"Ladies, Ammie rose from her seat, "I pray you will excuse me while I retire for a few minutes." She nodded her head to each of them and made her way to staircase and up to the first landing just as the gentlemen moved into the great hall talking and laughing.
Edwin caught a glimpse of movement and his eyes moved to Rosy as she ascended the next flight of stairs. He turned to find Stephen and Lawrence eyeing him curiously. He turned smoothly and headed for the salon with the younger men close behind. As the ladies rose and curtsied and the gentlemen bowed, he stilled the impatient twitch he felt in his hands, wanting to drum his fingers, wanting to tap his toes, wanting to pace the room and back, wanting to rise on his toes and sink on his heels, wanting, wanting and always waiting with an ache that never went away.
He let the conversation swirl around him as the couples by the fire spoke of the ordeal of traveling at this time of year and what the next few days would bring and when they would be traveling back to London while he worried over Rosy and the anxiety she displayed regarding Katherine.
He watched the young woman and saw nothing out of the ordinary in her behavior. The young earl, sitting next to his countess, obviously held her in a great deal of affection. He was a fine man, raised by fine parents. Edwin and the Stephen's father had attended Eton together. Geoffrey had been a friend right up until the night at the opera when he had seen his Rosy with Geoffrey and realized that she was no longer his but Geoff's. And yet Geoff had known well how Edwin felt about Rosy. He was the
only one who did, besides Rosy and Edwin's parents.
So why was he, some thirty years later, staring at the face of his friend's son while the fires he had banked for so many years behind a calm and deliberate exterior wall threatened his long sustained and hard earned composure? The answer tread softly back into the room a short time later, with a smile on her face that did not quite reach her eyes. She stopped at Edwin's side and spoke to him face on for the first time since her arrival. "Edwin, I am sorry for the tangle over my staying here. I needed the time with my grandchildren. I had never seen my granddaughter, you know, and I just could not bring myself to leave them this afternoon. I know you desired to have me here to help with the coming guests, and I do not wish to fail you. The notes I have received indicate that most of the relatives and the those guests from the government arrive tomorrow afternoon. I have my room prepared and my maid servant is settled in."
"I am glad you have had the time to acquaint yourself with your granddaughter. If she looks like her grandmother, I would like to meet her as well." He smiled at her and her heart set off at a treacherous stuttering gallop. She looked at his beloved face and wondered if he saw the reflection of his eyes and coloring in any other face in the room.
Edwin caught a glimpse of movement and his eyes moved to Rosy as she ascended the next flight of stairs. He turned to find Stephen and Lawrence eyeing him curiously. He turned smoothly and headed for the salon with the younger men close behind. As the ladies rose and curtsied and the gentlemen bowed, he stilled the impatient twitch he felt in his hands, wanting to drum his fingers, wanting to tap his toes, wanting to pace the room and back, wanting to rise on his toes and sink on his heels, wanting, wanting and always waiting with an ache that never went away.
He let the conversation swirl around him as the couples by the fire spoke of the ordeal of traveling at this time of year and what the next few days would bring and when they would be traveling back to London while he worried over Rosy and the anxiety she displayed regarding Katherine.
He watched the young woman and saw nothing out of the ordinary in her behavior. The young earl, sitting next to his countess, obviously held her in a great deal of affection. He was a fine man, raised by fine parents. Edwin and the Stephen's father had attended Eton together. Geoffrey had been a friend right up until the night at the opera when he had seen his Rosy with Geoffrey and realized that she was no longer his but Geoff's. And yet Geoff had known well how Edwin felt about Rosy. He was the
only one who did, besides Rosy and Edwin's parents.
So why was he, some thirty years later, staring at the face of his friend's son while the fires he had banked for so many years behind a calm and deliberate exterior wall threatened his long sustained and hard earned composure? The answer tread softly back into the room a short time later, with a smile on her face that did not quite reach her eyes. She stopped at Edwin's side and spoke to him face on for the first time since her arrival. "Edwin, I am sorry for the tangle over my staying here. I needed the time with my grandchildren. I had never seen my granddaughter, you know, and I just could not bring myself to leave them this afternoon. I know you desired to have me here to help with the coming guests, and I do not wish to fail you. The notes I have received indicate that most of the relatives and the those guests from the government arrive tomorrow afternoon. I have my room prepared and my maid servant is settled in."
"I am glad you have had the time to acquaint yourself with your granddaughter. If she looks like her grandmother, I would like to meet her as well." He smiled at her and her heart set off at a treacherous stuttering gallop. She looked at his beloved face and wondered if he saw the reflection of his eyes and coloring in any other face in the room.
