Chapter 7 #2
Kendra couldn’t bring herself to care.
“Look here,” Amy said cheerfully. “They removed the old kitchen and added a bedchamber there instead.”
An open door on the right revealed a room with two single beds. Cait peeked inside. “Well, at least they’ve moved all of Griffin’s and Adam’s things. Cas and Pol will have this room now.” She turned to start up the wooden staircase.
Amy drew Kendra after her. “There are three beautiful new bedchambers upstairs. Jewel is staying in the smallest one—as the oldest cousin, she’s been granted the luxury of her own room. And the attic is partitioned into four chambers where all of our staff will sleep.”
“Fascinating,” Kendra repeated.
Halfway up the stairs, Amy stopped and swiveled to her. “Why do you seem so vexed? Surely it cannot just be the cats.”
“My apologies.” Belatedly realizing she was acting beastly, Kendra sighed. Her dear sisters-in-law deserved better. “I’m not happy that Trick isn’t here.”
“But he is here.” A frown appeared between Amy’s dark brows. “He’s helping choose the Yule Log.”
Cait nodded. “Did you want to be doing that instead? It is fun—”
“No, that’s not it.” Clasping her hands together in frustration, Kendra decided to confide in the two best friends she had.
“Trick is here, but he’s not here.” Her knuckles were turning white.
“He was gone for more than nine weeks—over two months!—and he just returned in the middle of the night. And then we had to come here…before we even managed to make love! And it’s not that we haven’t tried—”
“Do stop,” interrupted a deep voice from below. “I’d rather not hear about my sister’s love life.”
With a gasp, Amy whirled. “Well, then you shouldn’t be eavesdropping. You’re supposed to be choosing the Yule Log.”
At the bottom of the stairs, Colin backed away, his hands held up defensively. “I returned for my cloak.”
“Then get it and get out.”
Colin just looked at her for a long, tense moment.
“Very well, then,” he finally bit out.
The women plastered themselves against the wall as he rushed up the stairs and disappeared, then hurried back down and out the door, his cloak streaming behind him.
“Wheesht,” Cait said after the door had slammed. She looked to Amy. “What’s between you two?”
“Nothing,” Amy said shortly, pushing past her and up the stairs to the landing.
Turning toward the left, she disappeared from view. Kendra and Cait exchanged a meaningful glance before following her up and then through a door at the far end of the corridor.
“This is the room Jason and I just vacated,” Cait explained. “It’s the largest one and on the end, so it has the most windows.”
The chamber boasted pale green walls, a four-poster bed with rich blue hangings, and a carved wood washstand, wardrobe cabinet, and dressing table.
A big chest rested at the foot of the bed, and an octagonal table with two deep green velvet-upholstered chairs sat beneath one of the five modern sash windows. Everything looked new.
“Kendra, look at this pretty chamber,” Amy said way too brightly. “You and Trick will surely have a lovely reunion here.”
In unison, Kendra and Cait dropped to sit on the big feather bed. “Tell us,” Cait said.
It was Amy’s turn to sigh. She began pacing. “Colin and I are having a little disagreement.”
“About?” Kendra prompted.
“He promised me—before Jewel was even born—he promised me that our second son would reestablish my father’s company, Goldsmith & Sons.
It’s time for Aidan to be apprenticed to properly learn his trade, to learn the business of running a shop.
But Aidan doesn’t want to do that. And Colin is supporting his view, never mind that he promised me. ”
“And a Chase promise is never given lightly,” Cait quoted softly.
“Exactly,” Amy gritted out, still pacing back and forth.
Kendra wondered how long it might take to wear grooves into a brand-new polished wood floor. “What does Aidan want to do instead?”
“He says he has no notion.” Looking disgusted, Amy brushed at her lavender skirts. “He’s a remarkably talented goldsmith—even more talented than I, which takes some doing, I’ll have you know. But he says he doesn’t want to spend his life making jewelry.”
“He’s only fifteen,” Cait pointed out. “Maybe he’ll change his mind.”
“When? When he’s twenty-five? When it’s too late to find an apprenticeship, because guild members expect to train children, not full-grown men?
It’s nearly too late to apprentice him already.
” With a huff, Amy stopped moving and turned to look at them both.
