marion was looking at, not with that faraway look on her face. Her friend had been like this since being properly introduced to Simon. Eleanor had wondered about it at the beginning, Nathan laughing when she told him about it. To him, it sounded like Marion was quite taken with Simon. And from what her husband knew, the feeling was mutual.

Eleanor didn’t know about that. The two of them barely spoke, and they were rarely in the same room long enough to talk. But Marion’s expression said she would happily spend all day listening to the Earl of Reading.

“Marion?” Eleanor leaned over and nudged her friend’s knee. “Are you all right?”

“Hmm?” Marion blinked and turned to her. Then she shook herself. “Oh, forgive me, Eleanor. I didn’t know I had drifted off.”

“Where did you go?”

“I’m…” Marion’s face went a little red. “I was just…soaking in my surroundings.”

Eleanor grinned. “Soaking in the sight of the Earl of Reading, from the look of it.”

Marion’s eyes widened. “Eleanor!”

“What? What’s wrong with making a passing comment?”

“It’s not a passing comment, and you know it,” Marion snapped.

Eleanor looked out at her husband and his friend. Simon was now making Samson play fetch with him, the pup tripping over his feet as he chased around after the stick. Seeing the Earl look so carefree and relaxed was refreshing. It was no wonder Marion found him attractive to watch.

“I have noticed how much you look at him. There’s no harm in looking, is there?”

Marion scowled. “There is when nothing can come of it.”

“You believe that nothing can happen between the two of you?”

Marion looked away.

“Eleanor, I’m not of his station, and Lord Reading still pines for his dead wife. I can’t compete with a woman I’ll never meet.”

There was that. Simon was still mourning his wife. But he had been doing a lot of looking at Marion himself. Eleanor had noticed. There was a good chance he was ready to move on. Eleanor couldn’t think of anyone better than Marion to help him with that.

“Oh, Marion.” Eleanor clasped her friend’s hand. “You’re worrying too much. I never said you had to approach him and express undying love. Just enjoy admiring a good-looking man. That’s what I’m doing.”

“It’s different for you. You’re married to him.”

Eleanor giggled. “There is that factor.” She rose to her feet, swaying a little before she got her balance. “Come on. Let’s go for a walk. Let the boys play with the dog.”

Marion hesitated, then she rose to her feet and gave her friend a smile. “All right. I could do with stretching my legs.”

“Good.” Eleanor slipped her arm through Marion’s. “And then you can help me choose a few names. Nathan and I are still stuck. We could use some outside advice.”

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