Lucy nodded as she pulled out a handkerchief to wipe her eyes.
‘Better?’ Phoebe asked, her expression filling with relief. ‘Is that how the Chinese tell someone good news? With a string of curses?’
‘No,’ laughed Grace. ‘It’s how Lucy does it because she is an odd one even among us half people.’
‘Don’t call yourselves that!’ Phoebe cried. ‘You are a full person no matter who your parents are. Mixed race, orphan or cit—we are gloriously wonderful women, and I shan’t hear a word against any of us.’
And that was why Lucy adored this feisty English beauty. She never seemed to see the lines that people drew between each other. As the daughter of a wealthy banker, she could have grown up as spoiled as Lady Wilma. Instead, she judged people on how kind they were. From the lowest beggar to the King and Queen themselves, she measured them on that stick alone. And she held herself to the highest standard of all.
‘Here. Have some tea,’ Phoebe said, offering Lucy her own cup. ‘I haven’t touched it, and it always settles me.’
Lucy looked at the tea and winced. Phoebe liked her drink sweet, but that much sugar made Lucy’s teeth ache. Thankfully, Grace was already pouring her a new cup.
‘Thank you,’ Lucy murmured to her sister as she took her seat.
‘Now I can chatter, if you like,’ Phoebe offered. ‘Or we can wait in polite silence. Whatever you prefer.’
Lucy snorted. ‘As if you could wait in silence.’
‘I can!’ the girl protested, and she crossed her arms and pressed her lips together.
Grace and Lucy waited, sharing matching looks of amusement. Phoebe was generally irrepressible.
Sure enough, the silence lasted less than two minutes.
‘Very well, then. We’ll talk about something else.’ Phoebe pointedly turned to face Grace. ‘Tell me more about the baby. Have you felt it kick yet?’
‘Not yet,’ Grace answered as she dropped a hand to her barely protruding belly. ‘Soon, I hope.’
Silence.
‘Has the Earl visited again?’
Lucy tensed. ‘Not since the last time.’ Cedric’s father had demanded to see his son on the second night. They had let him in, of course. No one wanted to deny a father access to his ill son. But after one look at Cedric, he turned away, clearly disgusted. And then, to everyone’s shock, he demanded the money from the cargo.
She’d denied him, of course. She knew the truth of the man, but he would not be denied. Indeed, he threatened violence until she told him who was the captain of Cedric’s ship. As if Cedric had been the owner.
The information was common knowledge, so she told him if only to get rid of him. And once gone, she’d barred the door to him until Declan returned. No servant liked denying an earl, even if the man was an unruly, violent blackguard.
‘Declan should be home soon,’ Grace said. ‘He’ll take care of it.’
Lucy hoped so. She did not relish another confrontation with the man.
And that was it. That was the extent of the conversation outside of Cedric. And so, after another long minute’s silence, both women turned to her.
‘Come on,’ Grace said with a gentle smile. ‘Tell us what happened.’
‘His fever broke,’ she answered with as little inflection as possible. ‘Last night. And this morning, he woke up and was completely lucid. I caught him sitting up on the edge of the bed.’
‘What?’ Grace said, abruptly leaning forwards. ‘I thought we had a footman in there night and day.’
Lucy shrugged. ‘I sent him to bed. No use in both of us losing sleep. But then I was hungry sometime after four. I ate some bread, stopped at my bedroom to get a new book, and…’ She shrugged.
‘Fell asleep?’ Phoebe asked. ‘It’s no wonder. You’ve been at his side night and day.’
‘No,’ she said, shaking her head. ‘Well, yes, but not for long. Oh, I don’t know. I’d already been in to see him, but then…’ She was babbling. ‘It doesn’t matter.’
‘Of course it matters!’ Phoebe exclaimed. ‘You’re running yourself ragged for him. Everyone’s talking about it.’ At Lucy’s pointed look, Phoebe flushed pink. ‘Everybody but me, of course. There are bets on whether you’ll marry him before he dies just for the title. I heard it from my brother.’