Yet that had been proven wrong, for day in and day out he loved her and their children more and more.
She spoke to them again, and was soon leaving them to play in the fresh air while she walked toward the house. He heard the door opening and closing, and her step on the stairs. Anticipation raced through his veins. And then she was in the doorway.
“Quincy,” she murmured.
In two long strides he reached her and she was in his arms. Her lips were sweet and eager, and he felt he could stand there forever kissing her and be utterly happy.
Until a nudge in his belly made him realize that was an impossibility.
He pulled back, grinning ruefully down at her stomach. “Madam, I do believe our daughter is going to be as precocious as her older sister when she arrives.”
“Lord save me,” Clara said with a happy laugh, her hands lovingly drifting over her swollen belly. “But it could be a son, you know.”
“Please, woman,” he scoffed with mock outrage. “Have I ever been wrong?”
“No,” she grumbled with obvious reluctance.
He laughed, and together they walked to the large window overlooking the garden. The children were on the ground, playing with the rabbit, Frederick as ever watchful over his sister. Clara smiled happily, then looked to the map on the desk. She ran her fingers over it, tracing the routes and notes they had made over the years, before giving his father’s worn book, lying close by, a loving pat.
“And have you decided where you would like to go on our next adventure? The children are eager to visit Greece, but I’ve a mind to stay closer to home.”
“I think closer to home is just the thing,” Quincy said, laying a gentle hand over the swell of his wife’s stomach. “What say you to an extended stay on the Isle?”
“I would like that very much,” she murmured, covering his hand with her own. “Though are you certain you’ll be happy staying still for so long? Life may get dull after a time.”
“Ah, my love,” he said, laughing, pulling her close, “our family is the best adventure I could have asked for.”