Randall kissed his red-haired wife warmly and departed, leaving Bryony to scurry to the door to perform a similar office for her own spouse Michael, Randall's brother, who had spotted Lawrence in the window and declined to enter the shop for fear of causing a scene.
Lawrence watched their easy camaraderie with a twinge of envy. Well, there was nothing stopping him with Juliet, was there? Nothing except his own stiff-necked pride.
The two women then swarmed like locusts on the shirting fabric and worsted wools, complaining all the while about how fast children grew.
Isolde patted her belly happily. "If this is twins I shall have a baker's dozen. I had triplets the first time," she explained to the confused-looking couple.
"Congratulations," they both said with some surprise and not a little envy.
"Ah, the magic of love. Nothing like it."
"No, indeed," Bryony said with a warm smile, and a long look at Juliet's stomach which she could not fail to interpret.
Juliet felt herself flush hot and cold. Did Lawrence suspect? She was not going to worry about it now, not when things were going so well, and Lawrence had promised her for tea.
"I said, my dear, are you sure you don't need anything else from here?"
"Not at all, thank you." She put her hand up to his cheek and kissed him.
"What, what is it?" he asked, seeing her odd expression.
"Nothing except a mild twinge in my leg, and a recollection of my list here in my reticule of all the things your nephews need. Perhaps Isolde and Bryony would be so kind as to proffer their advice?"
"Only too pleased," Isolde replied.
The time flew by, and soon their purchases were complete. Lawrence lifted Juliet and brought her to the carriage. It was a short trip around the Baths to the bakery. He deposited her in a chair at the tea house and told her he would be back at four. He kissed her warmly on the lips and strode off, leaving both women smiling at her.
"Looks like another of the Rakehells happily married," Isolde said with a laugh.
"Oh, no, I mean, well, yes for me but he, um--"
"You're lovely. What man wouldn't adore you?"
To her chagrin, Juliet suddenly realised that he had not given her any money. Was it just another little dig at her, or--
Suddenly Lawrence reappeared and took her hand, kissing it. "I'm sorry I forgot. Enjoy yourself, and find something nice to bring back home for the boys?" he whispered.
"Yes, darling, I shall. Thank you." She palmed the coins he pressed into her hand, and with a last kiss on her lips he left once more.
Juliet listened carefully to the two women as they chatted about their families and life in Somerset, and she had to admit she had never had such a pleasant afternoon with two such intelligent and lively women. There was no spite or vindictiveness, no awkward personal questions or interest in gossip.
She was almost sorry to see four o'clock arrive, and the men return for them, though she was more than glad to see the handsome face of her husband. She had got gingerbreadmen for the boys, and had bought him some little fruits. She offered them to him when he got into the coach.
He looked surprised. "Thank you for thinking of me."
"I wasn't sure what you liked, so I guessed marzipan."
"An excellent guess. I adore it. Though I love lemon curd and good old fashioned English scones with lots of butter and jam. And crumpets. Speaking of which-"
Her eyes widened as he knelt at her feet. Sliding her drawers down as he drew his head up underneath her dress, he began to feast upon her until she panted out his name.
"I must say, I don't know why I never did this with any other woman before. I supposed your fragrance is just so delicious, and you're so clean and fresh, not riddled with disease."
"You may never have done it, but you certainly know how. It's wonderful," she admitted, her eyes glowing. "May I?"
He shook his head. "You don't have to. A lot of women don't like it."
"Well, I won't know until I try. You always stop me."
Watching him enjoy himself so much, hearing his groan of pleasure, gave her a heady consciousness of her own power. She explored the uniquely different areas of his maleness, asking him what he liked, making sure she didn't hurt him.
"I'm not that delicate. So long as you don't punch or kick the pouch below."
She watched in awe as it become tight and smooth, and he said, "That's when you know I'm happy. Oh, yes, right there. Oh, and there."
"There?"
"Mmm."
"What about there?"
"Oh Lord-" He pulled her head away and rammed her hand on the end and squeezed in order to catch him.
When he finally finished, he mopped her with a handkerchief. "My goodness, I haven't done that since I was about ten. The ideal male fantasy. And the only thing better is--" He mimed.
"I could have--"
"Not this time. Really."
"I want to make you happy. Really."
"You do," he said sincerely. "I love your touch. Your mouth. Your lovely skin. You're so beautiful. I look at you and the whole world falls away."
"Please, you don't need to-"
He smiled as a new thought struck him. "And you will be even more lovely in one of your new gowns. I shall order a special meal and we'll have presents and games and stories before bedtime."
She had almost forgot all about the boys with the excitement of the day. And about the meal. Her face fell.
"Er, Lawrence," she said sheepishly.
"Yes?"
