My Dearest Friend (Books We Love Regency Romance) (28 page)

Upon entering the diffused interior of the room, the duke exclaimed at her lack of nourishment. “We can’t have you swooning again,” he said, attempting to smile. “Will you not try a little of the chicken? I have eaten and so must you, otherwise I will have two invalids on my hands.”

Seeing the sense in this she attempted to take some of the chicken but it tasted as sawdust to her and she put it to one side. Seeing that he still watched her, she ate a little of the bread and butter and took a second glass of wine that seemed to revive her a little.

Reynolds arrived shortly after one and requesting more candles to be brought, set about examining the child once more. In the additional light, Jane could quite clearly see the angry red rash that seemed to cover the whole of Sophie’s small frame.

“The fever does not appear to have lessened,” said the doctor. “All we can do at this stage is to try to keep her cool, keep sponging her down. I have brought a cordial that you might try, but no matter what, it will run its course. Listen to her breathing and if it becomes labored send for me at once. Keep the curtains drawn even during the day, as the light will only serve to make her head more painful. I will come again in the morning; there is little else we can do at the moment. We can only pray that there will be no complications. Thankfully she is normally a healthy child and has all the advantages of a prosperous home. There are those in the city who do not! I can see no reason why she should not recover.”

“God make it so,” said the duke fervently. “It almost seems too much for her little body to bear.”

“
Take heart, she is stronger than you would think,” assured Reynolds. Closing his bag and taking one last look at his patient, he took his leave.

***

The duke and duchess spent the night sitting at Sophie’s bedside, each in their turn dozing fitfully in their chair to be brought fully awake at the slightest movement or sound from the bed.

The invading tendrils of dawn crept around the edges of the heavy curtain and the duke rose to extinguish the few candles remaining alight. As he stood on the opposite side of the bed, he examined the figure of his sleeping wife in the dim half-light and a small frown creased his brow, but this was dismissed as Sophie woke crying to claim his attention and to waken Jane.

The remainder of the day passed in much the same vein as had the night. Sophie remained very demanding on their time, giving them little chance for discourse other than that of her care. Reynolds came and went declaring his satisfaction with his patient’s condition, which, while still being a cause of great concern, nevertheless remained so that she was in no mortal danger. By the end of the third day, he perceived a lessening in her fever and pronounced his opinion that the illness had finally peaked. Jane was at last able to offer her some comfort by her presence although the child remained fretful and restive.

By the end of a week, the rash had begun to abate and her skin to peel. The fever having subsided, they once more saw some semblance of a smile on her tired little face. She clung relentlessly to Jane, not wishing to let her out of her sight for one moment, fretful the minute she left the room. The duke, though still not able to wield his usual calming influence over her, nonetheless took heart at the beginnings of her recovery.

***

The intense nursing had taken its toll on Jane leaving her drained and worn,
a fact which Reynolds thought necessary to bring to her attention when he found her alone at Sophie’s bedside as the child recovered.

“
It’s time you relinquished the child’s nursing to Hannah,” he said, taking in her exhausted countenance. “You are in need of rest. You cannot continue in this manner.”

“
I manage quite well,” she said, shrugging aside his concern. “Sophie has need of me and I will not leave her care to others.”

“
But your husband has expressed some concern regarding your health; he too has noticed your exhaustion and has asked me to speak to you.”

“You have not told him that I am with child?” she asked in alarm.

“Certainly not, your grace,” replied Reynolds taken aback. “’Tis not my place to notify your husband of your condition. That is entirely in your hands.”

Having their backs to the door neither had been aware of its opening at the beginning of their discourse or of the tall dark figure that stood within its portals. However, his sharp intake of breath made them look guiltily round and at sight of him both took an involuntary step backwards.

Reynolds being the first to find his voice said in a nervous way, “Your grace must forgive me, but I have needs to be away, there are other cases of the fever in the vicinity and I must attend.” So saying he gave a short bow and pushing past the stunned figure of the duke, made a hasty exit, leaving the husband and wife to face each other across the gulf of the room.

Neither spoke for what seemed an eternity. Jane filled with the horror of the revelation, felt a great panic rise within her. Unable to stand it, she too followed in the doctor
’s wake and, pushing past her husband as he stood in astounded immobility, ran the length of the corridor and down the stairs into the hall below. She would have run into the street had not an all-consuming blackness overcome her as she made for the door.

Galvanized into action by her sudden departure the duke had been hard on her heels and caught her swaying figure before she had chance to fall to the ground and lifting her gently took the stairs two at a time to her apartment where he laid her on her bed. All manner of thoughts ranged through his mind but uppermost was his concern for her well-being, sending for Reynolds’ immediate return.

He paced the room, halting frequently to assure himself of her condition. She lay perfectly still, her breathing quite as normal; only the pallor of her cheeks denoting that she was anything but asleep.

Reynolds marched unceremoniously into the room. “This is exactly what I have been fearful of, your grace,” he said to the duke as he hurried toward him. “I thought it imprudent for your wife to nurse the invalid, but when I mentioned the matter, she would have it no other way. She has now exhausted herself and it will do neither her nor the child any good. If you would be so obliging as to wait in the corridor I will make an examination to ascertain her condition.”

