Chapter Nineteen
THE FIRST PAIN WASbarely noticeable. In fact, Eleanor brushed it off entirely. But it came again. And then again. By the time Merrick arrived at the house for lunch, she couldn’t ignore it any longer.
“Are you feeling well?” Merrick asked when she handed him a plate and sucked in a breath against the painful twinge.
“I’m having these pains.” She gripped the back of one of the chairs. It was still April, and the midwife had estimated May for the baby’s birth. “It may be those false pains Clara told me about—”
“I’ll get the midwife.” Plate forgotten, Merrick had already thrown on his coat and run out the door before Eleanor could say anything else.
She eased herself into a chair, and then stood again. If the pains were real, and the baby was coming, she ought to eat. She dished herself up a plate and finished it just as Merrick burst back through the door with Mrs. Hutton, the midwife, in tow.
After shooing Merrick out, Mrs. Hutton did a quick examination. “I think you’d best make yourself comfortable,” she said after she was finished. “Because you’re about to have a baby.”
“But it’s too early, isn’t it?” A frantic desire to stop everything rose inside Eleanor.
“Not according to your little one.” Mrs. Hutton laid a hand on her shoulder. “May was simply a guess, based upon your memory and how far along you appeared to be. Everything is pointing toward you having a perfectly healthy baby. Now I’ll be right back. You’ve got plenty of time before things really start moving along. I need to make a few preparations and send someone to visit another lady who’s just given birth.”
Eleanor gave her a grateful smile. Mrs. Hutton slid her coat on, and as she opened the door, Merrick came inside.
“Look after her for a bit,” Mrs. Hutton directed him. “I’ll return before the hour is out.”
“If you think that’s best?” Merrick turned his hat around and around in his hands.
“Dear man, I’ve delivered so many babies that I’ve lost count. Trust me when I say you have a wait on your hands.” Mrs. Hutton patted him on the arm and closed the door behind her.
Merrick dropped his hat onto one of the armchairs and came to Eleanor’s side. He didn’t even bother to remove his coat before he perched himself on the edge of the bed. “Are you feeling all right?”
“I’m fine. It hurts some, but nothing too terrible yet.”
He took her hand. “What can I do?”
His concern warmed her heart, and she smiled at him. “I don’t think there’s much you can do.” His expression turned more anxious, so she quickly added, “But perhaps you could fetch Clara and Deirdre for me? And maybe Felicity, but only if she wants to be here.”
He nodded quickly, perking up now that he had a job to do. “Do you need anything? A glass of water, perhaps?”
“Water would be nice. And I would love it if you took a moment to eat the food I made.”
He jumped up immediately and poured water from the pitcher she’d filled that morning. He brought it to her bedsideand sat down again, handing her the glass, ignoring the food waiting for him in the kitchen.
Eleanor took an appreciative sip before setting it on the new little bedside table where he usually kept a lamp and a few coins. It was just in time too, because another labor pain came on. Eleanor gritted her teeth through it. After having sat with Rebecca so many times and Clara most recently, she knew there was a lot more to come that would make this one look easy.
Merrick said nothing. He held her hand, and when she opened her eyes again, he pressed a stray lock of hair back from her face.
