The red parlour had also been turned into a family dining room, meaning that the boys could eat with the family. Mealtimes were a good time for a family to keep abreast of each other’s news, and Alex discovered much more about his boys’ lives than he thought possible. He offered the others their choice of eating with them or eating in the dining room and Rose, Jane and Anna all chose to eat with them.
For propriety’s sake, Milton had taken rooms in town until his wedding to Rose but he dined with them most evenings, before taking the carriage back to Crowham. The wedding was a small affair since Rose was still rather reserved, and the couple honeymooned in the Scottish Highlands. They thoroughly enjoyed it, despite the inclement weather.
As a wedding present, Alex gave them a parcel of land on the north side of the estate and Milton planned to build them a house. Milton had come to love Crowham almost as much as he loved Rose and besides, he wanted her to be close to her family when he was away on business.
In the meantime they stayed at Howard House and since they were just about the only people for whom the south wing held predominantly happy memories, Alex gave them a suite of rooms there. He wanted them to have privacy, of course, but he also felt it fitting that Emma’s brother should be the first one to occupy the rooms which she had once loved.
Jane and Anna were staying for the time being but Helen had an inkling that they were finally coming to terms with Emma’s death too, and while she liked their company, especially Jane’s, she wouldn’t object if they wanted to move out. Equally, if they wanted to stay close to Joe and Jules, Alex had informed them that they were very welcome. Anna had suggested that she might spend part of her time with Milton in his new house, but that could be decided on at a later date, once it was built.
Pearl corresponded with her son only by letter, and ceased any communication with Rose once she learned of her intention to marry a tradesman.
All in all, everyone seemed very content with their lives.
Epilogue
Christmas morning brought with it a fresh coating of snow, covering the land in a beautiful white blanket. After church, Helen dressed the boys up in their warmest clothing and they headed into the garden with Alex. First they built a snowman, then Helen showed them how to make a snow angel and finally, Alex sparked a snowball fight.
After that, and thoroughly chilled, they headed inside to warm up by the fire with some mulled wine.
They shared a Christmas dinner of wild boar and various treats in the family room, and then everyone retired to the drawing room to exchange gifts. Alex had arranged for miniatures of Emma to be painted. Two were very small and had been mounted into lockets for Anna and Jane. Two larger ones, approximately six inches high, he had framed for his sons, so they could keep their mother close.
His present for Helen was also a tiny painting although without the locket and for a moment she was stunned, wondering why he had given her a portrait of his dead wife, until she removed the tissue paper covering it.
“Oh my,” her hand went to her mouth. “Where did you get this?” she asked.
She felt tears prick her eyes as she removed the tiny painting from the box, placing it in the palm of her hand. She then noticed that there was something else below the tissue paper and removing it, discovered the miniature of her father, which was about the same size as the ones Joe and Jules had received.
“I had it commissioned specially.” Alex explained, smiling at her reaction. “Paris was quite happy to send me the portrait that he denied you, and I had it miniaturised, so that it can sit alongside your mother in your locket.”
Helen carefully placed the painting back in the box, before hugging him tightly.
Her present for him was not nearly so romantic, but she had put a lot of effort into finding first editions of his favourite books and he seemed very happy with them.
Although she wouldn’t have believed it, she received a better present a few hours later. While they shared a cold evening meal, Joe turned to her.
“Can we play outside again tomorrow, Mama Helen?” he asked.
It was the first time he had called her ‘Mama’ and while she didn’t want to draw undue attention to his words, lest she embarrass him, it took her a moment to clear the lump in her throat before she could reply.
“Of course, darling. Whatever you want.”
Alex caught her eye and smiled, pleased for her, although he too didn’t say anything. Perhaps tomorrow he could pull Joe aside and tell him how happy he had made Helen.
After singing a few carols, most people headed to bed and after they had made love, Alex lay with his head resting on Helen’s breast and she revealed that she had a second present for Alex, one that she wanted to give to him in private.
His smile widened as he imagined what she might mean but it faded when she took his hand and placed it over her stomach. He raised his head to better look at her.
“You mean you’re…?”
Helen nodded, unsure what his reaction meant.
“How far along?” he asked.
“I think, two months.”
He broke out into a wide smile. “We’re going to have a baby?”
“Yes,” she returned his smile.
Alex practically threw himself on her, pulling her tightly against him. “Oh, that’s wonderful news!”
Quite unexpectedly, he released her and she fell the few inches back to the mattress, like a dropped sack of potatoes.
“I didn’t hurt you, did I?” he asked, suddenly looking worried.
Helen couldn’t help it, she burst out laughing. She would have thought that he might be a bit more experienced, having already had two sons, but it seemed that he still had a lot to learn.
“I haven’t suddenly become breakable,” she told him. “And I expect what we did on that sofa last week would have been much more harmful than an embrace, no matter how tight.”
