By this point, Liz was no longer whispering and Will had given up on sleeping and had rolled onto his back to stare listlessly at the ceiling.
“I’m sure the housekeeper has taken care of that for you.”
“You think? I still haven’t gotten used to these servants everywhere.”
Caroline laughed. “What are you wearing?”
“I wasn’t sure what was best, so I brought three options and hoped you could give me your opinion before the dinner. And for Julia’s party tomorrow night.”
“I’d love to! And that actually works out because I was hoping I could talk you into coming over a little early and helping me with the table settings. Mrs. Lange has taken care of most of it, but I know you have a good eye for that sort of thing and I’d love your opinion.”
“I’d love to help. How far are you from Will’s house?”
“Really, Lizzy, you must start thinking of it as your house, too,” Caroline admonished happily while Liz grumbled about still being a newlywed. “Not far at all. We’re only a few streets over. William has the address.”
“Perfect. Let me shower and get ready and my three dresses and I will be there.”
Caroline rang off and Liz scrambled out of bed and rushed toward a door on the opposite wall. She was disappointed to find it was a closet. The next door was a linen closet and the one after that led to a dark hallway that she did not feel prepared to explore.
“Are you going to try all the doors?” William asked in an amused tone as he leaned back against the padded headboard.
She put her hands on her hips. “You could just tell me where the bathroom is. How many doors are in here, anyway?”
“I believe there are four closets, the servants’ entrance,” he gestured to the door with the dark hallway, “and the bathroom. Plus the entrance, that’s seven.”
“Geez! You guys don’t bother with subtlety, do you?”
He chuckled and pointed to his left. “The bathroom’s through there.”
“Do you want to come with me to Caroline’s early or would you rather wait and meet me there later?” Liz called from the bathroom as she turned on the tap.
“How early are you going?”
“As soon as I can get ready. Maybe forty-five minutes?”
“I’ll go ahead with you.”
They arrived at the Covingtons’ with arms full of gifts and garment bags. Caroline greeted them warmly with kisses for Will and a tight hug for Liz.
“I’m so glad you’re here! Come up this way. Let’s get your dress sorted then we can look at the dining room.” Caroline dragged Liz upstairs
“Don’t worry about me, I’ll be fine on my own. I’ll just put the gifts under the tree,” Will called sarcastically.
“That’s a great plan!” Caroline called back over her shoulder and continued up the stairs.
Liz shot him a smile and he shook his head with good humor.
Caroline looked at the dresses as they hung side by side in a guest room. “I think the red one is beautiful, but might be better for the party.”
“Does Julia throw this party every year or is she just doing it because she’s not hosting the family dinner?”
“I wouldn’t put it past her to do something like that, but no, she hosts a Christmas night party every year. It’s the perfect opportunity to show off your sparkly gifts. It’s always terribly crowded and everyone is pissed by eleven o’clock.”
“Okay, so it sounds red dress appropriate. So which for tonight? Green or champagne?”
In the end, it was decided that the green was most appropriate for the weather, the holiday, and the company. As they were walking down the hall, they heard a tiny cry coming from behind one of the doors.
“Oh, Thomas is up. You can meet the baby now!”
Caroline ushered Liz into a softly painted nursery.
“Wow!” Liz breathed. “Caroline, it’s absolutely beautiful in here!”
“Thank you. I’ve always wanted a blue and white nursery, so I did it this way before he was born. I can just imagine the fuss Julia would have thrown if he’d turned out to be a girl and I’d dared to put her granddaughter in a blue room!”
Liz looked at the baby in Caroline’s arms and said, “Now that is a beautiful baby.”
“Thank you. Meet Thomas Joseph Theodore Covington. Thomas, this is your Aunt Lizzy.”
Liz cooed and made baby talk at the adorable bundle in a white fuzzy sleeper.
“These Covingtons breed true. Nearly all of them have the same blue eyes,” Liz commented.
