Marrying Winterborne (The Ravenels #2) - Lisa Kleypas Page 0,84
Kathleen found Helen in her bedroom, packing a small valise to be carried by hand.
“Darling, why are you doing that?” Kathleen asked breathlessly. “Clara should have taken care of it.”
“I offered to help,” Helen replied. “Clara needs a few more minutes to pack her own belongings.”
“Thank you. Goodness, it’s been a madhouse. Have you and the twins finished packing your things for London?”
“Yes, we leave in the morning with Mr. Winterborne and Lady Berwick.” Helen opened the valise, which sat on the bed, and displayed its contents. “Come have a look—I hope I’ve thought of everything.”
She had packed Kathleen’s favorite shawl of colorful ombré-shaded wool, a jar of salted almonds, a notebook and pencil, a sewing kit with tiny scissors and pincers, a hairbrush, and a rack of pins. She had also included extra handkerchiefs and gloves, a jar of cold cream, a bottle of rosewater, a drinking cup, a tin of lozenges, an extra pair of linen drawers, a little purse jingling with coins, and a three-volume novel.
“The twins tried to persuade me to include a pair of pistols, in case your steamer should be overtaken by pirates,” Helen said. “It fell to me to point out that pirates haven’t sailed the Irish Sea for two and a half centuries.”
“How disappointing. I’m sure I would have made short work of them. Oh, well—in lieu of adventure, at least I’ll have a novel to read.” Picking up one of the volumes, Kathleen read the title and began to laugh. “War and Peace?”
“It’s long and very good,” Helen explained, “and I knew you hadn’t read it yet, since we’ve been keeping it above the sixth shelf in the library. And even if Tolstoy does tend to sour one on marriage, as Lady Berwick claims, you’re already married and it’s too late.”
Still chuckling, Kathleen placed the book back into the valise. “Nothing could sour me on marriage, after the way Devon has been with me. Steady as the polar star, and so very tender. I’ve discovered that I need him even more than I thought.”
“He needs you also.”
Kathleen closed the valise and gave her an affectionate glance. “I’ll miss you so much, Helen. But it will make my heart lighter to know that you and the twins will be enjoying yourselves in London. I expect Mr. Winterborne will be at Ravenel house often, and he’ll do anything short of performing backward somersaults if it would make you happy.” She paused before adding quietly, “He loves you, you know. It’s obvious.”
Helen didn’t know how to reply. She longed to pour out her heart, and confide that no matter how much Rhys loved her, it wouldn’t be enough to overcome the terrible fact of who she was. It would devastate him when he found out.
Forcing a smile, she averted her face, affecting shyness.
In a moment, Kathleen’s arms went around her. “This will be a happy time for you, darling. You’ll have no trouble with Lady Berwick. She’s the most honorable woman I’ve ever known, and the wisest. You and the twins must trust and rely on her while we’re gone.”
“I will.” Helen hugged her tightly. “Don’t worry about anything. We’ll have a relaxing and pleasant time while we wait for you to return.”
ANYONE WHO HAD witnessed the Ravenel family’s drawn-out good-byes would have been forgiven for assuming the group was about to be separated for a period of years instead of weeks. Fortunately, Lady Berwick, who would have deplored the display of emotion, was in her room at the time. Rhys, for his part, had tactfully elected to withdraw to the library to allow the family privacy.
Both Pandora and Cassandra tried to be light and amusing, but when it came time to say farewell, they both became tearful and hugged Kathleen simultaneously, until one could hardly see her small form sandwiched between them. For the better part of a year, Kathleen had treated the twins with a mixture of interest and affection that was undeniably maternal in nature. The twins would miss her sorely.
“I wish we were going with you,” Pandora said unsteadily.
Cassandra gave a little sob.
“There, there,” came Kathleen’s voice from amid the girls’ enveloping embrace. “We’ll be together soon, dear ones. In the meantime, you’ll have a lovely time in London. And I’ll be coming back with a beautiful horse for each of you—just think of that!”
“What if my horse isn’t a good sailor?” Cassandra asked.
Kathleen tried to reply, but since she was still engulfed by the twins, it was difficult to