“Besides, the real point here isn’t what Aidan wants, it’s that Colin is taking his side against me. After he promised.”
“It’s true that Chase promises are not given lightly,” Kendra allowed. “But can you not put this aside for Christmas? It’s Christmas, Amy.”
Amy winced. “You’re right, and I promised Colin I’d put it aside, too. I should do so. My apologies.” She blew out a long breath, visibly calming herself.
Violet walked in, looking much too cheerful. “Are you all getting settled in here?”
“As settled as can be expected,” Kendra said dryly.
“I am so sorry about the cats.” Violet’s false cheer disappeared as she sighed. “I swear I feel nearly as miserable as you do.”
“You don’t know the half of it,” Amy muttered.
Plastering a stiff smile on her face, Kendra looked to Caithren. “Well. At least one of us is happy.”
A puzzled frown crossed Violet’s features as a long silence ensued.
Glancing between her three English sisters, Cait finally broke it. “I’m not happy. I’m terrified.”
“What?” the other three said together.
“Why?” Kendra added with concern.
Cait moved her hands to rest on the pointed bottom of her stomacher. “I’m carrying a bairn.”
More silence reigned over the pretty new blue-and-green room until Kendra caught her breath. “Oh my God, that’s wonderful!” she gushed, wondering if it really was wonderful.
“Is it?” Cait’s voice sounded strained. “I’m forty-three. Jamie’s fourteen years old.”
“But you’re having a babe. How can a babe not be wonderful?” Long past pacing, Amy plopped to sit on her other side.
Violet knelt at Cait’s feet. “And you’re healthy,” she added. “What does Jason think?”
“He doesn’t know.”
“What?” they all repeated.
“I just figured it out this morning—God’s truth, I counted the days on my calendar seven times before I believed it.
There were other signs, but it still seemed it couldn’t be true.
” Cait dropped her head and covered her face with her hands.
“Now I’m afraid to tell him,” came muffled through her fingers.
“I’m going to wait till after Christmas. ”
“Oh, no,” Kendra said, wrapping an arm around Cait’s shoulders. “You must tell him now. It’s not fair to keep news like this to yourself.”
“I cannot. I…I just cannot. Every time I think of doing so, I feel like I’m going to boak.”
“To what?”
“To boak. To puke, to vomit, to—”
“That’s the morning sickness,” Amy interrupted. She wrapped an arm around Cait, too. “For heaven’s sake, why should you be scared to tell him?”
Cait’s hands dropped to her lap, but her words were still directed there.
“He wants to travel to Scotland next summer, just the two of us—he’s so happy that our lads are finally old enough for us to leave them.
He was planning to ask you and Colin if Adam and James could stay with you for a month next year—” Breaking off, she looked up at Amy.
“Of course. Of course they are welcome to stay at Greystone anytime. I’d be pleased to have them, and I’m sure Colin would be, too.”
“But can’t you see? We cannot do that with a new bairn!
We cannot travel to Scotland in July with a bairn due in August or September.
Twenty years he’s waited for this, and we’ll be restarting that count from one!
He’s so happy now, and he’ll be so upset.
I cannot tell him now—I just cannot! I cannot ruin his Christmas. ”
Violet reached up to grab her hands and hold them tight. “You have to tell him, Cait. You must, and not only because it’s the right thing to do. Keeping this secret and dreading his response will ruin your Christmas.”
“And his response will be a relief.” Kendra squeezed Cait’s shoulder. “I know my brother—he won’t be upset. He’ll be happy.”
“You think so, aye?” Cait snorted. “The last time the possibility of another child was mentioned, he called the notion a calamity.”
The other three women exchanged glances. “I’m sure he didn’t mean it the way it sounds,” Amy said carefully.
“I’m sure, too,” Kendra added. “A new babe, Cait…it’s a blessing. Maybe you’ll finally have your girl.”
A shaky laugh escaped Cait’s lips. “Somehow I doubt I’ll be that lucky.”
“But you’ll tell him, won’t you? For your sake as well as his. It’s tearing you up inside—I can tell. You cannot keep this from him.”
“Today,” Amy added. “You must tell him today.”
“Very well.” Cait swallowed hard. “I’ll tell him.”
“Today?” Violet pressed.
“Today.”