Page 86 of This Marquess of Mine

Chapter Twenty-Five

Olivia’s father was true to his word. He took her with him to Blakely Manor the very next day and, over the following month, during rides through the countryside and walks in the garden, father and daughter closed the distance between them one conversation at a time.

Olivia enjoyed their time together immensely, learning who he was, his thoughts and opinions, his likes and dislikes, and which ones they shared.

They both preferred coffee over tea, neither was a great reader, and they each fostered a fondness for music, though he preferred Mozart to Beethoven, which had sparked many a good-natured debate between them.

Surprisingly, she’d even enjoyed reacquainting herself with the house. Blakely Manor was only her home for a handful of years when she was very small, but she remembered her time here well enough to know it had been lonely, and she’d wondered if those feelings would surface again. Fortunately, they hadn’t and her stay at Blakely Manor proved as comfortable and easy as any visit to the country ought to be.

Now, sitting on the sofa in the morning room one early September day, her stay was nearly at an end, and she was sorry to have to leave. The feeling was still something of a shock to her, that she should miss her father. She’d never missed him before, only the idea of him, the idea of what could be. It was astounding how much a person’s life could change in just a few short weeks.

“Oh, Lady Augusta, they’re beautiful. Aren’t they beautiful, Olivia?” Caroline asked, her brown eyes bright with happiness as she held aloft a tiny pair of pale green booties.

Olivia leaned across the chintz sofa they were sharing and stroked the soft wool with her fingers. “They’re the sweetest things I’ve ever seen,” she said, smiling at her stepmother.

“I’m so glad you like them, Caroline,” Aunt Augusta said from her seat on the giltwood armchair opposite the sofa. “My cousin Mary is quite skilled with knitting needles. I am certain she would be thrilled to knit for you anything you might need for the babe.”

It was late afternoon, and the three ladies were gathered in the morning room, catching up over tea and cucumber sandwiches. Aunt Augusta had just arrived at Blakely Manor after a month-long visit to Bath, where she’d stayed with her cousin Mary.

She intended to spend a day or two here at the manor, and then she and Olivia would head to Keswick House, where they would reunite with Sophie before she and her new husband retired to their own estate in Devonshire. Olivia couldn’t wait to see her cousin again.

“I still can’t quite believe I am to be a mother soon,” Caroline said, shaking her dark head in wonder. “I didn’t think I would ever have a family of my own. Until I met your father.” She flashed Olivia a teary smile, pressing her palm to her swollen belly.

“I am so happy for you,” Olivia said, reaching out and giving her stepmother’s forearm a gentle squeeze. “You will be a wonderful mother, Caroline.”

And she meant it. There was no one sweeter or kinder than her stepmother, and she’d enjoyed getting to know her better these past few weeks.

Caroline was at least a decade older than Olivia and had married Lord Blakely later in life than was common for women. Some might call her plain upon first glance, but she had a lovely smile and the kindest eyes Olivia had ever seen. Her child would be lucky, indeed.

“Thank you,” Caroline said, tears misting her eyes. “And you will be a wonderful older sister.”

Olivia grinned. “I cannot wait to be a sister.”

“And”—Aunt Augusta’s crisp voice cut through the soppiness—“as I am already a wonderful great-aunt, this child is destined to be spoiled beyond redemption.”

They all laughed, though Olivia suspected her aunt was probably right. She couldn’t wait to start spoiling. All the trepidation she’d felt over this baby’s impending arrival had vanished. No longer did she feel jealous or worried. She felt only happiness now, for Caroline, for her father. And for herself, too.

After all, she would have a sibling soon. She would be someone’s sister. How could she feel anything but happiness over that?

“I’ve missed you, Aunt,” Olivia said with an affectionate smile. “It is good to see you again.”

“I have missed you, too, child,” her aunt replied. “How have you been these last few weeks? How are you faring with your father?”

“Very well, I think. He’s been very kind to me, and I’ve enjoyed getting to know him better. He is funnier than I expected, and quite easy to talk to.”

Truth be told, this visit had gone even better than she’d hoped, and she still couldn’t quite believe it had happened.

“They’ve spent a great deal of time together,” Caroline interjected, beaming at Aunt Augusta. “Like two peas in a pod, they are.”

“Well, I am very glad to hear that,” her aunt said briskly.

“I still don’t understand what brought on his sudden change of heart, though,” Olivia said with a little shake of her head. “Every time I ask him, all he’ll say is he finally saw the error of his ways, but he won’t say how or why.”

“I know why,” Aunt Augusta said, leaning back in her chair. “It was because of Keswick.”

“Lady Augusta!” Caroline cried. “We promised not to tell.”

Olivia’s aunt gave an unrepentant shrug. “You promised. I did not.”