“Thank you, Thomasin. I am gladdened to hear that.” She rested her free hand on her belly. “Sometimes Mother treats me as if I am a mere nuisance, not a person with feelings. I never meant to cause her distress, nor Father, but I could not be the person they wanted me to be. Yes, I know how frivolous and ungrateful that sounds, but I could not go through life as an obedient servant if it was making me unhappy. They had the good fortune of making a love match, and I want that for myself.”
Thomasin had never thought of it that way before. She had seen her sister’s shame write large in her parents’ faces; Cecilia had been decried her for her selfishness and reckless behaviour in the pursuit of love. But she was only striving for what they all desired, although she had been more brazen about it.
“Can you picture me as a quiet, country wife with a brood of children?”
Thomasin laughed. “I can’t, but I am sure you will do it with your own style.”
“That is what I intend. And you must come and stay with me, when the baby is due. Say you will!”
This request came as a surprise. “If the queen is willing to spare me.”
“It will be September. All will be resolved in the court by then, I hope. And you must attend my wedding, of course. We plan to marry here, in London, as soon as we can.”
“It seems that you resolved much yesterday.”
“We did. I must thank you for your part in it, although it brought you trouble.”
“No great trouble. It sounds as if you have all this planned out now, so long as the divorce is approved. But are you certain that Hatton is the man to make you happy, for the rest of your life? He will not deceive you or prove untrustworthy?”
Cecilia shook her head. “If you had heard him yesterday, you would not ask. He is the only man I could spend my life with, and he feels the same way about me.”
“Well, that is fortunate indeed.”
“He has inherited a new estate in Surrey, so we shall live there, not too far from court. It is quite near Hampton, actually, so when the court is there, we may ride over and see you.”
Thomasin sat and listened to her sister talk, planning out her future, with the clothes she would wear, the guests she would invite to her new home, the horses and dogs she would own, and the names she might give her children. She couldn’t help feeling a little twinge of jealousy at Cecilia’s certainty of being loved, and the way her life would unfold, but a sliver of doubt crept into her mind. All this depended upon William Hatton being as good as his word, and the king’s rapid agreement to grant a divorce when he was being denied one himself.
The sisters had been sitting together for a while when horse hooves were heard in the front courtyard, followed by a knockupon the door. Cecilia rose as swiftly as she could for a woman in her condition.
“It must be him.”
Thomasin followed her down the staircase to find William Hatton standing in the hallway, with Lady Elizabeth beside him. Thomasin tried to shake off her former distaste, telling herself that this was the man she must now call brother.
“All is well?” Cecilia asked anxiously, before she reached the bottom.
“Come, sweetheart.” Hatton offered her his hand. “Let us talk.”
“What is amiss?”
“Nothing, but come and be seated while we plan.”
Cecilia let herself be guided to the chair her mother had vacated. Lady Elizabeth stood to the side, clearly apprised of Hatton’s news already.
“You are worrying me. What is it?”
“Merely a short delay. The king will not act at once; he needs time to consider the matter.”
“My baby will not wait for his consideration! He is aware of the child?”
Hatton nodded. “It seems Sir Hugh has already made a petition to him, so he is aware of our difficulties.”
“And he will not grant the divorce?”
“It’s not that he won’t. His mind is so occupied at the moment with his own situation, he does not care to hear about other divorces, let alone grant them.”
“So we are stuck? What shall we do?”
Hatton took her hands. “For now, you will concentrate wholly upon your health and that of the child. I will continue to petition the king, but the time matters not. We will be wed, even if the child arrives first. It is what everyone wishes for; there can be no benefit in delay. I will make the king see as much.”
