The Sherbrooke Bride - Catherine Coulter [143]
Douglas said nothing. He wanted only to see his wife. She’d wanted so much to come but he hadn’t allowed it. She was too weak. She argued but he held firm. Now he wished he’d carried her here. She would have enjoyed herself immensely.
Now, he thought, he had to get them out of France and back home to England.
* * *
Three days later, Douglas, carrying Alexandra in his arms, followed by Tony, strode into Northcliffe Hall.
There was as much bedlam as there’d been the morning of General Belesain’s unveiling, only this bedlam was joyous and welcoming. Douglas looked up to see Melissande coming down the wide staircase, looking more beautiful than a flesh-and-blood woman should look, breath-stoppingly beautiful actually, but he found that he just smiled toward her. She was looking for Tony, and when she found him, she picked up her skirts to her knees, and ran full-tilt until she could jump into his arms. She screamed at the top of her lungs, “You’re safe, damn you! I was so worried, so—” She said no more for Tony was kissing her soundly.
Douglas still smiled.
He looked at his wife and saw that there were tears in her eyes. He was jolted into immediate fear. “You are ill? What is wrong? You have pain?”
She shook her head and wiped her eyes with the heel of her hand.
“Alexandra, we will be attacked by fifty servants, Sinjun, and my mother in under two minutes. Speak to me.”
“She’s just so beautiful.”
“Who? Oh, Melissande. Yes, she is. Who cares?”
She stiffened in his arms.
He started a smile. “Why, you’re still jealous.”
“No, damn you!”
“Ah yes, you are, you silly chit. Answer me this, Alex. Can Melissande speak French?”
“No, she’s horrible at languages, her accent even more atrocious than mine, but she paints so well.”
“So, she couldn’t have tried to save me like you did.”
“That has less than nothing to do with naught.”
Douglas merely continued his teasing grin. “I wonder how one would say that in French. Listen well, Alex—”
“You called me Alex!”
“Yes, certainly. If you prefer sweetheart, you will doubtless hear that as well. And stubborn and cherished and willful and wonderful. Now, listen to me. I think your sister is beautiful. Nothing new in that. But she isn’t you. No, it doesn’t matter now. What matters, to Tony, is that she is improving by veritable leaps and bounds under his tender tutelage. As Tony told me yesterday, one day soon her character just might begin to approach her beauty.”
“Really, Douglas?”
“Really what?”
“Cherished?”
He kissed her. He heard laughter and slowly raised his head. There was Sinjun grinning at him like a fool. His mother stood behind her, her mouth pursed.
His mother called out, “Where have you been, Douglas? What is going on here? I demand to know now. Why are you carrying her?”
“Soon, Mother. As for the little one here, she has been ill.”
“She looks quite well to me. Why is she wrapped in a blanket?”
“Because,” Douglas said, walking toward his mother. “Because she’s quite naked beneath.”
“Douglas! You know that’s not true.” She was wearing one of Janine Daudet’s gowns actually, a quite ugly gown really. Doubtless Janine’s revenge for the coshing Alexandra had given her. Her feet, however, were quite bare and stuck out from the blanket. Douglas hadn’t wanted to slow to buy her shoes. She hadn’t argued. It was quite pleasant to be carried by her husband.
“Yes, but if she thinks you’re naked, I’ll get to escape with you all that much more quickly.”
“What happened?” Sinjun asked.
“We will cover all that later.” Douglas turned and raised his voice, saying, “We are all alive and well and home to stay. Thank all of you for being concerned.”
The servants cheered. Hollis stood proudly, his arms crossed over his chest. Alexandra felt herself swelling with relief. Perhaps everything would be all right. Perhaps even her mother-in-law would come about. Perhaps Douglas really did cherish her. Perhaps.
Douglas carried her to his bedchamber. He kissed her, then eased her down to sit on the edge of the bed, pulling the blanket off her. “Mother doubtless believes you are