Emily, who was pulling a brush through her hair, could not see why this was a problem. She never broke her fast in her room. Even though she might have preferred to avoid her mother, she had never eaten food in her bedroom. The thought of crumbs in the place whereshe slept turned her stomach. ‘Why are you afraid about that? Is there something scary downstairs that I should worry about?’
He rolled his eyes. ‘I meant that we might encounter my family.’
‘I like your family, even if I find the duke slightly intimidating.’ Freddie made a dubious noise. ‘Do you not?’
‘In small doses, they are not too bad.’
Emily could not tell if he was joking or not. ‘They have always been very pleasant to me. Besides, we barely saw Lotte yesterday and I should like to see her.’
‘She eats breakfast in the nursery.’
Emily paused mid-stroke. ‘From now on, she should eat it with us.’
‘She should?’
‘Yes. She is the only child after all. She is probably lonely.’
Freddie looked stricken. ‘I hadn’t thought of that.’
She reached out and lightly touched the back of his hand; he instantly entwined his fingers with hers. ‘Do not worry, she adores you and is probably quite used to breakfast this way, but from now on, I think we should include her.’ Having always been an outsider in her own home, Emily did not want to subject the adorable little girl to the same fate. Not if she could help it.
‘Yes.’ Freddie bent down and captured her mouth with his.
For a moment, she forgot all about food and children and the world at large as she pulled him towards her, winding her arms around his waist. They may have carried on and forgotten all about the day if Anna had not knocked on the door to help her dress.
Lotte’s whole body became taut with joy when she saw Freddie and Emily at her nursery door. Emily didn’t think anyone had ever been so pleased to see her. She all but jumped down the stairs, babbling away to Emily and Freddie. Emily only understood about half the words, but watching the little girl’s golden curls bouncing with enthusiasm made something in her heart crack wide open.
‘Tobis,’ Lotte cried out at the doorway to the breakfast room, running ahead of Emily, her arms open wide.
Emily’s steps faltered. She had no idea how the head of the household would feel having his morning meal interrupted by a three-year-old—she hadn’t thought of it. She glanced at Freddie, but he was frowning slightly and didn’t say anything to her before following his niece into the room.
She took a deep breath. If she and Freddie were to live with the three men for the foreseeable future, then she would need to be able to converse civilly with them. Besides, it would be incredibly odd if she and Freddie remained in the corridor while the rest of the household breakfasted, not to mention cowardly.
All three of Freddie’s brothers stood as she entered the room and her skin heated, prickles of sweat beading on her brow. She attempted a smile and managed to murmur, ‘Please sit,’ although the words came out far quieter than she intended. Freddie was busy arranging cushions on a chair so that Lotte could sit on it and still reach the table. She took a seat next to him, chairs creaking all around her as the large brothers followed suit.
She needn’t have worried. Lotte babbled on barely stopping for breath; Tobias watched her with rapt attention. Christopher and Edward were equally as enthralled, although they kept shooting knowing grins at Freddie, which turned the tips of his ears a very adorable pink. Emily pressed her lips together, a nervous giggle desperate to escape.
‘What are your plans for today?’ asked Edward, his question innocent enough but for the knowing look in his eyes.
‘I thought we would take Lotte out to Berferd,’ replied Freddie primly.
Edward’s eyes flashed. ‘What a capital idea. We should all go. I did not see much of the land the other day and I should enjoy having a long, leisurely walk about it with you as my guide, Freddie.’
Freddie glared at Edward and the laugh she had been holding in burst out of her. She slapped a hand over her mouth but it was too late. For a long moment, the men looked at her, their eyes comically wide. Her shoulders shook, any attempt to stop the laughter completely impossible. Gradually, the brothers joined in, even Tobias’ lips twitched. Lotte’s high-pitched giggle added to the noise, although the little girl would have no idea why the adults were amused.
In the end, they all went. Lotte, almost beside herself with the joy of being the centre of attention of five adults for the entire day, babbled nonsense for most of the journey there, moving between all five of them as she used them as her own personal seats. The journey was cramped, but no one seemed to mind, even when Lotte’s small but sharp elbow attacked them in the eye or the stomach.
The weather was kind to them as they explored the acres. Freddie had brought a sketch book and occasionally he’d stop and make a quick drawing. Emily would watch, amazed at how quickly the simple lines took shape as something recognisable. Occasionally, she would catch Edward watching them, a grin on his face. Unlike at breakfast, this smile appeared to be one of happiness rather than teasing, but it still made Emily’s skin heat, as if she had done something a little naughty by admiring her husband’s work.
There were times during the day when Emily even caught Tobias smiling. Not a full-toothed grin like the rest of them, but a fleeting glimpse of joy touching his lips every now and then. Emily laughed more than she’d ever thought possible, the way Edward teased Freddie giving her particular delight. She’d only been married for four days, but already they were the happiest of her life so far.
By the time they crawled into bed, Emily was heavy with the need for sleep.
‘Is it always like that?’ she murmured as Freddie pulled her close, pressing a kiss to her temple.
‘What?’
‘My family almost never spend the day together and if we do, it is not a great deal of fun. Today was…’ her sleepy mind couldn’t come up with a powerful enough adjective to describe just what the time with him, his brothers and their niece had been like for her ‘…good,’ she settled on, although that was too weak a word to describe the way her heart had sung.
