Give All to Love (49 page)
Authors: Patricia Veryan
*Â Â Â *Â Â Â *
The two riders disdained the drivepath, and went side by side across the meadows. Devenish, eyeing his bride's bewitching profile and wishing the June afternoon had been a little more cooperative, sighed. Her bright gaze turned to him, and he said ruefully, “I'd so wanted you to see it at its best.”
Josephine de Galin Devenish reached out, and he kissed the gloved fingers, damp or not.
“Just a little drizzle, my darling,” she said. “And so very gently English.”
They started up the last hill, the treetops blowing softly, the misted air lending a blurred mystery to the hills and the emerald valleys.
“Dev,” Josie went on, her eyes dreaming, “it
was
a lovely wedding, wasn't it? And Uncle Ãmile and my grandmama so happy.”
“And my bride the loveliest that ever was or ever will be,” he declared.
“And my husband looking at me in such a naughty way at the altar that I fairly blushed,” she scolded, the dimples peeping.
“Very fairly. And soon to be kissed by every rascally fellow in sight, and a few I'd not thought to see there, I can tell you! Gad, Elf, what a surprise to see old Diccon in all his regalia. I'll swear he looked positively handsome with all those medals, even with his left sleeve pinned up, poor fellow.”
“Yes. And, bless him, so happy with his lady. And how very kind of the King to come!”
He chuckled. “And to leave
some
food for our other ravenous guests! Now, madam wife, enough of this chit-chat. You will please to keep your eyes on me.”
Wondering, she watched as he swung lightly from the saddle and reached to lift her down.
“Look,” he said, turning her about, but keeping his arms around her.
“Oh ⦠Devâ¦!”
He had rebuilt Devencourt, but had moved the connecting wing to the rear, rather than the front of the mansion. The drive-path now curved around the centre lawns between the east and west wings. A fine fountain lifted delicate sprays and was edged by bright flower beds. All signs of the fire were gone. Devencourt was bright with fresh paint, and shone like a new house. Astonished, Josie gasped, “How
very
lovely you have made it! Butâsurely, it must have been terribly costly?”
“Uncle Ãmile's wedding gift. And the fountain is from Guy and Faith, bless them. My Elfâare you
sure
you wish to honeymoon here?”
She leaned in his arms, smiling down at the great house. “Very sure.”
“And,” he said, kissing her ear, “now that you have seen so many glamorous places, you will not be bored to spend much of the year here? We will go to Paris once a year, and we can take a house in Town for the Season, butâ”
“Not next Season, I think,” she said demurely.
He turned perfectly white. “J-Josieâ¦? You cannot meanâ”
“Of course not, foolish child,” she said with her rippling laugh. “We were only married three days ago! But ⦠in the natural order ofâof things⦔
He held her tighter and she drew back to look up at him wonderingly. “Dev? You
do
want children? I always thoughtâ”
“IâI did. But ⦠sweetheart, only to think that this precious woman's bodyâthis miracle that can give me children⦔
His voice failed. She pulled down his head and kissed his chin and the side of his mouth until he claimed a sweeter kiss. And sighfully, snuggling closer, she murmured, “Then why did you tremble so?”
“Because I have waited so very long, my lovely wife. AndâI love andâand need you, so very much. Ifâif anything should happen⦔
She pulled away, and seeing the fear in his eyes, touched his cheek and said, “My own, we live in a modern age. This is the nineteenth century, and the days when every lady wrote her Last Will and Testament before going into confinement are done with, thank heaven! Besides, I am as strong as any horse, and youâ”
“Have the Rat Paws,” he inserted, grinning rather lopsidedly, “as witnessâ” he pointed.
The staff of Devencourt, eager to welcome the newlyweds, were as yet unaware of their imminent return. There were those, however, who knew of it, and accordingly, a small cavalcade had set out. Coming up the hill trotted a plump pink pig. Behind her was a white cat, his plume of a tail waving in the air, and, following, a ginger cat, with tail just as high, if not as bushy. Bringing up the rear, a black and white kittenâno longer a small round ball, but full of energy as it bounced along, very much a part of the committee to welcome the master and Milady Elf.
Josie laughed. “How very dear they are.” She tucked her head under his chin, and he swiftly removed her dainty hat before the feather drove him berserk. “Oh, Dev, darling Dev, if only you knew how I have dreamed of giving you fine sons, and dainty, fair little girls, with your blue eyes. You will be so good with themâsuch a wonderful father. And I shallâ”
“Shall be more loved than ever,” he interrupted again, and kissed the top of her head. “However fat.”
“Fat!” She leaned back in his arms to frown up at him.
“Well, after that lot, it would be quite understandable ifâ”
“Wretch!” she laughed, tugging his hair. “Come down hereâand be still!”
And with the drizzle falling soft and all unheeded about them, and the horses starting to graze, Alain Jonas Devenish took his bride's advice and took also a firmer grip on the happiness that had come to him at last.
Patricia Veryan
was born in England and moved to the United States following World War II. The author of several critically acclaimed Georgian and Regency series, including the Sanguinet Saga, she now lives in Kirkland, Washington. You can sign up for email updates
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Also by
Patricia Veryan
:
THE LORD AND THE GYPSY
LOVE'S DUET
MISTRESS OF WILLOWVALE
SOME BRIEF FOLLY
NANETTE
FEATHER CASTLES
MARRIED PAST REDEMPTION
THE NOBLEST FRAILTY
THE WAGERED WIDOW
SANGUINET'S CROWN
PRACTICE TO DECEIVE
JOURNEY TO ENCHANTMENT
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Contents
GIVE ALL TO LOVE. Copyright © 1987 by Patricia Veryan.
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eISBN 9781250101273
First eBook edition: September 2015