AllFreeNovel
Share Us
‘And you’re going to stop pretending you’re not ill and tell me the truth from now on.’
‘Whatever you say.’
‘Do you need me to carry you?’
‘No, thank you.’ She lifted her chin, unwilling to make a scene. ‘I believe that, traditionally, the bride makes her own way.’
‘I’m not feeling very traditional. Let’s just make this quick.’
Hardly the most romantic sentiment for the occasion, Henrietta thought, but at that moment exactly what she wanted to hear. Then, after they were married, he could carry her wherever he wanted.
Chapter Twenty
‘Here you are, wife.’ Sebastian held out a cup of steaming hot tea. ‘Drink up.’
‘Thank you.’ Henrietta lifted a hand and then sneezed.
‘Maybe I’ll just hold on to it for now.’ He sat down on the edge of the bed with a smile. ‘Just tell me when you’re ready for a sip.’
‘Thank you. Atishoo! Oh, dear... I’m sorry.’
‘What for?’
‘Because this is our wedding night and I... I... Atishoo!’
He gave her a pointed look. ‘Are you feigning sickness?’
‘What?’ She opened her eyes wide. ‘No!’
‘Exactly. So don’t apologise. If anyone should say sorry it’s me, for dragging you halfway across the country in the cold.’
‘You weren’t to know I’d get sick and it was for a good reason.’
‘Yes, but the truth is I’ve always been impulsive. Once I decide on something, I like to do it as soon as possible.’
‘Oh.’ She felt a vague sense of alarm. She wasn’t sure she liked to be thought of as an impulse, though hopefully that was only an expression...although her head felt much too hazy to think about it now. ‘Can I have some of that tea?’
‘With pleasure.’ He passed the cup over carefully. ‘You’re still a bit pale. How does your head feel?’
‘Like the time I drank the last of the port in the pantry.’
‘What?’ He looked at her in disbelief. ‘You said you poured it away! I thought it must have been because of your brother.’
‘No-o.’ She screwed up her lips with embarrassment. ‘Nancy and I drank it after she had a bad argument with her mother. It happens quite often, I’m afraid.’
‘You amaze me.’
‘No, it’s not like that. I think a lot of Nancy’s anger is because of her mother. She doesn’t usually drink because of her stepfather, but...well, that night she said she needed to drown her sorrows and I wanted to support her. What? Why are you smiling?’
‘It’s just unexpected, that’s all.’
‘Never again.’ She shuddered and drank her tea in a few swallows. ‘This is much nicer. I didn’t realise I was so thirsty.’
‘Anything else I can get you?’ He put the cup aside.
‘I’m a little chilly.’
‘Then come here.’ He shuffled up the bed, swinging his legs up and reaching an arm around her shoulders before drawing her head back against his chest.
