No, there had to be a reason for their silence.
They were kind and generous, and she knew they liked her and considered her a friend…just not a sister.
They had important lives to lead. Poppy was hosting the traditional Sherbourne supper party this very evening. Penelope and Olivia would join her and were probably helping her prepare. She couldn’t blame them for refusing to toss their plans aside for her, for this Christmas was special for them, too. It would likely be the last one those three inseparable friends ever spent together.
Olivia’s husband, the Duke of Hartford, seemed to be indispensable to the royal family, so he and Olivia would likely spend next Christmas in London. Penelope and her husband Thad, heir to the Earl of Hume, would likely be in Scotland hosting Christmas for their clan next year. Poppy would remain here, but if the hot looks exchanged by her and her husband were any indication, the Earl of Welles would have his little heir before next year was out and Poppy would have her hands full with the little viscount’s arrival.
“Bollocks, how many times must I kiss you to get you to stop frowning?” Angus teased, stoking the fire in her bedroom hearth and tossing on several more logs before it sputtered out.
The fire cast a rich, golden glow about the room and seemed to illuminate Angus as he strode to her side like a valiant warrior and gave her a shockingly delightful kiss on the mouth.
She forced a smile when he drew away. “This Christmas Eve supper has me overset. I wanted so badly to be at Sherbourne Manor and wear my new gown. I wanted to be with my friends, although it is presumptuous of me to consider them as that. They are so high above my station.”
His gaze turned thoughtful. “Perhaps not for long.”
She frowned, not understanding what Angus meant by the remark. However, she shrugged it off. Her brain was too dulled with laudanum to think clearly. “Did you manage to get some sleep last night? You couldn’t have been comfortable stretched out in front of the bookshop’s fireplace.”
“I slept like a log. When I awoke, I stole away home to wash up and change into clean clothes. I also checked the infirmary to make certain no one had come by looking for me. All quiet, thank goodness. But I expect young Walter Fitch will manage to get himself into a scrape soon enough, and his father will come running into town to find me.”
“Oh, that boy!” The mere mention of Walter, that scamp, cheered her. “He has a knack for mischief. But he is good hearted and always means well. He’s clever, too. He already knows his letters and can count faster than his older siblings. And what a sense of adventure he has! I’ve been reading to the children at the schoolhouse, stories about wizards and kings, pirates and their sailing ships. Knights of valor. Walter sits wide-eyed and hangs upon my every word. All the children do. It’s quite splendid to see them so excited about learning and their young minds spinning with ideas.”
She rolled her eyes. “Walter told me he has decided to become a wizard…or a pirate, he hasn’t made up his mind yet which. However, he has not ruled out becoming a king. Or Hercules. But he feels he has to eat a lot to build up his muscles, and he can’t do it because his mother’s cooking isn’t all that good.”
Angus chuckled.
She blushed suddenly. “You should have stopped me. I didn’t mean to go on about the children.” Especially since she would have none of her own, and she supposed the ache showed. Seems she could not hide anything from Angus lately.
“You’ll make a wonderful mother, Felicity. Kind and patient and inspiring.” He sighed when she turned her head away and said nothing. “You will. I–”
He was about to say something more when interrupted by the tinkle of the bell above the bookshop door. It must have shut and opened again, for it continued to ring. First, light footsteps skittered across the shop. Then it sounded as though an entire army was marching in. “I’ll go see what’s happening. Don’t you dare climb out of bed.”
She sorely wanted to, but her body would not cooperate. Her left arm was broken and her right ankle was still swollen from its sprain. It made walking impossible for the moment. “Angus! Is it the laudanum addling my senses, or is that the aroma of roast goose wafting through the kitchen?”
Angus was staring at the goings on in her bookshop, too busy grinning at her visitors to respond.
Felicity bolted upright upon recognizing the cheerful voices…but it couldn’t be. “Poppy, what are you doing here? Your guests will be arriving at any moment! Oh, I was supposed to return The Book of Love to you this evening. It’s right there, on my bureau. I’m so sorry.”
Poppy glided into her bedchamber, her dark woolen cloak swirling about her booted ankles as she came to Felicity’s side and plunked herself down at the edge of the bed. Her smile was as incandescent as the fire glowing in the hearth. “I’m not here because of the book, but I hope you had the chance to read it.”
“I did. Several times over.”
Olivia and Penelope traipsed in soon after, their noses and cheeks pink from the cold. Pip, who was Penelope’s impish cousin, was with them. Despite his penchant for mischief, he was a sweet boy, and Felicity liked him very much.
Olivia took off her bonnet and set aside her muff before taking the chair near her bed. Penelope shrugged out of her cloak and sat on the other side of her bed.
Pip hopped over her three friends and knelt beside Felicity, resting his arms on the mattress, his big eyes peering over it as he looked at her with a big grin on his face.
Poppy took her hand, her touch warm and gentle. “We’ve reshuffled.”
Felicity blinked. “What do you mean?”
Olivia’s smile was also angelic as she spoke up. “It was to be a small Christmas gathering anyway. And our husbands could do with a night away from us. So the aunts, Lavinia and Matilda, will serve as hostesses at Sherbourne while we dine here with you.”
Felicity gasped. “You can’t!”
“We can and just did,” Penelope said with a nod. “You won’t be rid of us so easily. Olivia’s staff is setting out our meal on the long table in your bookshop. You needn’t fret, we have it all in hand. Can you walk? You look terribly banged up.”
“She is,” Angus said from the doorway. “I’ll carry her in. She isn’t steady on her feet yet. She’ll just topple if she tries to walk.”
Felicity’s eyes were bright and gleaming. “Why would you do this? Leave all your important guests to come to me?”
Penelope arched an eyebrow. “Wouldn’t you do the same for any of us?”
“Yes, of course. But I’m no one of importance.” She looked up at Angus as he approached her bedside.
His eyes were glinting with affection as he approached and bent on one knee beside her. “Seems your friends hold a different opinion.”
Olivia withdrew a little packet from her cloak. “We’ve brought you some gifts. We’d planned on exchanging them tomorrow, but I think Beast, Nathaniel, and Thad will howl if we abandon them on Christmas day as well.” She handed Felicity the packet. “Here, open it now if you like.”
She took it with a whispered ‘thank you’ and unwrapped it. “They’re beautiful,” she said, holding up a set of embroidered, lace handkerchiefs.