The Bridal Quest. Candace Camp

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СКАЧАТЬ gaped at the other woman, stunned by Maura’s words.

      “And you!” Maura went on, turning on her husband. Tears welled in her eyes. “You cannot seem to get through the day without asking your sister what you should do. ‘What do you think about this, Irene?’” she mimicked, her voice dripping with bitterness. “‘What should I tell Lord This or Sir That?’ You never ask my opinion, yet I am your wife!”

      Humphrey blinked in surprise, for a moment speechless. Then he leaned forward, reaching out a hand to Maura, saying, “My dear…how can you think that? Of course I am interested in your opinion.”

      “Hah!” Maura jumped to her feet, shaking off his hand. “You care nothing about me. Nothing at all!” With a sob, she turned and ran out of the room.

      The other three people at the table stared after her.

      “Humphrey! Irene!” Lady Claire said, her voice worried. “Why—What—”

      “Perhaps I should leave, Humphrey,” Irene began stiffly. She had always known that Maura did not like her any more than she liked Maura, but she had been unprepared for the level of dislike in her sister-in-law’s voice.

      “No, no,” her brother said hastily, pushing back his chair and standing, looking from the door to Irene, then back to the door. “I suppose I should go after her. I don’t know…she is so…volatile these days.” He turned back to Irene, a frown forming on his forehead. “I apologize. I am sure Maura did not mean it. She is fond of you, of course, just as she is of Mother. It is just—Well, she did not want to tell anyone just yet, but I can see that I must tell you. Maura is in a delicate condition.” His face pinkened slightly at his words, and he smiled in an almost abashed way.

      Irene looked at him blankly, but Claire cried out in pleasure, “She is going to have a baby? Oh, Humphrey!” She clasped her hands together at her bosom, her face bright with excitement. “How wonderful! You must be so happy.”

      “A baby?” Irene looked at her mother, then back at her brother. She smiled and stood up, then circled the table and hugged him. “I am so happy for you.”

      “I knew you would be. I told Maura it was foolish to think you might not be,” Humphrey said with naive candor. “She is not herself these days. You can understand why she said what she did. It is foolish, of course, but I know she did not mean to say anything unkind.”

      “Of course not,” Irene lied.

      “But, Irene…” He took her hand between his. “Will you try to avoid any unpleasantness for the next few weeks? I am sure she will grow less emotional. Right now it is laughter one minute and tears the next with her. It seems that the slightest thing upsets her.”

      “Of course. I promise I will mind my words,” Irene agreed, though her heart sank at the prospect of walking on eggshells around Maura for the rest of the pregnancy. Unlike her brother, she suspected that Maura would play up her condition for all it was worth until the very end. Even longer, in fact. After Maura gave birth, she would doubtless demand even more consideration as the mother of Humphrey’s child.

      “Thank you.” Humphrey beamed at her. “I knew I could count on you.” He gave her hand a final pat and turned away. “Now I had better go up and talk to her. She will be feeling so distressed at the thought that she may have wounded you.”

      Irene watched her brother go without comment. She seriously doubted that Maura felt any remorse for what she had said, but she would not say so to him. She was well aware that Humphrey’s love for his wife blinded him to all her faults.

      She turned back to her mother, who was looking after Humphrey, her face soft with a tender happiness. Lady Claire shifted her gaze to Irene, and Irene watched the pleasure slowly fade from her face.

      She felt a pinprick of guilt. If anyone had been distressed by her exchange of words with Maura, it had been her mother.

      “Oh, dear,” her mother said with a sigh. “I fear it will be a difficult few months. Maura will doubtless be…very sensitive.”

      “Doubtless,” Irene agreed drily. “Do not worry. I promise that I will try my utmost to curb my tongue with Maura.”

      “I know you will, dear.” Lady Claire mustered up a smile, but it quickly fell away. She glanced toward the open door guiltily and dropped her voice. “I fear it will be hard to do. I mean no disparagement upon your brother’s wife, but…”

      “I know you do not, Mother. No one could be sweeter tempered than you are. The truth is that Maura is difficult at the best of times.”

      “It is hard on a young couple, having a mother live with them. I do wish that your father had left us a larger portion. Would it not be darling to have our own little cottage?” She smiled to herself as she thought about it.

      “Yes, it would.” Irene’s musings were less sweet than her mother’s. “Father should have provided better for you.”

      “Well, what’s done is done.” Even now, Irene knew, Lady Claire was reluctant to speak ill of her husband. “We must simply work as hard as we can at making the house run smoothly. Maura will need help, surely, as she becomes more advanced in her condition. Of course, she may prefer having her own mother and sister, although the house will be a little crowded if they come.”

      Lady Claire paused, frowning a little as she thought. “Perhaps I should not have danced so much last night. I could see that Maura was not well pleased with my standing up so frequently with my cousin. It might not have been appropriate.”

      “You would never conduct yourself any way but appropriately,” Irene assured her mother. “There was naught amiss with you dancing with your cousin and friends. You have lived among the ton all your life, and you know far better what is appropriate than some daughter of a Yorkshire country squire recently arrived in the city.”

      “Irene!” Her mother cast an anxious glance at the doorway, then turned back to her. “You must not say such things. You promised that you would make more of an effort to get along.”

      “I will,” Irene said disgruntledly. “But that does not mean that I cannot have my own opinions. However, I promise that I will refrain from mentioning them in front of Maura. But only for your sake, Mother, not because I feel any regard for Maura’s opinions or her sensibilities. As far as I’m concerned, Maura’s skin is about as tender as an elephant’s hide.”

      Her words surprised a gurgle of laughter from Lady Claire, who quickly covered her mouth with her hand to hide the sound as she shook her head reprovingly at her daughter. Then she took a sip of tea and set her cup down, saying brightly, “Well, now, after we finish breakfast, we must go through the yarns and pick out something for a baby blanket. Won’t it be fun, making things for the baby?”

      “Oh, yes.”

      Her mother chattered on, paying no attention to the dryness of Irene’s tone.

      “Booties and caps and little sweaters—oh, there is nothing sweeter than baby clothes.”

      Irene supposed it would be a pleasant task if she had more affection for the mother-to-be. However, it was important to keep her mother’s mind on enjoyable topics and off the worry of displeasing her daughter-in-law, so Irene went along without protest, retiring to her mother’s room to pull out yarns and knitting instructions, and listening СКАЧАТЬ