Part I

Posted on 2010-10-29

"Are you certain Mr Darcy?" Mrs Northmore, their London housekeeper, asked doubtfully. "Perhaps I should…I don't mind staying behind."

It was her day off and she had plans with her sister and niece, but with Dr Bennet away at a conference, and Mr Mallon – the houseman – off tending to family business, she really wasn't sure about leaving him on his own with the children.

"Of course, Mrs Northmore," William replied in his confident, successful-businessman voice. "Rosalind, Nicholas and I will be fine."

With some reluctance and a lot of last minute reminders, Mrs Northmore was convinced to be off. She wouldn't be back until late that night.

No sooner had the door closed, leaving William on his own with his two children, then the questions started.

"Daddy," said three-year-old Rosie. William looked down at his daughter's precious face which was pink-cheeked and framed by soft brown curls. She looked very much like her mother and, if Rupert Bennet was to be believed, took after Elizabeth in many other ways as well. It always happened that when he looked at her a rush of deep, protective love surged through him, not only for his daughter, but also her brother – not-quite-two-year-old Nicholas – and his most beloved Elizabeth.

"Yes my sweetheart?" William asked as he bent down to even out their heights. Nicky immediately tried to climb on his back.

Very seriously – she was always serious when asking important questions – Rosie said, "Why do babies only come from mamas? If babies need to have a mama and a daddy, why don't some babies grow in daddy-tummies? It would be more fair."

"Uh…" William said not at all sure how he could possibly answer such a question.

"Because," Rosalind Darcy went on, "it would be more sense if girl babies came from mamas and boy babies came from daddies. But I know that's not what happens. Baby Nicky came from Mama's tummy just like I did."

"Not a baby! Toddler!" Nicholas let it be known, loudly and too close to William's left ear.

"Well Daddy?" Rosie demanded.

As William detached his son from his back, thus avoiding any more ear damage at least for the moment, he stood and indicated Rosalind should follow him – with Nicholas in his arms and resting his little head on his father's broad shoulder – into the reception room of the large Darcy townhouse.

"Well, um," he said, "it's just not the way it works, sweetheart. Babies can only grow in a woman's tummy."

"But why? And how does it get there?" Referring to her Gardiner cousin, she went on. "Susie said that when a man and woman get married they decide if a baby should grow or not. But Deena" (a Derbyshire neighbour's daughter) "isn't married and she has a baby in her tummy."

"Nicky want a biscuit! And 'nana!" slurred an insistent and perhaps slight sleepy little boy voice.

William looked at his son a little bit confused. He wanted Nana? But she was in Derbyshire; they'd just visited her the previous weekend and would go again once Elizabeth was back.

"He means a banana," Rosalind helpfully supplied.

William nodded. "But we just had breakfast, Nicky," he said gently, caressing his son's soft curls. "Let's wait a little while."

"Hungry," Nicholas said firmly.

"Mama says Nicky eats like you; that made Nana laugh. Mama also said Nicky's eat so much now because he's gonna' have a growth spout."

"Spurt," William corrected automatically.

"What's a spurt?" Rosie asked while Nicholas, clearly liking the sound of the word, detached himself from William, stood up and tried to jump (he was sometimes able to get an inch or so off the ground) saying 'spurt, spurt, spurt' repeatedly.

"Spurt means a big, sudden increase."

Rosalind nodded solemnly – a habit she had picked up from her father, Elizabeth teased – as she filed away that bit of information.

"Nicky hungry! Daddy! Nicky hungry!" the little boy said, having had enough of jumping and now pulling on William's arm.

"Okay," he said, once again picking his son up; he did enjoy the sensation of his little children nestled close by him. He greatly relished the weekend mornings when both Rosalind and Nicholas would crawl into bed with him and Elizabeth and the four of them would have a good family snuggle. Sometimes he or Elizabeth would go down to get some food and they would have a breakfast picnic in bed. It curtailed other morning activities he and Elizabeth enjoyed, but the pleasure of that time with their children outweighed any frustrations. Besides, there were always other opportunities.

Once they were settled at the kitchen table and had their snacks – William saw no reason not to join Nicholas in having a little something and Rosalind was too bright to turn down one of Mrs Northmore's biscuits (she had not inherited her mother's anti-sweet tooth) – the little girl resumed her questioning.

"So Daddy? Why?"

If William had hoped she had forgotten her line of thinking, he wouldn't admit it. He cherished her curiosity and both he and Elizabeth agreed it was to be nourished, not suppressed. It didn't make it any easier to answer such questions, however.

"Well sweetheart, that's a rather…complicated question."

"Mama would know how to answer," she stated very seriously. "Mama always knows what to say."

William made a face an adult would have recognised as bemused chagrin. "Yes," he replied carefully, "your mother's very good at explaining things. It's part of her job."

"And Mama talks more," she went on, watching as her beloved Daddy made sure her little brother didn't make too much of a mess or choke in his haste to get food into his growing body. "Mama says that's just the way people are. It's more easy for them to talk a lot and 'xplain things, but some can't. Then we have to tell how they feel and stuff by how they do things."

William looked at her quizzically; she never failed to amaze and amuse him. He expected there was more of an explanation coming and he was right.

"Like Daddy," she stated succinctly.

"Nicky want 'nother biscuit."

"One more," William said quietly, breaking one up into small pieces for his son. He then turned back to his daughter who was sitting next to him at the head of the table.

"I did 'xperimet" ('experiment', William translated). "Mama helped. I counted all the times for a whole week that you told me 'I love you' and then all the times Mama say it and she says it all the time. But Daddy don't and that's just because that you don't. But you do love me just like Mama do."

William leaned over to caress and kiss the top of her head which was bent over the table as she neatly finished her snack; she tried very, very hard to be a big girl and not make messes like Nicky did. He was still little, she had decided, and had to make messes, but she didn't have to and that made it easier on Mama, Daddy, and everyone else who took care of her.

"Yes I do, my little one," he whispered. He thought he would never be able to explain to her or Nicholas or even Elizabeth just how much he loved them and needed them and just how incredibly happy they made him.

Sitting back up again, he let Nicholas – now satisfied with the feeling in his belly, crawl onto his lap.

"When do you start school, young lady?" he asked pretending to be very serious.

Rosalind sighed; he teased her about this a lot. "Daddy! I'm only three. Besides you know Mama said that she's gonna' figure it out. Ask her."

