small lace handkerchief and covered my mouth, concerned for a moment that my stomach was going to act against me. I stilled for a moment, and the feeling passed, so I moved quickly away from the table, opting for drink instead of food. I walked cautiously toward one of the barrels of mead, nodding to some of the other guests as I passed.
The smell of the strong ales and wines hit me nearly as hard as the scent of the food. My stomach churned again, and the lace handkerchief in my hands blurred as I stared at it.
“Alexandra!” I felt Branford’s hands around my middle as he pulled me backwards a few steps to sit upon a nearby chair, holding me sideways in his lap. My head dropped to his shoulder as the room continued to spin.
“What is wrong with her?” Sunniva asked. I felt her cool fingers on my cheek.
“I do not know,” Branford replied. “Alexandra? Can you speak?”
“Yes,” I mumbled into his shirt.
“What is wrong, my wife?”
“Dizzy,” I replied softly.
“I saw her just as she was beginning to fall,” Branford said. “I barely caught her in time.”
“Alexandra? Have you eaten since this morning?”
“I do not think so,” I whispered. I could hear Sunniva’s questions, and I could answer her though my voice sounded strange in my own ears.
“Ida, fetch some water and fruit,” Sunniva said.
“Of course,” Ida said, and she scurried off toward the table.
“Branford,” Sunniva spoke softly, “do you know where Alexandra’s cloak is?”
“At the table, on her chair,” he replied.
“Fetch it for me, please.”
“I’m not leaving her!” Branford snapped. “Send someone else.”
I heard Sunniva’s sigh and felt Branford’s arms tense around me.
“Get the cloak, Branford.”
Branford growled under his breath, and I did not have to open my eyes to know what expression went with his exacerbated sigh. He stood and slowly turned to set me down in the chair before he brushed his lips over my forehead.
“I will return shortly,” he stated as he walked off.
“Alexandra,” Sunniva said as she reached out and took one of my hands in hers. “How long have you felt like this?”
“Just a few minutes,” I answered.
Ida came back with a cup of water and a small bowl of apples and pears. She held the cup to me as I took a drink, and then I bit into one of the pears. I did begin to feel better almost immediately.
“What about yesterday?” Sunniva asked. “Did you feel ill then?”
I narrowed my eyes in confusion.
“I did,” I admitted, “but only for a moment.”
“And did your stomach empty itself?”
“No,” I replied with a shake of my head.
“Did it feel as though it would?”
I bit into my lip for a moment before I nodded.
“But I did not get sick,” I said, emphasizing the words.
“Alexandra?” Ida asked softly. She laid her hand on the top of my shoulder, and I turned my head to her. There was a slight smile on her face. “When were you last in the Women’s Room?”
I looked down to the ground because in the back of my head, I knew it had been longer than normal, but I had refused to speculate on the reason. If I thought about it, and it ended up being not true…Well, I could not handle any additional disappointments when it came to that subject.
“It has been…a while,” I finally whispered back.
Branford gasped and then dropped to his knees in front of me.
“Alexandra?” he said softly, his bright green eyes staring into mine.
“It is too soon to say,” I replied, my voice still quiet. I bit my lip as tears brimmed over my eyes and down my cheeks.
Branford’s eyes widened, and his gaze dropped to my stomach.
“You are,” he said quietly, and his voice was full of wonder. When his gaze met mine again, his eyes sparkled like green emeralds with their intensity, and the smile that slowly spread across his face made them glow. “You are carrying my son.”
And that is when I knew I was with child.
Chapter 3—Ecstatically Prepare
“It might not be a boy, you know.”
I felt Branford’s arms wrap around my waist as he leaned his chest against my back and kissed my ear.
“It could be a girl,” he said quietly, “but the child is a boy.”
He rested his hands on my hips, and he reached around and wiggled his fingers at my sides. I laughed and pushed his hands away so I could finish dressing. Once I had the dress up around my shoulders, Branford quickly laced up the back of