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#30 Extended Epilogue

His Christmas Reluctant
Countess

The Extended Epilogue

Five years later…

 

A robin was pecking at the lawn amidst the snow. Lady Bolton had been watching him for some time. He fluttered about, his little wings a flurry of movement as she gazed out at the Bernewood estate.  

She held her son close to her breast against the chill coming through the window and looked down at his little face with quiet love and adoration.

She heard the shrieking cry of a child outside the drawing room and walked into the corridor, waiting for the whirlwind to arrive. As she watched, her three-year-old twins, Amelia and Edward, raced down the corridor, screaming wildly.

She could hardly blame them; it was Christmas morning, after all, and they were entitled to some excitement.

Clarissa shifted James in her arms and followed them at a more sedate pace. As she walked down the corridor toward the huge Christmas tree in their grand hallway, she saw her husband descending the stairs. Even after all these years, his appearance never failed to make her heart skip a beat.

His eyes lit up as he saw her, and as he descended the last step, he put a proprietary arm around her waist and hugged her to him, kissing her good morning before doing the same to James.

He pulled away, smiling down at her, and then sighed dramatically as Amelia let out a piercing scream.

“Right, you terrors, come and give your father a hug,” he called to the twins. They squealed delightedly as he chased them and picked them both up in a bear hug, making Clarissa laugh.

Nicholas kissed his daughter on the head so many times that she ran and hid behind the Christmas tree. Edward, on the other hand, ended up on his father’s back, hanging on for dear life.

Nicholas turned to his wife in confusion.

“Have you seen our eldest son?” Nicholas asked. Turning around while holding Edward’s legs in an iron grip. “I declare I cannot find him anywhere.”

“Perhaps he is playing in the snow,” Clarissa said loudly over Edward’s loud protests that he was, in fact, ‘here, Papa.’ Eventually, Nicholas took pity on him and lowered him back to the ground with a grin, and the twins scampered off to make mischief somewhere else in the house.

“Wait for me!” came a plaintive cry from behind them as Edgar ran to follow them. Despite him being two years older, he adored the twins, and they played together often.

“How is my nephew?” Catherine asked as she followed her son into the hallway. “Good morning, Nicholas, Merry Christmas,” she said brightly as Nicholas returned the same.

“He did not sleep half the night,” Clarissa admitted, handing James to Catherine, who cooed at him adoringly.

“Quite right, it is Christmas, far too much excitement to get any sleep,” she said cheerfully.

“Good morning, sister,” Theo said to Clarissa as he came to join Catherine. Theo Harrison had become a valued member of their family. He and Lord Addison were thick as thieves, and Clarissa was looking forward to the whole family gathering together today. It had been too long since they had all been able to be in one place.

She laughed as Lady Eleanor emerged and looked at them all irritably.

“There are gifts to be distributed. Would you stop dawdling in the hallway?”

“My apologies, aunt,” Nicholas said automatically, and Clarissa laughed as he walked briskly after her as though he were a schoolboy.

Soon, they were all sitting around the fireplace in the large drawing room. It had windows that looked out on the Bernewood estate; the snow was thick upon the ground, the sky heavy with snowflakes to come, and everything was filled with seasonal cheer. Clarissa had been grateful for Eleanor’s assistance in the decorations in the house. The lady had an eye for where things should be placed, and Clarissa had been happy to leave her to it. The fireplace was adorned with endless garlands of holly and looked very festive.

Clarissa sat beside her husband, feeling quite content with the world.

“Brother, you are hogging the mince pies,” Rosemary said reproachfully as Nicholas pulled the plate away from her.

“I am doing no such thing. I know you of old. You eat twenty at once.”

“Do not listen to him, Gregory,” Rosemary said to her husband, who sat watching his wife with a knowing expression.

“I do not need to listen to him,” Gregory said, “he speaks the truth. I have not had one all season.”

Rosemary’s high exclamations of outrage were met with much laughter about the room as her brother reluctantly handed over the plate to her with a grumble.

Eleanor distributed the presents to the children, who happily opened them before the fire. Amelia, Edward, and Edgar all received wooden toys, which they immediately began to play with. James was asleep in Catherine’s arms, and she seemed disinclined to move him.

She watched her sister for a moment or two as Theo leaned in and whispered something in her ear. She gave him a happy smile in return. It was wonderful to see them so happy. All those years of worry had been for nothing, it seemed. Catherine had known her own heart, and had made the right choice.

Clarissa glanced at her father, who was showing Edgar how to use his toy. Her mother sat beside him, her eyes flitting about the children with a loving expression. Clarissa knew Lady Crompton had found Theo’s appearance in their midst the most difficult of them all. She was still angry with him for ‘corrupting’ her daughter, but she had warmed to him slowly over time.