William smiled and nodded. He and Elizabeth were indeed trying to sort out the best path to take for their daughter's education; it seemed clear that she was as precocious as Elizabeth had been. At times William could almost – almost – understand how Fanny Bennet, as ignorant and limited in imagination as she was, had been overwhelmed by a young Elizabeth's needs. He would never forgive her for how she had coped with it however.

Safely snuggled in his father's strong arms, Nicholas started to sing softly to himself as he began to drift off into a nap. William recognised it as a mumbled version of the alphabet song.

"Shall we see if Uncle Charles wants to come over for the afternoon?" William asked Rosalind quietly. It had been a tentative plan for days; Charles was always happy to spend time with his niece and nephew and they with him.

Rosalind nodded.

"Good," William said, moving to stand up. "Let's put Nicky down and then I'll ring him. We can tidy up while we wait."

Rosalind nodded again and stood up, following William out of the kitchen and towards the stairs.

"Daddy," she said with a slight reprimand in her voice, "you didn't answer my question still."

"You're right, sweetheart," William said softly as he walked up the stairs, his young son cradled securely in his strong arms. "Let's get Nicky into his cot and then we can talk about it."

Rosalind followed her father as he walked into Nicholas' brightly decorated room and gently placed him in his cot. William looked down at his son for a moment, marvelling at his beauty and savouring the feelings of love and happiness that flowed through him. With one last caress of the little boy's soft cheek, William turned away from the cot, picked up the monitor so that he would know when Nicholas began to wake, and gestured for Rosalind (predictably looking through some of her brother's books) to follow him out of the room.

"When does Nicky getting a big-boy bed? He really wants one and he is too long for a baby bed. He doesn't think he's a baby any more even though he is."

"Soon," William said succinctly. It was on the list of things to do. Elizabeth had been busy preparing for her conference and he was swamped at work with some recent staff changes; there hadn't been time or energy to squeeze in shopping for new furniture on top of it. The priority for free time had to be, and always was, spending time together as a family. Nicholas had grown so much in the last few months; it made William feel a little sad to realise how quickly his babies were changing. It almost – almost - made him wish they would have another.

Thinking about having babies reminded him forcefully of Rosalind's earlier question. He had no expectation that she would forget or be happy with a vague reply. As they walked back towards the stairs, William bought himself a little more time. "Let me ring Uncle Charles," he said. "And then we can go into the kitchen and tidy up."

"Okay, Daddy," Rosalind said slipping her hand into William's for the walk downstairs. William had to resist the urge to scoop her up into his arms, hold her tightly and carry her down. She was too independent to want such assistance (fortunately Nicholas didn't object yet) except when she was very tired. Even then she would often struggle to walk by herself.

Having ascertained Charles would be over in about an hour, the father and daughter went into the kitchen as planned. Charles had been waiting for William to ring; he had one or two business matters to finish up before he could leave, but he would be at the Bennet-Darcy home as quickly as possible. Of all the ways he enjoyed spending his days, time with Rosalind, Nicholas (and their parents) was among his favourite.

"So Daddy?" Rosalind demanded as soon as they were in the kitchen.

"Well, Rosie sweetheart, babies have to grow in a woman's belly."

"But why? It's not equal!"

"No, you're right," William said calmly although he felt like smiling and perhaps chuckling. Little Rosalind had a strong sense of fairness and a great deal of empathy, both of which her parents tried to foster. It did result in some interesting statements at times about things being equal or fair.

"But," William went on, "fair or not, only women's bodies are made to grow babies."

"Rosie don't understand," she said furrowing her brow.

"You know that girls and boys - and men and women - have different bodies? Lots of things are the same, but some things are different."

Rosalind nodded her head vigorously. She was looking at him very intently now, with what Elizabeth called the Darcy-stare.

"Well, those differences are what allow women to grow babies in their tummies and to give them milk afterwards. You remember when Nicky was still nursing."

"Uh huh. Sometimes when he is tired, he still likes to put his head on Mama like he's gonna' have Mama-milk."

For his own very selfish reasons, William was glad Elizabeth had stopped breastfeeding Nicholas.

"Yes, well," he said, "that is why babies only grow in mamas."

He looked over from the countertop he was washing and saw that his daughter was still giving him the stare. He sighed, resigned to having to further the conversation. Just how much information was enough for a three year old, even a precocious one?

"There is a place in women – it's called a uterus – where babies can grow safely until they are ready to be born. Men don't have that, so they have nowhere to grow a baby."

"Oh," the little girl said. She sat with a serious look on her face and considered her father's words carefully, trying to fit all of the pieces together neatly. "Then how come daddies don't give babies milk instead? Then mummies make the babies and daddies do that and then everybody do something."

William sat down across from his daughter, placing an unbreakable glass in front of her. She took a sip of the water.

"Well, sweetheart," William said patiently, "all of the things about a woman's body that let her grow a baby, also let her make milk to feed the baby once it is born. That's the way our bodies have evolved - have changed - over a very, very long time. It's the same for most animals; the ones that grow babies in tummies like cat and dogs."

"And horses," she added with confidence. "Those are called malmals or something."

"Mammals, that's right. Clever girl," he said reaching across to give her head a quick caress.

"But how do you tell a baby to grow?" Rosalind said, moving on to her second question. Her daddy had given her enough to think about regarding the first; she might have other questions later on. She knew she only had so much time before her brother woke up and demanded attention. If she wanted more information, she'd have to get it now so she moved on to her second issues.

"That's a little more complicated, Rosie," William said.

"Susie said a man and woman get married and say they want to, but that can't be right," she said insistently.

William sighed inwardly. He knew this was one of those situations Elizabeth said required age-appropriate answers, but how was he supposed to know what was 'age-appropriate'?

"No, that isn't quite how it works. But a man and a woman can - should - decide if they want to have a baby and then if they do want to, they can try to."

Rosalind fixed him with the Darcy stare.

"It's rather difficult to explain and..."

"Is it what Mama says is grown up and I can't know yet?"

"Yes," William said grateful for Elizabeth's foresight in creating such an excuse and getting the little girl to accept it.

"Rosie don't like those things," she said with a little pout.

"I know sweetheart," William said soothingly. He held her little hand in his and gently caressed it. "Maybe...maybe I'll find a good way of explaining it, but I need to think about it."

Still pouting, Rosalind nodded. "But people decide they say it's time? And then they put a baby in?"