“Oh, they’re famous for it! And quite proud of it, too,” Caroline said as she settled into a rocker by the fireplace and began nursing Thomas.
“Really?”
“Oh, yes. There’s an old family story that some monarch or other, I can’t remember which one, was horribly jealous of the beautiful Covington eyes. Apparently he had awful watery grey eyes or something. Anyway, he wanted them so badly that he took a Covington bride, who herself had the perfect blue eyes, just so his children could have them.”
“Did it work?”
“Sadly, no. His wife delivered a boy first, with the same ugly eyes as his father. She died in childbirth with her second, a daughter who did have the eyes, but of course she married out of the family, to a Covington cousin actually, and the eyes left with her. The prince was terribly put out.”
Liz couldn’t help but laugh. “That’s awful! Is that true?”
“I have no idea, but the whole family knows the story and passes it down one generation to the next, so there must be some truth to it.”
“I suppose. They’re definitely strong genes. Even Will, who looks completely like a Harper in every other way, has those blue eyes.”
“True. I wonder what your children will look like?”
Liz looked away and asked about the artwork on the wall, and once Thomas was finished with his meal, they went downstairs. Caroline showed Liz the children’s table in the kitchen that was decorated with a moving train as a centerpiece and the place holders that she had made herself in the dining room instead of using the heirloom ones. She knew Julia wouldn’t like it, but she wanted to put her own stamp on her first Christmas dinner.
Soon the doorbell was ringing and blue eyed cousins of all ages appeared with arms full of gift bags. Liz was surprised by the number of children and realized with dismay that she only recognized about half the guests. Thankfully, Caroline handled introductions this time and the children created a boisterous enough environment that she wasn’t required to carry on much conversation with new acquaintances.
Julia looked impeccable, as always, though horrified by the tiny running Covingtons bounding through the townhouse, and Alistair was dashing in a navy suit and cheery red tie. Cece was as bubbly as Liz remembered and her husband as quiet as he had been in New York. Jacqueline was elegant as usual and her husband as indolent as Liz had previously found him.
Liz finally met Claudia, Harper’s elderly aunt. She was half deaf and wore at least five pounds of pearls. She loudly asked Liz a number of impertinent questions, many regarding her suspected fertility and her family and how many children they each had. She was happy to hear Liz’s mother had delivered four children without complications. She was less happy upon discovering all those children were girls. At one point Liz nearly told her that the choice of sex was up to the man’s sperm, not the woman’s egg, and that she should be examining her own family tree since William was the deciding factor in this particular relationship. Caroline squeezed her arm just in time.
Surrounded by the blonde-haired blue-eyed Covington clan, Liz couldn’t help but notice how different Will looked in comparison. Even Jacqueline looked more Covington than Harper.
Caroline had placed them across the table from each other and Liz looked at Will, really looked at him while he was talking to his cousin Calvin on his left. He had a tiny scar on his chin, one that was only visible in certain lights. She’d seen it before, but somehow it h
ad always slipped her mind to ask about it. His brows were a little shaggy, though not unkempt, but fuller than his uncle’s, whom she suspected had his waxed. They were entirely too perfect not to be. Even Calvin looked more groomed than Will.
Her husband wasn’t sloppy by any means, but compared to his perfect family, he seemed more real somehow, like a live person in a wax museum. How had she not noticed that before?
She watched him take a bite of his food and laugh at something Calvin said. They were a study in contrasts. Calvin was handsome, but in a completely different way than Will. He was blond with straight hair, while Will’s dark locks often curled at the ends and refused to behave. Calvin had light skin with the faintest tinge of pink at his cheeks and looked altogether English, while Will, though pale in the winter, could tan just thinking about the sun and there was nothing boyish about his appearance or his charm. Calvin was perfectly pressed in a dark, slim fitting suit that flattered his lean frame and his shave was so close she was sure it would feel like a baby’s skin.
