Page 120 of Marry in Secret
Mrs. Pendell’s eyes widened. She bobbed an awkward curtsey. “Oh, m’lady, I couldn’t sell them. You’re welcome to have them for nothing.”
“I wouldn’t dream of it,” Rose said firmly. “But I would love some.” She waited. Dreadful manners, but she’d had an idea.
“Well, if you insist...” the young woman said uncertainly. She produced a pair of shears from inside and walked around the garden, cutting roses. The little girl followed, picking daisies from the grass verge and handing them to Rose.
“My grandfather-in-law grows the roses and he’ll be right sorry he missed you. His pride and joy, them roses.” She gave a little laugh. “He’ll be cross with me for selling them. He says roses come from God and should be given away for love, not money.”
“A lovely thought but not very practical,” Rose said. “I couldn’t help but notice, are you a widow?”
She nodded. “Four years now we lost my Jemmy at sea.” She indicated the little girl. “Suzy never knew her da.”
“She’s a lovely child.”
“That she is.” Mrs. Pendell rumpled her daughter’s curls fondly. The lump in Rose’s throat grew.
“That’s perfect,” Rose said when a dozen roses had been picked. She gave the young woman a ten-pound note.
“Oh, no, m’lady, I couldn’t accept that—it’s far too much.”
“Nonsense. They’d charge more than that in London. Besides I don’t have anything smaller.”
“Then take them for nothing, please, I couldn’t—”
“I have an idea,” Rose said briskly. “I was once a widow too, and I cannot bear to see a pretty young woman such asyourself—nor a dear little girl like yours—dressed in widow’s weeds, especially as your mourning period is well and truly over. It would please me greatly if you used some of this money to make yourself and Suzy a pretty dress in your favorite color. You do sew, don’t you?”
“Of course, m’lady, but I really couldn’t accept—”
“Please,” Rose said. “It would make me so happy.” She put her hand on Mrs. Pendell’s arm and added in a coaxing voice, “Wouldn’t you like to see this little darling in something pretty for a change?”
The young woman’s eyes filled with tears. “I would. Thank you, m’lady,” she whispered.
“Good. Next time I come through here I’ll expect to see you both wearing something pretty. Promise?”
Mrs. Pendell gave her a misty smile. “I promise.”
***
“I had a nice little walk,” Rose said to Thomas as they drove out of Newport, her arms full of roses. “Horseshoe all fixed?”
“Yes. Where did you get those?” His eyes grew dark with suspicion. “Rose, you didn’t go looking for Mrs. Pendell, did you? It would be cruel to get her hopes up.”
“As if I would do any such thing, Thomas.” She lifted the roses and inhaled the scent. They really were superb.
She glanced at him. He was back to worrying about his men, she could tell. She hoped there would be some good news soon.
***
The letter from Wilmott came two weeks later. Thomas seized it with trepidation, scanned it rapidly and gave a shout of joy and relief. “He’s done it! He’s tracked them down. My men are coming home.”
He seized Rose around the waist and whirled her off her feet. “They’re coming home!” He set her down, dizzy and laughing, and picked up the letter again. “Wilmott says, ‘By the time you read this they’ll be on their way, making forSouthampton on a ship called theAurelia. I’m sending this letter by an earlier ship in the hopes that you’ll get it in time to meet them when they arrive.’”
Rose had never seen him quite so elated. The unfettered relief in his eyes was an indicator of just what a weight he’d carried all this time, as if he didn’t deserve true happiness while the men he’d promised to bring home remained in captivity. “I’m going, Rose. I’ll leave today.”
He rang the bell for Holden and ordered the traveling chaise to be prepared.
He made no mention of taking Rose with him, and though she would have loved to go, to witness the men’s reaction when they reached their native shores at long last, after years of hopelessness she recognized that this would be a private moment, a bonding experience that only they should share. To have a stranger there, however well intentioned, would only inhibit them.
So she helped Thomas pack his bag and sent him on his way with a kiss and a smile and a heart full oflove.