"Yes," William said with some hesitation. It was an acceptable response, if not a completely accurate one.

"And Daddy and Mama got married and then you decided to put Rosie in Mama's tummy so I could grow?" she asked looking at him. She was tenacious when she wanted to understand something.

"Yes," William replied, really hoping the conversation would be over soon.

"And then you put Nicky in there too?"

"Yes."

"Because you make a decide it was time?"

"Yes," William replied and swallowed. It hadn't quite happened that way, but he didn't think Rosalind would understand what he meant by 'happy accident'.

She sat and looked at him for a moment and then nodded her head and said, "Okay Daddy. Maybe Rosie ask Mama. She's good at 'xplaining things."

Trying not to feel like his efforts had been completely dismissed William suggested they think about what they could do with Uncle Charles that afternoon.

Within a few minutes, they heard sounds of Nicholas stirring and went up to get him. William wanted to be there before his son was fully awake to prevent...

"Mama!! Want Mama!!" came the scream of an insistent, alarmed little boy. Nicholas was having a bit of an issue with waking up alone; it didn't always happen, but occasionally he woke up, realised he was alone and became afraid. William dashed down the corridor and into his son's room. He quickly scooped Nicholas up, folded him in his strong arms while whispering soothing, reassuring words.

"It's okay Nicky, Daddy's here," he said repeatedly as the little boy continued to cry.

Despite his strangle hold on his father he kept loudly proclaiming, "Want Mama! Nicky want Mama!"

I'm going to be partially deaf by the time I'm forty if this keeps up, William couldn't help but think as he continued to try to comfort his son. He walked around, bouncing Nicholas gently and whispering to him. He noticed Rosalind standing in the doorway watching him.

"He wants Mama," she said very helpfully.

William resisted the urge to say something sarcastic in reply; with one child sobbing in his ear, he really didn't need the other stating the obvious.

"Yes, sweetheart, Daddy realises that. Mama won't be back until tomorrow, though. We will have to do without her today."

"Nooo!" wailed Nicholas. "Want Mama!"

William continued bouncing and making soothing noises while glancing at his watch. They couldn't call Elizabeth, even if it would help; she was going to be tied up all day and it was just for one day. She had left after the children's bedtimes the evening before and would return very late tonight, skipping the second day of the conference. She had never been away from her babies before and she and William had thought this would be a gentle introduction to the idea of her being away. William had, unfortunately, had to make a couple of brief business-trips without them.

After about ten minutes William managed to calm Nicholas down sufficiently that he stopped crying and was content to rest peacefully in his father's arms with his little head resting on William's shoulder. William let out a deep, relieved sigh. All was calm for the moment and Charles would be over soon; together they could keep the children happy and occupied for the afternoon.

"Daddy," Rosalind said. "Me and Nicky wanna' kitten."

Nicky sat up a little in his father's arms and stuck two chubby little fingers just inches away from William's eyes. "Two. One for Wosie one for Nicky."

William stared and him and then at Rosalind. A kitten? Two kittens?

"One girl and one boy," Rosalind clarified looking at him very seriously. "Then everything stay equal: one Mama and one Daddy, one girl and one boy and one girl kitten and one boy kitten."

"A kitten?" he said.

"Two," said Nicholas. "One, two, free, four…" he continued counting up to ten and stumbling between seven and eight, and then started over again as William spoke to his daughter.

"Have you talked to Mama about this?"

Rosalind nodded vigorously.

"And what did she say?"

"Ask Daddy! So, Daddy, we wanna' kitten. 'Kay?"

"Two!" Nicholas said. "And Mama. Nicky want Mama!"

William was very thankfully that the doorbell rang at that moment.

"Charles, come in," William said as he answered the door. He stepped back to allow his oldest and dearest friend space to enter.

"Uncle Charles, Uncle Charles," yelled Rosalind as she jumped up and down in front of him. Nicholas remained clenched to his father, his arms wrapped tightly around William's neck and his face buried in William's neck.

"How's my favourite girl?" Charles said bending down to be at eye level with Rosalind. She gave him a hug and in return (after a tight squeeze), Charles gave her a tickle. He grinned broadly, his delight at seeing her obvious.

"Uncle Charles, you never guess what!"

"Rosie, sweetheart, let's let Uncle Charles come in properly first. There will be lots of time to tell stories."

The two men exchanged smiles. Charles stood up again and took Rosalind's hand assuring her he had the rest of the day to spend with them. Seeing that Nicholas was peeking at him ever so slightly, Charles placed his other hand on the little boy's back, gave it a light rub and said hello.

Nicholas immediately hid his face again, but not until he said, loudly and demandingly, "Want Mama!"

William shrugged his shoulders at Charles and whispered some soothing words to his son while caressing his head and back.

"I understand fully, Nicky," Charles said. "You Darcy men just can't do without her!" he smiled teasingly at William who rolled his eyes in response. It was true of course for his part; he would be lost without Elizabeth.

Very helpfully Rosalind said, "Nicky is just a baby and so he don't understand that Mama will be back tomorrow."

"Toddler!" was the insistent reply.

"Quiet voice, Nicky, okay? Daddy needs you to use your quiet voice," William said thinking, Forget my hearing; I'm going to end up with a splitting headache if this goes on much longer!

"Nicky likes to say he's a toddler and not a baby," Rosalind explained to Charles.

"I see," Charles said while, fortunately at a more moderate volume, Nicholas said, "Nicky is toddler. Wosie is a meany."

"Daddy! Nicky say..." Rosalind started to say, but was stopped by her father's gentle but firm look.

"Nicky, Rosie isn't trying to be mean," he said soothingly to his son. To his daughter he added, "Rosie, Nicky is almost two years old; I think we can safely say he isn't a baby any longer." William felt quite a ping of sadness as he said it. "You would not have liked being called a baby when you were his age either." Reminding Rosalind of how she had behaved at her brother's age was generally effective at getting her to stop mocking Nicholas' actions or dismissing them as baby-ish. It helped that she couldn't remember what she had (or had not) done when she was that young.

Rosalind pouted a little while the two men exchanged an amused look.

"Daddy," mumbled Nicholas, burying his head further into William's shoulder. "When Mama come see Nicky?"

"Tomorrow morning, little one; Mama will be home tomorrow."

"For which you will all be thankful, I suspect!" Charles laughed.

William growled as his daughter said yes.

