“In London. Not sure where. I instructed the driver to try and find alternative routes to get us home quicker.”
“Good. I’m ready to get out and walk about.”
“Perhaps you should consider taking a hot bath. Maybe that’ll help you feel better.”
“You know you’re right, and I believe we’re only a couple of blocks away.”
He peered out the carriage window. She was right. They were about three blocks away from the house, and things were looking familiar. At least he was more comfortable. He could put the old fears away. At least, he thought he could. He wasn’t avoiding situations like he had.
Finally, the carriage turned onto the small drive of the house before coming to a complete stop. Cathryn sat up and smoothed back her hair before putting the hat back on. Curious, he watched her as she made sure everything was in place and she was ready to step out of the coach.
Charles followed her as she walked up to the front door where they were greeted by the butler and others. Cathryn requested tea be served in their suite and that dinner be served at the usual time in the breakfast room.
He entered the room behind her, where he deposited his hat and gloves in the arms of a waiting footman. Catching up with her, Charles climbed the stairs and followed her down the hall to their suite. While she immediately removed her slippers and laid her hat and shawl on a chair, he went in search of Frazier.
His valet was in the bathing chamber, arranging things on a stool beside the tub. Steam was coming up as the tub filled.“If you don’t mind, Cathryn is going to bathe first. She wasn’t feeling well on the way back, so I suggested a bath.”
“Not a problem. Let me take these back and I’ll go fetch a maid to assist her.”
“Thank you.”
Charles walked back out and found his bride looking out the window. Hearing him, she turned back around and smiled when she saw him.
“Frazier’s gone to find a maid to assist you with your bath.”
“Aren’t you sweet?” she said. Walking up to him, she placed a kiss firmly on his lips and put her arms around him. “Hopefully, this will help me feel better.”
“I’m sure it will.”
Moments later, Charles’s valet returned with a young maid to assist Cathryn in getting out of her outfit and whatever else it was women did to get themselves ready.
He spied a small pile of letters on the far side of the room. Who could possibly know they would be here? There was one addressed to Cathryn. He recognized the writing as being that of Cathryn’s mother. Now he was intrigued. He assumed they still weren’t speaking, and how she had found out they were here in London was puzzling. He hoped it wasn’t something that might upset her. Had her parents received an invitation to the Prince of Wales’s party? Nothing would surprise him.
He hated the idea of having to give her the letter, but he couldn’t keep it from her. Or could he? If she read the letter now, she’d be upset from today until after her performance. If he didn’t tell her, he could feign ignorance when it came to the letter. However, if she found out he’d kept it from her, it would cause friction between them, and he didn’t wish to go through her wrath again any time soon.
That quickly solved his dilemma in a hurry. He’d go ahead and give it to her once she finished her bath. Cathryn would not let her manipulative mother get too close.
When Cathryn returned, he was sitting in a dark-blue wing-back chair reading a newspaper he had requested Frazier to find.
“You look refreshed,” he said, noting her dark-gray dress trimmed in black. It was nothing fancy, but he knew she preferred to wear it when at home because it was comfortable.
“Yes, I feel much better. That was just what I needed.”
He nodded in agreement, his newspaper still folded to the story he wanted to read. “There’s a letter for you on the table over there.” He pointed in the direction of a square mahogany table used for such things.
“Who’s it from?”
“Not sure. Saw it was addressed to you and put it on the table.”
He watched as she picked it up and looked closely at it and sighed. “It’s from my mother. Now how would she know we’d be here in London at this particular time?”
“Perhaps she heard about you playing for the prince and his wife.”
“Perhaps.” She studied the letter for a few more seconds before opening it.
He watched as she read it, and from the facial expressions, he gathered she read it more than once. Then he saw her smile and shake her head.
“Problems?” he asked.