Will’s suit was a tiny bit looser—he hated it when his clothes restricted his movement and he wasn’t vain enough to sacrifice comfort for fashion. Lately, he’d been letting his beard grow in a bit, partly because it was less hassle but mostly because Liz told him he either needed to grow it out till it was soft or shave it before he came near her because the whisker burn positively ruined kissing. So he didn’t shave the day they were leaving and hadn’t since; it was nearly two days’ growth and he was looking very sexy, Liz thought, but Julia was suitably horrified. Caroline had complimented him on his American stubble and teased him about attempting to impersonate his Texas cousins.
Dinner was lovely and everyone complimented a surprised but relieved Caroline on the menu and the table decorations and the background music. Many of the parents thanked her for including the children, and a surprised Liz wondered how odd and quiet and restrained the holidays would be without them.
Julia looked a bit pinched, but she congratulated her daughter-in-law on a successful evening. After dinner, they all settled into the sitting room where there was hot cider and coffee and the children were handed their gifts. Liz smiled at two little girls who were adorable in their matching Christmas dresses and patent leather shoes, their hair in ringlets and tied back with velvet bows.
“Almost makes you want one, doesn’t it?” Caroline said quietly to Liz as she was looking at the girls piling up their gifts.
“What? No! Not at all! I just think they’re really cute. My cousin Mary has a daughter about that age. I wonder what they’re all doing right now.”
Caroline accepted the change of subject and added, “I love having a little boy, but little girls are so fun to dress and primp. I hope the next one is a girl.”
“Are you?” Liz pointed to Caroline’s stomach, a question in her eyes.
“No, at least I don’t think so, but we’re planning to try again when Thomas is a year old. We want to have more and I’m not getting any younger, so we don’t want to wait too long in between.”
“Maybe you’ll get lucky and have twins,” Liz teased.
“Maybe. Eleanor did.” When Liz looked at her with a confused expression, she pointed across the room to yet another blond woman with sky blue eyes. “She’s a cousin, second cousin I think, I can never keep them straight. She’s the mother of Henry and Charlotte over there.” She pointed to a boy and girl of identical heights and coloring in coordinated outfits.
“I suppose it would be lucky in a way, but also really hard,” Liz commented.
“Well, you know what Julia would say,” replied Caroline.
Liz looked at her with raised brows.
“‘That’s what the help is for, dear.’”
Liz laughed out loud at her perfect imitation and they turned their attention to the children who were opening their gifts.
When Thomas started fussing, just as the children finished their gift opening, Julia said, “Don’t you think it’s time to call the nanny to take the baby, Caroline?”
“I gave her the holiday off to be with her family,” Caroline said matter-of-factly.
Julia’s mouth dropped open and Liz nearly choked on her cider.
“The day off? Whatever for?”
“It’s Christmas Eve. She went home to Devon to spend the holiday with her family. She’ll be back after Boxing Day,” Caroline responded. She stood and excused herself, carrying a fussing Thomas upstairs.
“I can’t believe it,” Julia said quietly to Alistair. “Don’t these young people know that’s what the help is for?”
This time Liz did choke on her cider and Will had to clap her back for a full minute before she calmed.
“Have you opened your presents yet, William?” Teddy asked.
“No, I haven’t even dug them out yet.”
“I think the children have organized them over there.” He pointed to where the children were placing gifts into small piles, nine-year-old Charlotte directing the show. “She’d make a great CEO, wouldn’t she?”
“Really, Teddy,” said Julia, “the things you say. As if Charlotte will need to run the business.” By “business” she meant the large plastics firm Charlotte’s branch of the family owned and ran.
“Some women do enjoy business, Mother. It isn’t completely unheard of. Caroline ran an entire department before Thomas was born.”
Julia’s nose went up into the air, her chin firm and jaw clenched. “Caroline has no brothers,” she said, as if that somehow both explained and excused Caroline’s participation in the business world.