“Do you think I could have hurt the baby?” he asked, looking over to the chair in question and remembering their rather athletic antics over it.
His genuine worry dimmed her mirth and she took his face in her hands. “Alex, if I thought it might, I would have stopped you. Believe me, baby and I are both fine and you don’t need to treat us any differently.”
“Really?”
“Well, I may not be able to go riding with you soon, but other than that, there is nothing that you could do to me that would hurt me or the baby, honestly.”
Finally her reassurances began to penetrate his mind and he smiled again as a new need overcame him, which was odd, considering that he had already succeeded in impregnating her.
“Really?” he asked, his hand snaking a path over her stomach and navel, until he cupped her mons. “Not even this?”
“No,” she assured him.
He slipped one finger between her lips and gently began to rub her clitoris.
“How about this?” he asked, his lips hovering over her hers.
“Perfectly safe,” she assured him, her voice deep with desire.
“And this?” he asked, his fingers dipping into her hot sheath as his thumb began to rub her clitoris.
“Definitely not.”
He brought her to the brink of orgasm, then climbed between her legs, placing his length at her entrance.
“How about this?” he asked.
Helen didn’t bother to answer this time, she just reached down, grabbed his bottom and tried to pull him inside her. When her strength didn’t prove enough, she dug her (thankfully short) nails in.
“Didn’t anyone ever tell you, don’t upset a woman who is in the family way.”
Alex thrust inside her and she released her hold on his buttocks. He slipped a hand between their bodies and found her bud again and knowing that he wouldn’t last very long, quickly pushed her over the edge. As her climax washed over her, he came inside her just a few moments later.
He lay atop her, his head resting on her shoulder, unwilling to pull out of her before he had to. Hel
en’s arms went around him and began to stroke his back, soothing him.
“I love you,” he told her and although his words were slightly muffled, he heard the smile in her words as she answered.
“I love you too, my darling.”
Finally her gentle caresses began to make him drowsy and he rolled off her. She turned and settled herself against him, one of her legs slipping in between his as his arms went around her shoulders, holding her close. She pressed a kiss on his chest.
“Merry Christmas, Mama,” he told her.
He could feel her lips turn up in a smile as she replied. “Merry Christmas, darling.”
The End
Other Books by Catherine Winchester
Historical Novels
The Convenient Bride
The Reluctant Duchess
Hope for Tomorrow
Degrees of Hope
The Lady and the Cowboy
What You Wish For
Northern Light
Short Stories
A Merry Little Christmas (a companion story to Northern Light)
Past Series
Past Due
Half Past
Past Life
Urban Fantasy
Bemused
How to Train Your Zombie
International Bestseller!
The Convenient Bride
by
Catherine Winchester
Threatened with being cut off by his father, womaniser Maxwell Stark is forced to marry and he chooses the woman he secretly loves, Lucy Steed, his family's ward.
Lucy has been desperately in love with Max ever since she first moved in with the Stark family, but she’s convinced that he only loves her as a friend.
Although both are too afraid to admit their true feelings, the marriage is a happy one, until Max’s spurned mistress, Marie, decides that if she can’t have Max, then no one can.
They say that ‘hell hath no fury like a woman scorned’, and Marie is furious!
International Bestseller!
The Lady and the Cowboy
By
Catherine Winchester
When Lady Ruth Adams inherits a share in a Texan horse ranch, she thinks it could be the beginning of a whole new life for her and ignoring her family’s misgivings, she sets sail for America. When she inadvertently argues with her new business partner on her first day though, things don’t look hopeful.
Sam Wakefield doesn’t know what to make of the refined and timid woman who now shares his house along with his mother. What he does know, is that he much prefers the firebrand who confronted him the first time they met, and he can’t help antagonising Ruth in the hope that she’ll resurface.
Ruth is just about ready to give up on her dream when her beloved horse, Angel, arrives from England and Sam realises that they may have more in common that he thought. Angel could prove to be the key in reviving his dreams of one day breeding racehorses, while the one place that Ruth isn’t timid, is in the saddle.
As they come to trust each other, Sam teaches her about ranch life and love but someone else has their eye on the Wakefield Ranch, someone who could ruin everything for them.
International Bestseller!
The Reluctant Duchess
by
Catherine Winchester
Having been the sole provider for her family since she was 16, Lady Annabelle Wyatt knows an awful lot about responsibility but sadly, very little about love.
Richard Armstrong is just back from serving in the Army and is having difficulty filling his deceased father’s shoes, as the new Duke of Hampshire.
Richard is enamoured from the moment he sets eyes on the hard working Annabelle but she is far too bound by duty to admit that she reciprocates his feelings.