"I don't mean to ask for money. But the truth is the reason your homecoming has been such a poor one is I've not had any. The cook stole whatever was in the kitty, and even before that, there wasn't much. We've had no food apart from what's in the garden and what the three of us have found in the woods."
"The three of you?"
"Sam and Bill."
He frowned. "Where are the other servants?"
"How could I hire anyone with no money, and no means of transport to get to the labour exchange in Bath?"
"Damn!"
"And that's not all. I asked you for more sheets and towels and so on. That's because there's only two of everything in the whole house."
"What, did those wastrels steal the rest?"
She shook her "No, there's been nothing from the moment we arrived at the house. I suspect your fiancee must have not got around to-- Or used the money for something else. I wasn't trying to wring more concessions from you the day I made that list before you went away, Lawrence. I was asking you for the basics needed to get by."
His brows knit in consternation. "I gave the money to Nash to tend to. Are you trying to tell me you've had nothing all this time?" he demanded.
She blushed and nodded, but said quickly, "Eswara was really kind to me, had me over to tea. Offered to make me a loan, or contact Matthew to tell him in I was in dire straits. But I, well, I have more pride than that."
"And could you not have written to me?"
She shrugged. "You left me with no idea of where you were, and no money for the postage."
He made a choking sound that made her cringe and draw back.
She shook her head quickly. "But let's not argue now, please, Lawrence. Rather, could we try to remedy the situation together, if not for me, then for the sake of the boys. The plain truth is, Husband, that we have no servants, and nothing in the larder."
She heard him grind his teeth. "Not for long," he rasped.
He turned his pocket inside out and pressed all the money into her palms.
"Lawrence, what are you—"
"Driver, head back to Bath!"
"Yes, sir."
Lawrence turned to her and kissed her hard. "I'm sorry. I've been a fool."
"So long as you don't think I'm a slattern and spendthrift," she said quietly, her eyes never leaving his face.
"God, how you must hate me," he said, shaking his head with regret.
She snuggled close against him. "Only when yo
u shout. But one kiss and I'll forgive you anything."
"You can have a hundred." He bent his head.
It was more like two hundred by the time they got back to town.
Once there though he was all business, and held her upright as she hobbled doing her errands.
It was late when they got back and the boys were famished. Lawrence whipped together some eggs quickly, seeing as they were hungry and his wife exhausted.
Since it was then time for the boys to head off to bed, he took them straight up as soon as they had finished eating. Together they got them into their night shirts. No sooner was that done than they demanded a story. They looked to Juliet, but she shook her head.
"It's Lawrence's turn tonight."
"Me?"
"Of course."
"What would I tell them?"
"About India, of course."
"Like what?" he asked, genuinely puzzled.
"You were once famous for your eloquence. Tell us about the places you've lived," she suggested.
"All right." He thought for a moment, then began, "Darjeeling is in the foothills of the Himalayas, at an altitude of about six thousand feet. It stands on a long, narrow mountain ridge of the Sikkim Himalayas. The name Darjeeling originates from the Tibetan words dorje ling, which means Place of the Thunderbolt. According to legend, the hill was struck by a thunderbolt and a monk founded a monastery there."
"Are the mountains very beautiful?" Stuart asked.
"Oh my, yes. You can't imagine anything so fine, and they're covered with snow all year round. There is a road up to a place called Tiger Hill, which runs up a steep gradient through colourful forests of trees and beautiful ferns. From this hill you can get a view of almost three hundred and sixty degrees of the Himalayan panorama.
"We used to go up when we had finished the harvest, leaving in the middle of the night to make the journey to be there for the dawn. We would sit there with our breakfast and watch the night turn lighter, first tingeing with a dull red, then changing to brilliant orange and finally bright gold as the sun rose over the Kanchenjungha range.
"Kanchenjungha?" Juliet said, doing her best to imitate his pronunciation.
"The Kanchenjungha, at over twenty-five thousand feet so far as we can tell, is one of the world's highest peaks. The Range derives its name from the Tibetan word, Khang-Chen-Dzod-Nga, meaning Five Treasures in the Snow, a reference to the five snow-capped peaks of this towering mountain range. The five peaks are called South Peak, Central Peak, Main Peak, Yalung Kang and Kambachen."
"What sort of flora and fauna do they have there?" Juliet asked.
"It's like paradise. There are lively springs sparkling down the mountain walls. Monkeys, wildcats, leopards and jackals can be seen all over. There are forests of fir, pine and birch, orchids, with thousands of varieties of flowering plants and hundreds of types of ferns."
"I'd love a monkey," Andrew said, his eyes shining.
"So would a lot of other people. I used to see all sorts of poor animals being bought and sold in the Chowrasta, which means crossroads. It's an open-air market where you can buy all sorts of items. I used to deal in fabrics on the side as well, you see, hence my interest in muslins and so on," he said with a warm look at Juliet.