"Shall we let Uncle Charles actually enter the house now?" William asked Rosalind.

"Yes," she replied determinedly and took Charles' hand, leading him into the main reception room. Many of the room's former decorations had been put aside, protecting pieces of the Darcy family heritage from little hands and making space for childish accessories. Rosalind said, "Rosie has some things to show Uncle Charles."

Charles willingly allowed himself to be led and William, with Nicholas still retaining his tight grip on his father's neck, followed.

Rosalind pulled Charles over to one corner of the room to display some pictures she had coloured, providing explanations of what he was seeing. William sat on the sofa, trying to coax Nicholas into releasing his grip which only had the opposite effect – making the little boy cling all the tighter. Trying to think of something that would help Nicholas feel more comfortable, William asked his son if he was hungry. Nicholas – never one to turn down a meal – nodded his head. In a whispered conversation, William was able to cheer his son up by thoughts of what they would have for lunch and got him to agree to go into the kitchen with him and sit at the table keeping him company while he got it all arranged. William then told Charles and Rosalind that he and Nicholas were going to make lunch and they should come to the kitchen in about a quarter hour.

There wasn't very much for William to do; Mrs Northmore, their housekeeper, had left lunch things in place and all that remained was to set the table, pour drinks and put the food out. Nicholas sat in his seat and took sips of the watered-down juice William offered him. The little boy didn't say much, but watched William's moves intently and slightly suspiciously as though William might, like Elizabeth, disappear. Although it wasn't in his nature to be chatty, William kept up a steady stream of words to comfort Nicholas. He spoke about their going to Pemberley after Elizabeth was home; they would be there all weekend.

Lunch was a meal dominated by Rosalind's chattering happily to Charles and William coaxing Nicholas to eat. The little boy decided he didn't want to even look at either Rosalind or Charles and sat as close to his father as possible. Despite the fact that he had been happily shoving food in his mouth since he was six months old (sometimes at an alarming rate) right now he demanded Daddy's help. William patiently fed Nicholas after realising his attempts to get him to eat on his own were only making him stubbornly cling to his refusal to do so (Elizabeth declared the stubbornness a Darcy trait; William thought that was showing a remarkable lack of self-awareness).

"Daddy," Rosalind said authoritatively, "Nicky eat by himself. Mama said he big enough."

She was right, of course. Elizabeth usually would not let Nicholas get away with such behaviour, but these were exceptional circumstances and their parenting rules contained flexibility for such conditions.

"Yes, sweetheart," William replied, "but today is special so we are bending the rules."

"Daddy!" Nicholas demanded. He wanted William all to himself and was not overly pleased that he was talking to Rosalind.

"Daddy's here, Nicky," William soothed. "It's okay; I was just talking to Rosie."

"Because Nicky want Mama?!" Rosalind asked astonished. "That's silly! Mama be home tomorrow!" She clearly thought a one-day's absence wasn't a good enough reason to disregard the rules.

Nicholas' chin quivered alarmingly. "Mama."

We should not have made such a big deal about Elizabeth being away for the day! ]William thought. Elizabeth had, of course, been away during work days or evenings out, but this was her first full day away – she was gone when they woke up (a first in itself) and they would not see her until the next morning. Because of this they had made a big deal of it, building it up as a special day with Daddy, a day he would otherwise have gone to work. Clearly it had only emphasised in little Nicholas' mind that his mama was gone. William pulled his son onto his lap, cuddling him to his chest and kissing the top of his head. He wanted to prevent another descent into tears; he felt as though pieces of his heart were ripped out every time one of his children cried and he could not soothe their sadnesses fast enough.

"Rosalind," William said in a calm, but firm voice, "you have to remember that Nicky is younger than you are. When you were his age, you might have been just as upset."

Rosalind understood that she shouldn't say Nicholas was a baby or being silly anymore. With Uncle Charles spending the rest of the day with them, she would happily leave Nicholas to Daddy.

They finished eating, did a quick tidy up (of children and kitchen) and then got ready for a trip to the park. They would have a short walk and take the children to the playground; it was an easy way to keep them occupied for the afternoon. Nicholas managed to ignore Uncle Charles completely, even shying away the couple of times Charles tried to talk to him. William shrugged apologetically, but Charles was too good humoured and understanding to take it personally; he knew the next time they saw each other, Nicholas would be more than willing to spend time with his favourite uncle. For now he was happy to keep Rosalind occupied, freeing William to comfort Nicholas.

After a long while in the playground during which William patiently pushed Nicholas on the swing and then cajoled him down the slide and Rosalind pulled Charles from place to place to do everything it was possible to do, they returned to the house. William carried Nicholas on his shoulders; Rosalind refused the offer for a similar ride from Uncle Charles, loudly whispering that she was a big girl and didn't tire so easily. When they were close to the house, Nicholas confided to William that he was hungry.

The first order of business, thus, was food. Rosalind decried any interest in eating, but William made her sit at the table and have something to drink nevertheless. They had about an hour, William said, before he would have to prepare dinner (meaning reheat what Mrs Northmore had prepared and set it out); he asked what they wanted to do.

Nicholas' answer was simply. "Daddy."

Rosalind's answer was somewhat more complete. "Rosie's gonna' do her new puzzle with Uncle Charles; he say we could."

They returned to the sitting room. Rosalind took Charles into one corner of the room and showed him the new super-sized puzzle Elizabeth had bought for her.

"When it done, it bigger than me!" she said happily. She spent some time pointing out all of the different types of sea life it showed, stumbling over the names of some of the new ones Elizabeth was helping her learn about. Charles listened attentively; he did love to be with William and Elizabeth's children and cherished his role as 'Uncle Charles'.

Meanwhile William managed to get Nicholas to walk to the room. With a bit of manoeuvring Nicholas agreed to do some drawing and William gathered paper and crayons. There was a child-size table and chair set in the room and although Elizabeth could manage to sit at it without too much discomfort, William certainly could not position his tall frame onto the tiny furniture. William therefore brought the drawing supplies to the sofa and they used the table in front of it, Nicholas moving to kneel in front of it.

After a few moments hesitation, Nicholas began drawing in earnest, creating several beautiful messes that he said were, "Picfures of Nicky's kitten."

William grimaced, but turned it into a loving smile when the little boy turned to look at him. He didn't want Nicholas to become upset again by issuing the parent-standard, "We'll see," or "Your mother and I will discuss it" or something similar.

