“Oh my—” Charlotte covered her mouth with her hand and William reached out to shake Benedict’s hand.
“Congratulations to you both. Our sincerest wishes.”
“Do you think it’s a girl?” Charlotte butted in immediately. “What will you name her?”
Mary Ann suffocated a smile. “How would we know?” she playfully swatted Charlotte’s arm. “There are no names or plans or nurseries. We have just found out.”
“You might name her Charlotte,” Charlotte said. “Just on a whim. The is certainly no reason that I might delight in that.”
“No,” Mary Anne said flatly.
“Yes, I very much prefer to have a positive association with my own child’s name,” Benedict muttered. “You must act as if you found out for the first time when we tell mother,” Benedict added.
“Ugh,” Mary Ann groaned. “Lady Pemberton will be so unbearable if she finds out we told you first.”
“We can keep a secret,” William was quick to say. Charlotte agreed, but the truth was that it would not be easy to keep the news to herself, which is why she proceeded to avoid her family until the last possible minute, feigning multiple illnesses to avoid spilling the secret. She was certainly very excited, as was she very certain that their next child would be a girl.
But that wasn’t the only thing interesting that happened that night. Octavia was also discovered with her hands all over the Duke of Seton’s footman. Charlotte couldn’t blame her. He was a very attractive man indeed, but not many were as forgiving as Charlotte. Soon, the wholetonwas talking about her and expressing how happy they were for William that he had found someone better. William did seem to enjoy all the negative attention she was getting.
The first chance Octavia got, she ran away to France, disgraced and rumored to have started in the theater. Sometimes Charlotte felt compelled to write to her, just to see if she was okay, but it seemed even if life was bit tougher, she might find herself happier after all. She never seemed like she enjoyed the restraints of nobility after all.
Settling into married life did prove to be rather freeing for Charlotte. They soon moved into a home of their own. It was a modest-size which was exactly what Charlotte wanted. She hated homes that felt lonely no matter how many people lived there.
As they walked out on their property one evening as the sun was dipping lower in the sky, Charlotte tugged William close and held his hand between both of hers. Charlotte’s home had grown up in a home that didn’t have a ton of land associated with it. Their new home was sat on acres and acres of untouched land. Endless green as far as the eyes could see.
From here, it was visually apparent just how much freedom she now had. “What will we do with all of this?” she asked.
“Anything we want,” he said. “Do you like gardens?”
She widened her eyes. “How romantic,” she said, thinking back to their first kiss.
“Maybe a space for entertaining over there,” he said, pointing to a spot closer to the house that was nestled under a few shady trees.
“That would be lovely,” she said.
“And imagine this!” he pointed out to an open patch of grass. “Stables. We can buy some horses.”
“Horses…” Charlotte’s eyes narrowed. “I do not like horses.”
“What have you against horses?” he asked incredulously.
“They are far too intelligent for their own good and they smell impolite,” she shrugged and savored the feeling of the grass tickling her ankles. “But by all means, have your horses, but do not expect me to take any interest in them.”
He puffed up his cheeks and released the breath all in one go. “Maybe I will.”
“Good,” she said. “It will give me some peace to read.”
William looked at her for a moment to see if perhaps she was being serious, but after a moment, they both released their laughter. “Do you think that after some time passes, we will value our free time again?”
She pursed her lips, hiding a wry smile. “Time without you is time that could be spent better,” she said. “I will have you know that I had an incredibly challenging reading list planned for the year and your companionship has squashed every hope I had of succeeding.”
“Do not blame me for that,” he frowned.
“I will forgive you, but perhaps we will read some nights together.”
“I would love that.” His lips slowly came together in a smile that seemed both delighted and at peace. “You must educate me, Charlotte.”
She smiled and threw her arms around his neck. His snaked around her waist, pulling her tightly against him. A cool breeze trilled past them, and he instinctively held her tighter to keep the chill away. “I can hardly believe that I have turned you into such a romantic,” he whispered in her ear.