Teddy openly rolled his eyes at his mother and turned to continue talking to William. When Caroline came back downstairs without Thomas and holding a baby monitor, the adults set to opening their presents.
“I hope everyone likes their gifts,” Liz said nervously. Will just squeezed her hand.
As it turned out, Calvin loved the little black book she’d bought him and Jacqueline looked a little shocked when she opened the architecture book Liz gave her. She flipped through it for a minute, said thank you quietly, and handed Liz her present. It was a guide to remodeling your home, complete with diagrams and color photos. Liz smiled and thanked her, then kissed her cheek lightly.
They were waiting until Christmas morning to exchange gifts with Teddy and Caroline, but they opened all the others. Julia gave Liz a book on how to be a proper hostess, which Liz thanked her kindly for while Julia nodded condescendingly. They gave Will a pair of platinum diamond studded cuff links and Calvin just handed him a wrapped rectangle that he advised him to open in private.
The random cousins, as Liz thought of them, all swapped out similar gifts: gloves, wallets, and cuff links for the men, earrings, necklaces, and brooches for the ladies, spotted with the odd book or scarf. Liz left with three pairs of differently shaped diamond ear studs, two books, and two silk scarves. Will got two pairs of cuff links, a tie pin, two scarves, and a cashmere sweater from his sister, plus Calvin’s mystery gift.
“Well, that was fun,” Liz said as they got ready for bed that night.
“Really?” Will asked incredulously.
“Well, maybe not fun exactly, but not too painful.” He looked doubtful. “I think tomorrow with just Caroline and Teddy will be more enjoyable.”
“Probably,” he replied as he removed his tie and kicked off his shoes.
“Hey, what did Calvin give you?”
Will reached for the gift and opened it, pulling a book out of the gold wrapping. He began laughing loudly and Liz held out her hand for the book. It was a copy of How to Keep Your Woman Happy: Sex Tips for the Committed Man. Calvin had written a note on the first page that read, “Liz is great. Don’t screw it up. — Calvin”
Liz laughed as she flipped through the book. “Wow. This might actually have some good ideas.”
“Like what?” Will asked as he looked over her shoulder.
“It says here that you should give your woman a massage at least once a month.
‘It makes her feel loved and appreciated and will keep her from fantasizing about other men.’” Liz tilted her head to one side. “Hmm, because she’s so busy thinking about your great massage?”
“Let me see that.” Will snatched the book from her hand and flopped down onto the bed, crossing one foot over the other as he leaned against the headboard.
“Enjoy your reading. I’m going to brush my teeth,” she said as she left the room.
“Don’t be too long. We still have time for me to keep you happy tonight!”
Liz’s laughter was barely muffled by the bathroom door.
**
The Harpers arrived at Caroline and Teddy’s townhouse just after nine Christmas morning. Caroline had insisted on casual, so she was dressed in a pair of silky trousers and a loose, soft red sweater. Liz was in a cozy pair of wool trousers and a pale pink cashmere sweater that Will had told her once made her look like a flower in a rose garden. He smiled when he saw her in it and kissed her gently, which for some reason made her blush terribly, which only made Will smile bigger.
Caroline led everyone to the dining room where the sideboard was covered with delicious breakfast treats. They helped themselves and sat down to eat.
“What’s Christmas like in America, Liz? You’re from the southern part of the country, aren’t you?” Teddy asked.
“Well, it’s different all across the country, it is a really big place and we don’t all do it the same way, but in my family at least, we all get up in our pajamas and open presents and stockings first, then we have a big breakfast together; sometimes family nearby will join us.”
“What sorts of foods do you eat? In films it always looks so different from English breakfast,” Caroline added.
“It depends on the year. Sometimes we prepare a casserole the day before then just pop it in the oven that morning, sometimes we make chocolate chip pancakes and eggs and bacon.”
“So is your housekeeper not always with you, then?” Teddy asked. He jumped as Caroline kicked him under the table. “What?” he whispered to his wife.
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