"Nicky want orange kitty," he said reaching for a light orange crayon. "Kitten gonna' be a boy like Nicky not girl like Wosie and it gonna' be nice and not call me baby."

"Err," said William. "There are lots of colours of cats."

"Nicky know. In book there kittens white and black and orange and brown and dirty."

("Grey," William translated to himself.)

"Some lots of colours and some no. Nicky wanna' kitten who wuv him."

"Any kitten would love Nicky or it would be a very silly kitten," William replied giving his son a little tickle. He smiled as Nicholas giggled. It was one of his favourite sounds. Oh bother, he thought. If I don't watch what I say, I'm going to talk my way into kittens. Kittens?! He sighed as he watched the back of Nicholas' head bent over his paper, scribbling another kitten. This one was black with a pink dot for a nose and stick ears placed at rather odd angles. William said it was wonderful.

He glanced over and saw Charles patiently helping Rosalind to assemble her ocean life puzzle and doing his best to tell her everything he knew about the creatures that lived in the sea; he realised it was remarkably little.

Fortunately both Rosalind and Nicholas were happy to persist with their tasks until dinner; at times - as expected - their attention span was limited and it could be a challenge to keep them occupied for any length of time. When William said he had to go get dinner ready, Nicholas insisted on going with him. William had him sit at the table and continue to draw although the little boy soon gave up on that task and started asking his Daddy to tell him everything he knew about kittens.

Soon after dinner, it was time to get the children to bed. Charles used that occasion to give both children the books he had brought for them – some of his company's latest offerings. He told them both that he would see if he could find any on kittens. Nicholas managed to remove his head from Darcy's shoulder long enough to peek out at his uncle at that point, which Charles counted as quite a success. Divide and conquer was the strategy William and Charles adopted – Charles taking charge of Rosalind and William of Nicholas – and they agreed to meet in the library afterwards.

"That's good," Rosalind said wisely. "Daddy need to be with Nicky 'cos he so ba…I mean sad about Mama and Uncle Charles makes better sounds when he reads."

The two men understood her to mean that Charles was better at using different voices for the characters.

"Daddy stay wif Nicky!" Nicholas demanded loudly as he buried his head into William's neck yet again.

"I may be a while," he said wryly to Charles who smiled back at him.

"He's asleep?" Charles asked when William joined him almost an hour later.

"Yes, thankfully; how was Rosalind?" he asked as he put the baby monitor by his side. He checked the volume level. He wanted to be sure he heard any signs of Nicholas stirring so that he could react quickly.

Charles chuckled. "Oh she was fine. She is quite the personality. Do you imagine Elizabeth was like that at her age?"

"All the time. Rupert says she was," he said with a slightly irritated voice. He didn't like to speak about the Bennets.

"I brought some early learning material I thought Liz might want for Rosie and Nicky, by the way."

William nodded. Elizabeth was trying to walk the very fine line between encouraging their children to explore skills and topics that interested them and pushing them to learn; the reality was that both children were very bright and given her childhood experiences she wanted them to feel stimulated and happy, but didn't want them to feel pressurised.

"Nicky been like that all day?" Charles then asked, easy falling into his role as the chief conversation driver; it had always been thus in their long friendship.

"Just since he woke up from a nap; not long before you arrived."

"He's still having that problem waking up alone?" Charles asked sympathetically.

William stood as he nodded. He offered Charles a drink and got one for himself. He exhaled tiredly; it had felt like a long day and seeing his little boy unhappy didn't make it any easier. He had resorted to holding Nicholas in his arms until he fell asleep.

"One of the many challenges of parenthood, I imagine," Charles said.

William shrugged as he sat down again and took a sip.

"How did you get him to sleep?"

"I read in my droning, monotonous voice," he said wryly looking at Charles with arched eyebrows.

Charles laughed. "If it's any consolation, Rosie assured me that I wasn't as good as her mama."

William smiled. He adored watching Elizabeth in her role as a mother; she seemed to know what to do instinctively while he plodded along, always worried about doing the wrong thing.

"Rosie said you're definitely going to Pemberley at the weekend?" Charles took a sip from his glass and looked at William waiting for a reply.

He nodded. "We'll leave tomorrow morning sometime and return Sunday afternoon. You should join us."

Charles uncharacteristically shrugged and mumbled an excuse about meetings at work the next day, which was a Friday.

"Leave afterwards," William suggested. "You know we'd love to have you and it should be pleasant weather-wise."

Charles took another sip of his drink and nodded offhandedly without looking in William's direction.

"Is everything all right, Charles?" William asked seriously.

"Yes," he replied quickly. There was a pause and then he added, "Well, we're trying to…sort some things out. Nothing serious though; really. About this weekend," he added rushing on, "I don't even really know if we can."

"So talk about it and let me know," William offered. "The invitation is open."

Charles nodded and they moved on to talk about work and other matters until it was time for Charles to go home.

William checked on Rosalind and Nicholas before returning to the downstairs sitting room and reading for a while. The housekeeper, Mrs Northmore, returned and they chatted briefly before saying goodnight. She went off to her rooms at the back of the house and William went upstairs, intending to continue his reading in the private sitting room he and Elizabeth shared.

He stopped first in Rosalind's room. He walked in quietly, grateful for the dim light afforded by her moon-shaped nightlight. She was lying on her stomach, limbs stretched out in all directions and her hair – so like Elizabeth's – covered her face. He gently pushed it out of the way and righted her covers which were bunched up at the side of her bed. He watched his little girl breath in and out, remembering the days when she was a newborn and he had almost obsessively watched her to be sure she was breathing all right and not in any distress. Elizabeth had been so patient with his fears, reassuring him time and time again that both she and baby Rosalind were fine. Now that little baby was a self-assured, independent, spirited three-year-old who could erase away every care he had with one little smile, every worry with hug and every anxiety with one simple, "Daddy." He made certain her favourite snuggle friend was still safely by her side, kissed her curls softly and left her to her dreams.

His next stop was in Nicholas' room. He leaned over the side of his baby boy's cot and untangled him from his blanket. He was curled up in a tight little ball – the way he always slept – and it made him look so small that William could almost pretend he was still a baby and not an almost two-year-old. He remembered how quickly Rosalind had grown and matured once she reached that milestone and he was not looking forward to seeing the same thing happen to Nicholas.