Lady Crompton looked up and caught her gaze and they shared a smile. Things were as good as they had ever been, and that was enough for Clarissa.

She looked at Nicholas as he put his arm around her and gave her a kiss on the cheek.

“You have done wonders this year, my love; the house is positively brimming with Christmas spirit.”

She smiled. “I have placed kissing boughs above some of the doors, perhaps you can help me search for them this evening.”

He smiled with a new light in his eyes. “I shall find every one, I can assure you.”

She laughed as the family fell into a happy silence as they watched the children play.

“I have an announcement to make,” said Rosemary, who had placed down her tea. Gregory sat forward to take her hand, and Clarissa’s heart lurched in her chest. Henry and Emily were conspicuously quiet, and Clarissa was fairly certain Emily already knew the news that was about to be announced. She and Rosemary were inseparable these days.

“Come the end of Spring, there shall be another little one to join the family,” Rosemary said, all but beaming as Gregory’s hand moved to her stomach.

Nicholas was on his feet instantly, grabbing his sister, who gave a cry of alarm as he lifted her up and spun her around in a circle. He soon stopped, however, when Gregory admonished him with a swift ‘think of the baby, Nicholas,’ and he promptly put her down.  

Clarissa glanced at Emily, who gave her a knowing look and rolled her eyes. She watched Henry’s hand hover over Emily’s swollen belly. She was soon to give birth to their first child, and Clarissa had rarely seen two people more excited.

As she turned back to the happy family scene before her, Nicholas sat down again, looking thoughtful. Edgar and the twins looked up at the adults in the room in some confusion, probably wondering what all the fuss was about.

“Whatever are we to do?” Nicholas asked with some concern.

Clarissa frowned at him. “About what, may I ask?”

“Well, Henry has already promised to name his son after me,” Nicholas said playfully.

“I have done no such thing,” Henry said incredulously. “Do behave yourself, Bolton.”

“But Nicholas is such a fine name,” Nicholas protested. He turned to Rosemary. “Perhaps you could both choose it. That would be very fine. Three Nicholas’s in the family.”

“However, do you put up with him Clary?” Lady Eleanor muttered as she sipped her tea.

“Perhaps we could have Nicholas as a middle name,” Henry conceded, “But I would not wish for him to follow in your footsteps, Bolton. Not unless it is after the advent of your lady wife.”

Nicholas turned to her with a rueful glance, but she knew his days as a rake were long gone.

He had been nothing but devoted to her, just as he had promised, for the last five years. She had not believed such happiness could exist with one’s husband, yet here they were.

The rest of the day was spent eating the sumptuous dinner that had been prepared, with much hilarity in and amongst.

When everyone was bursting at the seams, they returned to the drawing room and collapsed into the various chairs in the room.

Clarissa and her sister played the pianoforte together, as they had once done as children. Even Lord and Lady Crompton could be prevailed upon to sing, and they all began singing carols and revelling in Christmas cheer.

When Eleanor was asked to play, Clarissa happily gave up her seat and went to stand beside her sister. Their arms around one another, they watched the scene before them. Everyone was singing loudly and brashly, but it did not matter.

Clarissa laid her head on Catherine’s shoulder, and her sister hugged her tightly.

“I never would have pictured this life for us,” Catherine said wistfully. “I never believed I would see you again after I left.”

Clarissa pulled back as they looked at one another. “Are you happy?” Clarissa asked.

“I have never been happier,” Catherine replied. “I could not have been so without you. I do not ever wish to be parted from you again.”

“Nor I you,” she said earnestly, and they embraced, all thoughts of the pain from the past forgotten.

As the evening drew to a close, Clarissa and Nicholas sat before the fire. The children were abed, and their guests had gone to their rooms for the night. They watched the flames leaping in the grate, quiet and calm as the snow swirled about the windows.

“Do you know it is five years and a day since you confessed your feelings to me?” she said reflectively.

“I was just thinking the same thing,” he said fondly.

Her fingers moved automatically to the locket about her neck and brushed it gently in familiar circles. The picture inside had always been and would always be of Nicholas. She loved him beyond everything that had passed through her life and could not believe they had found one another through such adversity.

“I think I love you more now,” Nicholas murmured, and she turned to him. “I would not have believed it possible, but I do. I am still unworthy of you. I shall strive every day to keep you happy and content. I hope you know that.”

She took his hand in hers, kissing it with a wan smile.

“But I am, Nicholas. As long as I have you, I have everything I need.”

She settled into his side, listening to the snowstorm rage about them, content and warm in the arms of the man she loved.




~The End~



Martha Barwood

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