Meekly the duke did as he was bid, seating himself in the chair that stood outside his wife’s door. He cursed himself for being a fool. He had perceived some changes in his wife, but because of their concern for Sophie had pushed all other thoughts to the nether regions of his mind, to be forgotten. Their meetings outside the dimly-lit sick-room had been infrequent and their discourse confined to Sophie’s care. He could not understand why she had kept it from him, why she had not told him when first she knew or even suspected. Surely he was not such an ogre that she was fearful of telling him something that she knew would have delighted him so. Was this her secret she had found so hard to reveal? He was bewildered; he could not comprehend the situation. Had his thoughts been so distracted by the babe’s illness that he had lost all understanding?

Reynolds, leaving his wife’s apartments broke his revere and the duke rose to face him.

“She is fine,” said Reynolds reassuringly. “It is the exhaustion; that is all. Now she must rest, no further exertions. She revived but I have given her something to make her sleep for the next twenty-four hours to give her body time to recover some of its resources and she will feel renewed. However, I must insist that she be kept quiet, both physically and emotionally for yet a while. She has been overtaxed enough over the past week or so and must regain her former strength. I hope you understand, sir?”

“Assuredly, whatever instructions you give will be obeyed. Just reassure me that no danger exists.”

“None at the moment, sir, but I cannot guarantee the outcome if she will not follow my instructions. It would be foolish to push the boundaries too far, you must persuade her to take more care. Sophie is well enough now for her nursing to be surrendered to others and I am sure Hannah is very reliable, she strikes me as quite capable.”

“
I promise you my wife will be nurtured, she will not be allowed to come to this pass again. I will make certain of it. When both she and Sophie are fully recovered we will return to Stovely.”

“
An excellent idea, if I may say so, sir,” said Reynolds preparing to take his leave. “I will call again tomorrow, but in the meantime, nothing else need be done. Just let her sleep and all will be well.”

Giving a curt nod in reply the duke left Reynolds to make his exit and returned to stand at his wife
’s bedside.

“You little fool,” he chided softly to her sleeping form. “Could you not have trusted me? Have we come to such a pass that you would risk yourself rather than confide in me? This matter will be resolved; it will not be allowed to continue, God knows it will not. I will see an end to it. You and the babe are mine, a fact you cannot and will not deny. I will be calm; nothing you can now say or do will shake my equilibrium. I know my errors and I will correct them. Forswear my
love, though you may not recognize it, I belong to you as surely as you belong to me.” His emotions threatened to overcome him and he thought it prudent to retire to his own room, should his intensity threaten to disturb his wife.

Chapter Eighteen

The following morning Jane woke to an empty bedroom and lay relishing the comforts of her bed for a few moments before memories of the previous day pushed themselves into her consciousness causing her to suddenly sit erect and swing her feet to the floor. A need for action gripped her, but she knew not what to do. Her secret was out; there was no hiding now. Should she await her husband’s reaction or make good her escape before he could confront her with false accusations and she should fall prey to the anger that distressed her so? Looking at the clock, she saw that the morning was quite advanced and she felt guilty at her neglect of Sophie. Surely, the child must have had need of her by now and she called for her maid to bring water so that she could bathe and dress.

Still he does not come, she reasoned with herself when her toilette was finally completed. Surely if his emotions were aroused, he would have confronted me by now, and in this she took some comfort. Perhaps it has been necessary for him to go out on
business, he may be away from home. She knew this was clutching at false hopes, but dared not face reality.

Nonetheless, taking heart in this thought, she made her way to the nursery, anxious at being away from the child for so long. Quietly pushing open the door, she hesitated on the threshold in case Sophie should be sleeping.

She was not prepared for the scene that presented itself. Sophie was asleep in the duke’s arms as he too sat with eyes closed in a large winged chair on the nursery’s hearth, both seeming at ease. She was not aware of the ravages he had suffered during the hours since he had left her side the previous day and they had taken their toll, leaving in him a tiredness impossible to ignore.

Unable to resist the temptation, she took a few steps into the room and stood examining their sleeping features for a few moments before finally retreating to her own apartment to sit gazing abstractly out of the window.

She hardly dared contemplate her husband’s reactions when he should finally confront her, but realizing the foolishness of trying to avoid the inevitable, she resigned herself to attempt to withstand whatever accusations he would level at her. Seeing him in the nursery with Sophie, she realized that to leave them again would be impossible. She could not endure further separation from all she held dear. Whatever the outcome, she must attempt to convince him of the truth.

She rested her head on her arm as it lay on the back of the window seat and closed her eyes allowing her body to relax. She found some comfort in her decision, realizing that she had not the strength to keep up this interminable battle. Surely she had suffered enough.

She sat so for a short while, only rousing herself at the sound of the maid arriving with a light luncheon set out on a tray and indicated that it should be set on a small table in the center of the room.

It was not until the maid had left and she had seated herself at the table that she became aware of a missive lying in the
center of the tray. She was perplexed, surely, Deakin would not have redirected an invitation at such a time as this? She pushed it aside as if to ignore it but after a few moments her curiosity was aroused and finally she broke the seal. It was with some surprise that she recognized the duke’s hand and spread the sheet out on the table before her to read in his elegant hand,

Beloved Wife

If I could bare this heart of mine

And show you the thoughts that there entwine,

You would see that at your feet I lay

My heart, my life, my love, always.

Your very dearest friend,

R

She lifted the page from the table and read it repeatedly; trying to reassure herself of its full implication, when a light tap came on the door and waiting for no reply the duke entered, closing it silently behind him. He stood for a moment just within the room before opening his arms and in a voice deepened with emotion asked “Jane—will you not now come to me?”