"My little baby," he whispered, caressing the boy's soft cheek. He resisted the urge to gather Nicholas into his arms and sit with him snuggled to his chest as he had earlier that evening and for most of the day. It felt primal, his desire to protect his babies, to keep them close to him and away from the realities of the world. It was hard at times to remember that he couldn't lock them (or Elizabeth) away from the world.

After spending several very long moments watching Nicholas sleep, William made his way to his own room. He got ready for the night and crawled into the lonely large bed, bringing his book for company. Elizabeth wasn't expected home until about 1 o'clock in the morning, but he did want to stay awake if he could. Given the fact that Rosalind had him out of bed at 6.30 that morning, he knew it might be a challenge, but he would try; the bed at least would be a comfortable place to wait for Elizabeth.

He fell asleep almost immediately.

Waking up was a very pleasant experience. The room was dark and he was brought to semi-consciousness by the movement of the bed and Elizabeth's hand sliding across his chest as she snuggled close to him.

"Elizabeth," he mumbled as he turned to face her. He put his arm around her waist and pulled her closely to him, kissing her without opening his eyes; his lips landed on her cheek.

"I'm home, my love," she whispered. "Go back to sleep." She kissed the side of his face and ran her hand soothingly along his back as he tucked his head under her chin.

He was quiet for a moment and Elizabeth thought he had fallen back to sleep. She was thinking about how wonderful it was to be home again, with William and her babies; she had – of course – already checked on them, whispering into their ears that she was home, giving them gentle kisses and sorting out bed covers and arms and legs.

She felt a kiss on her upper chest.

"Hello freckles," a sleepy, deep voice mumbled.

Elizabeth smiled. "Shh," she said again. "Go back to sleep."

She felt him shake his head. "How are you?" he asked. "How was the trip?" His voice was gaining strength as he started to wake up more fully.

"Everything was fine; we can talk in the morning."

Again he shook his head no. "I missed you; our babies missed you." He moved his head up again and kissed her softly on the lips, lingering for a moment before resting his head on the pillow by her side.

"I missed you, too," she replied caressing his face. He couldn't see it as his eyes were closed, but he imagined the smile on her face and the loving look in her eyes; her tone of voice told him what she was thinking. "Was everything all right here?" She knew it had been, but she had to hear the confirmation.

"Mm hmm," he said. His hand on her hip pulled her a little closer. Then he remembered. His eyes flew open and he looked at his beloved's face. "A kitten?" he said with a tone of disbelief and questioning.

"Two," Elizabeth replied innocently, trying not to smile; "one for Rosie and one for Nicky."

"Why didn't you warn me?" he asked deadpanned.

She shrugged pleasantly as she caressed his cheek. "I didn't think it would help if you thought about it too much before she mentioned it."

He growled.

"I'm sorry," she said in a tone that was mockingly sweet.

"You're teasing me," he said.

"You like it when I tease you," she replied.

William rolled his eyes and edged ever so slightly closer to her; she met him part way and their lips joined in a soft kiss.

"Do you have any idea how much I love you?" he said, resting his forehead against hers.

"Oh, I have a vague idea," Elizabeth replied airily.

"Elizabeth," he said in the tone he used when he didn't want to be teased.

Elizabeth took his face between her hands and pushed him onto his back. Leaning over him, she joined their lips again for a deep, loving kiss. "I do," she whispered reassuringly. "And I love you every bit as much."

"I hate it when you go away," he admitted quietly.

"I know," Elizabeth said, gently pulling away from him so that she could offer her reassurances. "But I come back; I know where I belong; where I want to be and where I intend to spend the rest of my very, very long life." She kissed him and then finished, "With you; always with you."

They resumed kissing. One of William's hands began to roam her body and his wishes soon became obvious. He felt her lips form into a smile despite being occupied playing with his.

"Stop smiling," he ordered languidly.

When she chuckled he decided it was going to be too hard to kiss her mouth, so he moved on. Slowly, soothingly they celebrated being together again, sharing their love and devotion and feeding the bond that held them together.

Later, as they lay side-by-side, facing each other, William told her of his day – of Rosalind's quest for knowledge and Nicholas' distress. He insisted on hearing about her presentation and she told him a little, promising more details on the morrow, once they had had some sleep. With their last bit of energy, Elizabeth insisted they get dressed again; it was always possible that Rosalind would wake up and crawl into bed with them. They had a rule that she wasn't allowed to do so until the sun was up and it was light outside. They did have to remember to dress before falling asleep however to avoid questions about why they had tossed their pyjamas on the floor so messily. She was not allowed to do so, as she had reminded them only the month before when she had discovered they were sleeping naked (which alone had resulted in several questions).

After they were properly covered and again lying down William noticed Elizabeth was looking at him questioningly. Her eyebrows were arched and she was biting her lower lip. He smiled in reply.

"You get Rosie," she said jumping up with more energy than he could fathom ever feeling again; "I'll get Nicky."

William crawled out of bed and followed her out of the room and down the hallway. He went into their daughter's room, collected a soundly sleeping Rosalind and carried her back to the large bed he and Elizabeth shared. While he was thus occupied, Elizabeth went into their son's room, gently lifted his sleeping form from his cot - not forgetting his stuffed koala - and carried him back to join William and Rosalind. As she walked she peppered his curls with kisses. When he squirmed, she whispered words of love to him.

William and Elizabeth settled their children between them. Nicholas rolled into Elizabeth and said a very sleepy "Mama" and threw one arm around her waist while Rosalind's little hand groped around aimlessly until Elizabeth took it in hers. She already had her father's hand resting on her back. Little Rosalind liked to know that both parents were there.

Looking lovingly at her two babies and then across at William's beautiful face, his eyes alight with love, she whispered, "I'm home."

Part II: Sorting Out Charles' Life

Posted on 2011-03-08

Charles didn't make it to Pemberley that weekend. He and Leah spent the time talking and addressing the problem they were having - her reluctance to make a final commitment to him (meaning marriage) and a future that included children.

Charles had always hoped to have a family and increasingly felt anxious to move towards that vision, especially when he spent time with William and Elizabeth's children. He loved Rosalind (three-and-a-half years old) and Nicholas, who was soon turning two, and delighted in seeing William as a father; he was so happy and just so profoundly at peace and complete. Charles wanted that for himself - to have a little child cling to him as Nicholas had to William, to be the one responsible for loving and caring for and nurturing a little person. And he wanted to do it - to have a family and a future – with Leah.