With a little meddling from Richard’s mother, love seems to blossom between the pair, only to be threatened by Annabelle’s vengeful brother. Can Richard and Annabelle find lasting happiness, or will her brother’s wrath separate them permanently?
What You Wish For
by
Catherine Winchester
Carrie Preston is desperately trying to stand up to her pushy family and failing badly. When her favourite aunt dies she retreats into her favourite book, Elizabeth Gaskell's North and South, only to find herself suddenly stuck in that story and seriously messing with her favourite romance of all time!
When Carrie's kooky aunt bequeaths her a pair of amethyst earrings in her will and says that they will grant her heart’s desire, she has no idea that she will end up in the middle of the 19th century, slap bang in the middle of her favourite book. With nothing but the clothes on her back and her rucksack, she is taken in by the Hale family and soon finds herself living in the dirty, smoky industrial town of Milton.
The only bright spot on the horizon is that she gets to meet the romantic hero of the story, John Thornton but it's not long before he starts setting his sights on her rather than Margaret Hale! Far from living her dream, she is appalled to realise that she is about to destroy the greatest romance since Elizabeth Bennett met Mr Darcy!
“North & South was like chocolate to her; her comfort food in literary form, a safe haven she could dip into whenever she needed a respite from her troubles or even just a distraction for a while.”
Hope for Tomorrow
by
Catherine Winchester
When housemaid Martha began an affair with her Master's son, Lucien, the future Earl of Marchwood, it was always destined to end badly.
Single, pregnant and unemployed, Martha struggles to forge a new life for herself and her daughter, only for Lucien to inadvertently destroy it.
She and her daughter are homeless and starving when they come to the aid of a man who proves to be their salvation.
Lucien is still obsessed with his lost love, the only woman who has ever rejected him.
A chance meeting seven years later could spell disaster but can they put their pain and pride behind them and seize this opportunity, or will old ghosts ruin their last chance at happiness?
Degrees of Hope
by
Catherine Winchester
At 23 years old, Lady Hope Beaumont's wild and independent ways, make her quite unladylike in the opinion of many people. However her beauty, the fact that she is the daughter of the Earl of Marchwood, not to mention her fortune, still makes her an appealing marriage prospect for some.
Newlyweds, Honoria and Malcolm Arundell, have just moved to Marchwood and quickly befriend the Beaumonts but it soon becomes clear to most that their marriage is a far from happy one and when the true extent of Malcolm's cruelty is revealed, Hope helps Honoria to escape. Her disappearance however, has unforeseen and far reaching consequences for everyone at Marchwood Hall.
When Honoria's brother discovers the truth about his sister's marriage, he goads Malcolm into an illegal duel. Before events are settled there will be a murder trial, unlikely friendships will be forged and amidst this chaotic backdrop, new love will blossom.
With a perfect mix of romance, suspense and sumptuous Victorian elegance, Degrees of Hope will keep you turning pages and leave you wanting more.
Northern Light – A sequel to North and South
by
Catherine Winchester
Sometimes described as the female Dickens, Elizabeth Gaskell's classic novel, North and South, dealt with issues of class, feminism, social reform and the plight of the working classes, entwining those themes seamlessly with a timeless romance between Margaret Hale and John Thornton. Northern Light is a continuation of that novel which sees John and Margaret embarking on their lives together whilst working to improve the lives of their work force.
With the threat of another strike, a series of bad mill accidents, a lethal fire and failed speculation, life in Milton is not easy for anyone and it won't be long before the mill masters and their workers clash once more, with devastating consequences.
Getting married and starting a family is difficult enough
at the best of times but for John and Margaret, married life will present unique challenges and despite the reforms they are making, even they will not escape Milton's troubles unscathed.
Bemused
by
Catherine Winchester
When self-made property developer, Niall, is attacked by vampires on his way home, his neat and ordered life soon begins to fall apart. His rescuer, the effervescent Mel, declares herself to be his Muse - better known in modern times as a Guardian Angel - and offers him a business proposition; she wants them to go into business as supernatural detectives,
Slightly sceptical to say the least, Niall eventually agrees to work one case with her - helped in no small part by his rather strong attraction to Mel.
Mrs Hart's house has been plagued by a series of deadly and inexplicable events, culminating in the death of a local boy. As they look into possible causes, Niall finds himself growing even more fond of Mel, although she seems determined to keep him at arm's length.
He discovers why she is so reticent but that is soon overshadowed by the cause of Mrs Hart's problems; a foe so powerful that even the immortal Mel seems terrified!
How to Train Your Zombie
by
Catherine Winchester
The zombie apocalypse, which has devastated the world, is in its final throes when Meg's husband is bitten. She has lost so much already that she simply can't face losing him too, so when it becomes apparent that he is about to join the ranks of the walking dead, she decides to employ her skills as a dog trainer and takes it upon herself to train him.
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