Page 39 of Raising the Duke’s Unexpected Twins

“Yes. Please sit.” Cordelia motioned to the seat and sat across from her.

A lovely fire was already crackling merrily in the hearth, and Cordelia was glad she did not have to wake up to a cool home because they could not afford the wood. Her life was now so very comfortable in some ways but also quite uncomfortable in others. It was all so strange, and yet she found that her mind was no longer continually plagued by how she and her family were going to get by, and that was a great relief.

“You know I have mentioned my concern to you about your fatigue.” She folded her hands in her lap and tried to sound comforting. “I was going to propose that you perhaps take a few days off to rest. I need to get to know the children anyway, and this will give me the chance to do so.”

“Oh, Your Grace,” Jenny said, bursting into tears.

Surprised, Cordelia reached out to touch her arm. “Forgive me, I did not mean to imply that you were not the perfect nanny. I know the children love you. I am only concerned for your welfare.”

Jenny continued to cry, but eventually, she found her breath and turned to Cordelia with red-rimmed eyes.

“No, it’s not that. You are too kind. I’m only sorry that I am glad you have asked to meet with me for I can’t stay with you any longer.”

Frowning, Cordelia waited for an explanation but then she saw Jenny’s hand drift to her stomach. “I am with child, Your Grace,” she whispered. “I will be leaving soon to go and get married.”

Blinking a few times in her surprise, Cordelia leaned back in her chair.

“Oh, I see,” she said softly. “Well, that certainly explains the fatigue.”

Jenny nodded and sighed. “I hope you will not be too upset, Your Grace.”

“Not at all.” She smiled, but inside, she feared that the loss of Jenny forever would be very difficult for the children. “Are you certain of your path? We will pay for your travel, of course, and anything else you may need.”

“Thank you, Your Grace. You are most kind. And yes, I am certain. But I will not…turn down your offer.”

“Perfect. It will all be settled before you go. You know, you are good to make your own way in the world, and it will be nice for you to have your own family to think of.”

They spoke a little longer of the plans for Jenny’s departure and how she would break it to the children, and then Cordelia was left alone in her sitting room, wondering how on earth she was going to find a new nanny on such short notice. Jenny was to leave in two days.

They passed in a flash, and while Jenny had done her utmost to spend as much time with them as possible, it felt like it had all gone so quickly.

“You be good for the duke and duchess,” she told Olivia, kissing her on the cheek and pulling her close. “You too, Tim.” She hugged them both, and they cried in her arms.

Cordelia stood by helplessly, Nicholas too. She was touched that he’d come to say goodbye, pulling himself away from his club for a little while, and he’d provided more than enough money for Jenny, which Jenny now had in a bag at her side.

She is so natural with them. I wish to gain my ease back as well. Oh, the children will be so sad without her.

When she rose, she looked at Cordelia. “Thank you so much, Your Grace. You have been so kind. And you, Your Grace.” She curtsied to them both.

“You are most welcome. It is the least we could do after you have done so much for the children,” Cordelia told her. “We shall write to you to let you know how they fare, if you let us know an address.”

Nicholas stepped forward, looking serious. “You may take my carriage to where you need to go. It won’t be safe to wander the streets with money like that in your pocket outside of Mayfair.”

“Oh, it is no trouble. Someone is waiting for me.” Jenny colored, but she curtsied again and thanked them, waving goodbye to the children.

Cordelia picked Tim up, and at her prodding, Nicholas picked up a crying Olivia, looking as if it was the last thing he wished to do. But thankfully, once again, she quieted.

“How sad for you two. Jenny was lovely.” She led the way to the sitting room, and Nicholas followed. “I shall have to find a new nanny, advertise and all that.”

“Do what you must.” Gently but quickly, Nicholas deposited Olivia on the ground. “I must return to the club. Send any inquiries there. I shall get word back to you.”

“Of course,” she replied with an almost sigh. He looked at her for a moment and then he was gone, Cordelia a little crestfallen once more that he kept away as much as he did.

A week passed in much the same way, and Cordelia spent her time writing letters, sending out advertisements and even scheduling a few interviews with various women for the new nanny’s role. Jenny was gone, and Tim and Olivia were distraught. However, to Cordelia’s delight, as a result, they traipsed after her throughout the day, playing in the sitting room while she worked or out in the garden while she wrote.

The only trouble was that Nicholas stayed away. He sometimes returned, or so Mrs. Wright told her, but she never saw him, and she was growing more and more irritable.

Must he really leave all this work to myself to handle? We were meant to make decisions about the children together.