It had taken time - a lot of it - for him and Leah to move beyond being friends to become lovers. Both of them approached the change with a great deal of caution. In part, for Charles, it was because Leah was very much a different sort of woman for him. She was far more down to earth and, in many ways, independent than the women he had been drawn to in the past. It had taken him by surprise when he realized he was attracted to her physically and that he wanted more than friendship from her. When they had first met during a trip to Pemberley, he had found her easy to talk to - interesting and non-threatening in the sense that she didn't want anything from him. They had a great deal in common – interests in history and education and football – which made conversation easy. He had just started couples therapy with Jane. Leah was going through a rough time, coming to terms with the end of a six-year relationship. There was no question of anything other than acquaintanceship or perhaps friendship between them. Over time, he had come to think of her as a real friend, not just Elizabeth's friend who he happened to see regularly. They had interesting conversations and discovered they shared many similar views, not just interests. They also talked quite openly about their failed relationships.

Leah wasn't like his previous girlfriends or Jane, though. They had, he realized, been uniformly blonde, beautiful with a touch of glamour and also more than a hint of demureness, although he had thought of it as gentle and sweet at the time. Leah was certainly not blonde or beautiful and there was no chance anyone would call her demure. He found he appreciated that last quality a great deal. She was willing to tell him exactly what she thought and he didn't have to wonder if what she said only to please him; he now believed that much of what Jane said or purported to believe had been for just such a purpose. He may not have felt the all-encompassing lightning bolt of love at first sight he had with Jane, but he came to recognise his feelings for Leah as something that would last and be...comfortable even many years into the future. They were friends, not just lovers, and that was what could see them through life's ups and downs. Experiencing this with her made him realise he had not ever had the same feeling with Jane.

On Leah's side, her caution was born of worry that, like Dave, Charles would grow weary of her. She knew she wasn't Charles' usual 'type' and couldn't quite shake the thought that she was his object of desire because of the contrast she made to Jane (who she had met many times through Elizabeth) and also that she was, in some way, convenient, being a good friend of Elizabeth's. She had, like him, been surprised to find herself in love. He was a good man and knew she should trust him, but still she worried. All of his arguments were reasonable and the future he presented, she wanted, but she approached their relationship very guardedly, afraid of having her heart broken again.

When William and Elizabeth had learned of Charles and Leah's blossoming relationship, they had had long conversations about their role in it. They wouldn't intervene, but they were very wary of knowing the thoughts of one without sharing them with the other given the fiasco with Jane. Both of them would forever regret not being more upfront with Charles about Jane's behaviour and the Bennet family problems and didn't want to fail him again. It made their position awkward at times, but as the couple became closer, Elizabeth and William began to see that, in fact, they went together very well.

The week after Elizabeth's brief out of town trip, and after a lovely weekend at Pemberley with the children and Mrs Reynolds, William had dinner with Charles and Elizabeth with Leah.

"Yes, it was wonderful," William said, answering Charles' question about the weekend at Pemberley. "The children loved it; no doubt their Nana's doting helped."

Charles smiled as he took a sip of his drink. "Mrs R. does love them. They couldn't have a better grandmother."

William nodded. He was very glad Rosalind and Nicholas had her to fulfil the role of grandparent, and more generally that they were surrounded by people who loved them. All in all, the children did all right, grandparent-wise. They had grandfathers in Alexander Halsley – who took to the role very naturally (and was happy to do the same for Sterling and Rebecca's two girls) – and Rupert Bennet who they saw several times a year, usually around birthdays and holidays. In terms of grandmothers, however, it was only Agnes Reynolds. They had not seen Fanny Bennet since the day she came to London to meet Rosalind; Elizabeth refused to allow her near their babies, believing they should not be exposed to even a moment of her nastiness. It would take something very special (Catherine's wedding, still some years in the future) to change that. There were not any other women to fulfil the grandmother role. They rarely saw Margaret Fitzwilliam, who wouldn't be a particularly good grandmother in any case, and never saw Catherine de Bourgh.

Charles asked how they had spent the weekend, hoping to hear tales of Rosalind and Nicholas' antics. William briefly answered and then said sternly, "Charles, what is going on with Leah?"

Charles' hand, which was holding a loaded fork, stopped midway between his plate and his mouth. He returned it to the plate and sighed, not meeting William's eye.

"Charles?" William said again. "You stayed in town to 'work things out'; did you?"

Charles scowled. "I…" He sighed.

"Bloody hell, Charles; just tell me!"

"You talk that way around my niece and nephew?" Charles said with a touch of humour.

William grimaced. If he did, Elizabeth would have…expressed her displeasure.

Charles laughed before William could finish his thought. "Elizabeth would let you know just how little she thought of that if you did!"

William growled. "Leah?"

"Okay, okay," Charles said acknowledging he had to be more forthcoming. They had all learned it was better to rely on each other and to speak frankly about their worries as well as joys. "I want to make plans for my life, for getting married and starting a family."

"With Leah," William said, stating and asking.

Charles nodded as he started to push his food around his plate. "Yes. I know we could have a good life together. We're friends as well as more and that – friendship – was the basis of our relationship. You know that. It took us a long time to go past friends between the mess with Jane and she had a lot of healing to do after Dave. It's…so different with her; I've told you that. And I know, I know, we could be happy. We took it slowly and carefully, did everything right given our pasts and all of that, but, well, I'm ready for more."

"And the problem is?"

"She's not," Charles said morosely.

William was surprised and disappointed. "She's not? Do you mean not at all or not with…?" He asked the question delicately, not wanting to rub salt in a wound Charles might be feeling; he knew his friend would be devastated if his relationship with Leah failed.

"It's not me, she says," Charles replied. He took a bite of his dinner, considering his words. "She says she does love me and wants us to be together, but she's also…unsure."

"Unsure?" That didn't sound good.

Charles took a deep breath and then said, with more energy, "She thinks I'm going to change my mind about her, the way Dave did. That…that maybe she's just convenient because of the tie with Elizabeth or that my attraction is simply because she's so different than Jane and I'll get tired of her."

"And you're sure it's not any of that?" William asked.

