She smiled at him. “Yes,” she said. “I am tired. And I shall be able to sleep well for the first time in three weeks. The bed has felt dreadfully empty without you.”
“Mine too,” he said. “Come on, then, lass, we’ll put each other to sleep, shall we?”
“Yes,” she said. “Charlie, I love you so very much.”
“Double that for me, my treasure,” he said, kissing her on the lips.
Chapter 2
CAPTAIN AND MRS. SIMPSON HAD BEEN INVITED to the concert, ball, and supper to be given at the Salle du Grand Concert by the Duke of Wellington the following week. And they had procured an invitation for Jennifer, too. They accepted the invitations, though the captain usually avoided as many formal social engagements as he possibly could. As he told Ellen, when one had a grown-up daughter’s happiness to see to, one occasionally had to make a few sacrifices.
The ball would be Jennifer’s introduction to society, Ellen thought. She was somewhat surprised, then, to find that the week leading up to the ball soon became crammed with activity. And only some of it was of her own making. She took Jennifer with her the day after their arrival in Brussels to visit her friend Mrs. Byng and a few other wives of officers in her husband’s regiment. And she was pleased to see Jennifer making friends with Mrs. Cleary, a young ensign’s wife fresh from England, and with the two young daughters of Mrs. Slattery.
Lord Eden came to tea, as promised, and brought with him an invitation from his sister-in-law to take tea with her and Lady Madeline Raine the following afternoon.
“I shall be off-duty early tomorrow,” Lord Eden said. “I shall escort you and Miss Simpson there myself if I may, ma’am. I don’t suppose you would care to come along too, would you, Charlie?” His eyes twinkled as he asked the question. He knew his friend as well as Ellen did.