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“I don't know. She says I'll understand when I'm older.” Holly made a face. “Why do we always have to weft to get older? That leaves nothing to do till then.”
“Maybe the magic comes from the coins great-grandfather gave our mamas,” Joanna suggested, still pondering what her Aunt Anastasia had told Holly. “Maybe the coins have special powers.”
“That makes sense.” Now Holly looked intrigued, her fanciful mind dancing through the possibilities. “Gold for laughing and silver for kisses.” Her brow furrowed. “We should test our idea on Cody, stick the gold coin in his fist when he's waiting for Mama to feed him,” she muttered. “Maybe that will make him smile when he's hungry. He cries so loud it hurts my ears.”
“That's true,” Joanna agreed. “But you're still luckier than I am. At least your brother's too little to walk. Mine runs all over. And he scribbles on my drawings if Mama isn't looking.”
Holly grinned. “Maybe we should wake up both Cody and Quinn and bring them down. Just to see what Lord Ryder would do with one squalling baby and one little boy tearing up the dining room.”
“Holly.” Joanna, the far more practical of the two, planted her hands on her hips, shook her head. “That would only get us in trouble.”
“Well, I'm bored. We've been listening to Lord Ryder talk about his new granddaughter for an hour. That can't be what they're celebrating. She's a baby. And babies yell too much to celebrate. Besides, he already has two grandchildren. He visits them all the time in Paris.”
“Maybe his daughter and her family are coming here for Christmas!” Joanna's face lit up. “I like when they come. Monsieur Girard and Papa tell exciting stories.”
“Especially the one about when Monsieur Girard rescued his wife from that bad witch.” Holly's eyes sparkled with her typical romantic excitement. “And then they got married and she found her papa, Lord Ryder. It's like a fairy tale.”
“We can go in and ask if the Girards are coming.”
“We could. But even if they are, we'll still be bored now.” Holly's shoulders slumped. She paced around the hallway, her mind searching for something unique to do.
“There you are.” Miss Carter, the Chadwick governess, appeared at their sides. “Joanna, it's bed time. You, too, Holly,” she added, turning to face the other child, who happened not to be Holly, but Joanna. “Your parents said you could sleep here tonight since it's so late. Unless you'd rather go across the way and deep in your own bed? I could ask Wells to walk you home.”
Holly sighed, tugging at the governess's sleeve. “I'm Holly, Miss Carter,” she informed her. “And I'd rather stay here. But Joanna and I aren't tired. We wanted to be with the grown-ups for a while.”
“Oh.” Miss Carter gazed from one child to the other, exasperated by the mistake she seemed perpetually to make. Then again, the entire staff made it— with the exception of Wells and Hibbert. It was virtually impossible to tell Joanna and Holly apart. With only four months separating them, the two girls could pass for twins, just as their mothers could.
With regard to Holly's request, Miss Carter knew that neither set of parents would object to having their children stay up later than usual. In fact, they enjoyed hazing them about. It was a pleasure seeing the genuine affection that existed between the Chadwicks and Lockewoods and their children.
“Well, perhaps a few more minutes then,” she relented. “But only a few.”
“Thank you, Miss Carter,” Joanna agreed. “We'll come up in a little while.” She sighed as the governess headed off. “She still mixes us up.”
“Everyone does,” Holly said with a shrug.
“Except Hibbert and Wells. They always know who's who. So do our parents.”
Holly's entire face lit up. “That's it!”
“What's it?”
“What we can do for fun. Remember what Mama told us about the game she and Aunt Breanna used to play? Let's change dresses. Then let's go into the dining room and try to fool everyone. You be me and I'll be you. Just like our mamas used to.”
“They even fooled Wells.”
“We will, too. We'll fool everyone.”
The girls rushed down the heft to the blue salon, where they quickly changed frocks, slippers, even hair ribbons.
“Make your hair messier,” Holly instructed. “Mine never stays as neat as yours.”
Joanna nodded, tying her ribbon, then tugging out a few strands of burnished heft, letting them topple to her cheeks. “How's that?”
“Perfect.” Holly's eyes glowed. “Now let's go in there. Remember to keep twisting those loose strands of hair around your finger. Papa says I do that all the time.”
“And you bring in that new sketch I made,” Joanna urged. “The one of the pond. I promised Mama I'd show it to her tomorrow. But tonight would be even better.”
Holly's nod was filled with enthusiasm. “You left it in the library for the ink to dry. We'll get it on our way to the dining room. C'mon.”