In truth she had wondered how he knew such a lot about women's clothing, and had burned with jealousy.
"But the Hindus don't believe in exploiting animals in any way, and that would including taking away their freedom by keeping them as pets."
She raised her brows in surprise. "What, not even eating them?"
"For the strict sects, no, not even eating them."
"You said springs?" Andrew asked.
"Yes, waterfalls even, from all the snow melting. The stunningly beautiful waterfalls originate from a small stream, the Kalijhora, and cascade down a sheer drop of about a hundred feet, with the water rushes through deep ravines to the valley below."
"What was the weather like? I mean, everyone complains that India is so hot and dry and full of disease," Stuart pointed out.
"Some parts are, but the weather in Darjeeling is really very much like here in England. The best times to see it are mid-March to May, which is the flower season, when they have the spring festival of Holi, and mid-September to November, which is the festive season. The winters could be very hard."
"Is that why you left?" his wife inquired.
He nodded. "For the most part. It was lovely there, but I wanted even more rapidly growing tea, so for that I moved to Assam."
"Can you tell us about it too, if you're not too tired?" she asked softly.
"No, I'm not tired, but you might find it dull."
"No, not at all," she said sincerely.
"Well, boys, what do you think?"
"I think I want to hear it, but I also want more gingerbread."
"Very well then, we shall all have our heart's desire. Gingerbread all around, and more stories. And if you like monkeys, just wait until I tell you about the magic monkeys of the monastery."
The boys giggled, but Lawrence kept a straight face.
"Oh, tell us now," Stuart begged.
"Gingerbread and milk first."
She rose from the bed but he shook his head. "I'll get it. You stay here with your foot up."
He returned with a tray and served everyone, handing her a hot cup of tea which smelt like heaven.
"You're very good at this," she said with a smile.
"What?"
"With the boys. Being entertaining."
He shrugged. "Not much occasion for it where I've been. Perhaps I've been saving it up for all these years."
"I can see why you used to win every debate."
"But not every argument. Not with you. And I wouldn't want to either."
"So, you were going to tell us about Assam. What does the name mean?"
"It is not clear, actually," Lawrence said. "It may be derived from the Sanskrit term 'Asom' that means unparalleled, or one with no equal. The term 'Asom' in Sanskrit also means undulating or uneven, which is apt because the countryside is very rugged. In addition, the Ahoms ruled Assam for six hundred years till the early part of this century. The words 'Ahom' and 'Asom' are pronounced similarly, and hence the Ahoms may also have given Assam its names.
Assam is generally composed of plains and river valleys. It can be divided into three main geographical regions: the Brahmaputra Valley in the north; the Barak Plain in the south; and the Mikir and Cachar Hills that divide the two regions.
"The northern part of Assam is wholly occupied by the elongated valley of the mighty river Brahmaputra. Most of the people live in this valley. The Brahmaputra valley is bounded by the foothills of the Himalayas to the north and another lower range of hills and mountains to the south. In the center part of Assam, to the south of the hills is the Barak Valley. But the Brahmaputra Valley is the dominant physical feature of Assam, and that's where I lived. The Brahmaputra enters Assam near Sadiya at the extreme northeast corner of the province and runs westward for nearly over four hundred miles before turning south. The river valley, rarely more than fifty miles wide, is studded with numerous low, isolated hills and ridges that abruptly rise from the plain. The valley is surrounded on all sides by mountains, except for the west. It's intersected by many streams and rivulets that flow from the neighboring hills to empty into the Brahmaputra. It's glorious, very lush and fertile, and as I said, we discovered tea naturally occurring there."
"It sounds so beautiful, Lawrence."
"He nodded. "It is."
"It's a wonder not everyone goes there to grow tea."
"Well, there are a few problems. Earthquakes are a common phenomenon in Assam. The average temperature is moderate, about eighty degrees in the hottest month of August, and sixty degrees in the coldest, January. In this season, the climate of the valley is marked by heavy fogs and a little rain. Assam does not have the normal Indian hot, dry season either. Some rain occurs from March onwards, but the real force of the m
onsoon winds is faced from June onward. Rainfall in Assam ranks among the highest in the world, apparently. Largely occurring during the months from June to September, it often caused destructive summer floods throughout the area." He shook his head. "Not something I will ever forget."
"Tell us about the animals," Andrew said excitedly.
Lawrence gave him a warm smile. "Assam too has some incredible forests, full of wonderful things like the great Indian one-horned rhinoceros, elephants, tigers, deer and wild pigs. The most important forest products are timber and bamboo, firewood and lac, which is the source of shellac. There are about seventy species of timber. In Assam I also became involved in timber and the furniture industry, so-called Japanned tables, that sort of thing, from the shellac."
The Rakehell Regency Romance Series Boxed Set 5 Page 23