Page 78 of A Housekeeper for the Earl of Drinkwater
Her mother-in-law shook her head firmly.
“Nonsense,” she said. “I want to personally select the paint. I want everything to be perfect for my sweet grandson.”
Serena beamed at her, pulling her into an embrace.
“Very well,” she said. “I shall see you at breakfast.”
The dowager countess nodded, smiling fondly at her.
“You won’t tell Edward about this, will you?” she asked.
Serena shook her head, putting a finger to her lips.
“Your secret is safe with me,” she said.
And when Edward asked Serena if she had seen his mother when she joined him in the dining room, Serena just smiled and shook her head.
“She must have had something important to take care of before breakfast,” she said.
Edward regarded her closely, but she immediately changed the subject.
“Our little man will be a year old before we know it,” she said brightly. “Can you believe it?”
Edward beamed and nodded.
“I have been waiting for that day for a year,” he said, laughing. “I cannot wait until he can walk.”
Serena raised an eyebrow with playful wariness.
“Are you sure about that?” she asked. “We will not stop chasing him for fifteen years once he can walk.”
Edward grinned even wider and nodded.
“I cannot wait to teach him all the manly arts,” he said. “That will keep him busy, believe me. He will not have time to find any mischief.”
Serena burst into laughter and shook her head.
“Perhaps we should go and ask your mother if that might work,” she suggested playfully.
Edward pretended to blanch.
“Um, that will not be necessary,” he said. “Besides, I am sure Austen will be a much sweeter boy than I was.”
Serena raised both her eyebrows.
“I certainly hope you are right,” she said, laughing again.
Edward deliberately shoved a forkful of food in his mouth as if he were ravenous, intent on making Serena giggle again. When he swallowed, he was serious again, smiling at her as though she held the key to the entire universe.
“It is amazing how happy we are,” he said. “Just a year ago, I would have dismissed the notion that the world could be anything but dark and sad ever again. Is it not amazing how just two people can change things so drastically?”
Serena nodded, a smile spreading across her face.
“Well,” she said deliberately. “Perhaps it is more than just two.”
Edward nodded, shrugging.
“Well, of course, I mean Mother, too,” he said. “None of this would have been possible without her. And even that damnable Ezekiel Tate. He is a horrible man, but his evil nature has brought us all the happiness in the world. Is it not strange how things sometimes work out?”