"Yes," Charles said immediately and firmly. "You know that; we've talked about it often enough. But how do I convince her of that? How do you convince someone she should trust you? What if…what if it isn't just because of her – our – pasts? What if it's deeper than that? What do I do? Do I hang on and hope or do I cut and run? I don't want to go through another…I need to know, before I make another commitment, that the other person is as dedicated to it as I am, no matter what happens or what comes along. I need to know that they'll be committed to me, to us."

William watched Charles as he spoke. They were good questions to ask and he was glad Charles was asking them. He didn't have the answers, but they spent the rest of the evening, at Charles' behest, dissecting his past and present. It helped Charles sort out his worries and develop a plan.

The next day, Elizabeth had her own long conversation about Charles and Leah's relationship. She and Leah went for dinner after meeting their music group, which now consisted of the two of them, Pauline and two new people, Josie and Clive; Erin had dropped out when she and her husband relocated to Manchester.

"I just don't know what's wrong with me," Leah said. Her tone displayed self-reproach. "Charles is a wonderful man and I do think the world of him, but…"

"But what?" Elizabeth said kindly, but firmly. She knew she was in a tough position. She considered Leah one of her best friends and Charles her brother. If they were having problems, it could be heart-breaking for them, but also messy for her and William if they got caught in the middle.

"But when I think about…committing, about saying 'yes, this is my future', marrying him and having a baby, I…"

"What?"

"Panic. It's like I hit a wall."

"Why?" Elizabeth pressed.

"Your guess is as good as mine," Leah muttered, picking another chip out of the basket on the table between them.

"No, it's not," Elizabeth said flatly.

Leah glanced at her. "You're right and I'm sorry if I sounded flippant, but I really don't have an answer for you any more than I've been able to give one to Charles."

"Do you love him? I mean really love him?"

"Yes," Leah replied almost a little too quickly for Elizabeth's liking.

"Really, Leah? Really as in 'I want a future with him, but something is holding me back' or just really as in 'he's a great guy and I enjoy being with him, but I don't see a future in it'?"

Leah looked at Elizabeth, slightly taken aback by the directness of her question and the edge in her voice.

Elizabeth continued. "I love you both, you know that, and I know Charles wants a future with you."

"He wants to get married again and have a family," Leah said, interrupting Elizabeth.

"With you," Elizabeth insisted. Leah's expression suggested doubt. "Leah, if you can't give that to him, if you aren't sure it's what you want, you have to tell him. I don't want to see him hurt again; I don't want to see either of you hurt again."

"But I don't know, Liz, I really don't know."

"Leah," Elizabeth said kindly, but also with exasperation, "you two have known each other for years now, and you've been together for long enough. You should know, don't you think? It's not as though we're a bunch of teenagers; we're all adults who can – should – know what we want. If you don't, maybe it's because you…don't want to."

Leah grimaced at her old friend. "You are so frustrating at times!"

"Gee, thanks," Elizabeth said sarcastically.

Leah gave her a quick smile of apology. "I know you're right; you usually are which is why you're so bloody frustrating. It's just…"

"Is this still about Dave?" Elizabeth asked.

"There you go again; right on target!" Leah muttered.

"Leah, that was years ago. And, no," Elizabeth rapidly went on before Leah could interrupt, "I know that doesn't mean it's irrelevant or that it shouldn't be a factor, but it was a long time ago. He was a jerk and he treated you terribly."

"Not always," Leah said quietly.

"No, not always," Elizabeth agreed, "but at the end, the way he picked up and left without any consideration for you or all of the time you were together. Charles isn't like that. He isn't going to decide to wander the world or put his needs so far ahead of yours, of those of your relationship or any children you might have together. I thought you'd gotten past it." If she had felt Leah was still clinging to the pain of her failed relationship with Dave, she would have encouraged her to avoid a relationship with Charles – for both of their sakes.

"I thought Dave and I had a commitment; I was wrong."

"Have you asked yourself why you haven't gotten over this, why it still worries you so much? I didn't realise it did; you've not mentioned it, him, for a long time."

Leah looked around the pub for a while before answering. "I suppose it only came out when Charles started talking about getting married and making plans. I…I spoke to Dave," she admitted quietly.

"What?!" Elizabeth exclaimed.

"Last month. He rang. He's back in England, for now at least, and, as he said, thought he'd check in and see how I'm doing."

"And?" Elizabeth asked. Her tone was cautious and suspicious.

Leah shrugged. "I think it made me feel…" Her voice faded away.

Elizabeth waited, unconsciously holding her breath.

"I had lunch with him," Leah continued a moment later. "He went on and on about how great his time in Australia was."

"And?" Elizabeth prompted after a brief pause.

"And it made me feel, again, how unimportant I was to him, how easy it was for him to walk away when something more interesting came along. I know I'm not the most exciting person and I'll never change the world, but…"

"Oh Leah," Elizabeth said sympathetically. "Let me guess; that's just when Charles…"

Leah nodded.

"Did you tell him?" Elizabeth thought she knew the answer already; the guilty look on Leah's face confirmed what she suspected. "Why ever not?"

Leah shrugged. "I don't know why I didn't tell him I was meeting Dave. It was stupid. I…I didn't know what to expect or even what I felt about seeing him again, but I thought I had to. And then afterwards…I felt stupid for reacting as I did and for not telling Charles what was going on. Charles has done nothing but be wonderful and I know I should trust him, I know I can, but…Oh Liz, what if I do and it's a mistake? I was hard enough when Dave left. I just can face that again."

Elizabeth looked at her friend for a long minute. "Tell him."

William and Elizabeth naturally spoke about their respective dinner-dates and then set aside Charles-Leah issues; they were adults and would have to sort out their relationship on their own. Really, the only thing for William and Elizabeth to do now, they felt, was to step back and be ready to console or celebrate, whatever was called for. Waiting patiently was not particularly enjoyable, but between work and their family, they had plenty to occupy their minds and time.

Two weeks after his dinner with William, Charles stopped by William's office and asked if he, Elizabeth and the children were going to Pemberley for the weekend. The men sat on opposite sides of William's desk.

When William replied in the positive, Charles said, "Well, maybe you'll have some additional visitors if you don't mind. Unless," he added hastily, "someone else is coming along." What Charles most worried about what that someone from the Bennet family would be planning to visit. Although he did see the Gardiners regularly, it was more awkward with Mary and Catherine who had, with time, forged closer bonds with Jane. As far as Charles knew, Jane didn't visit Pemberley, but there was always a possibility.

"No, just us. Georgiana was going to, but one of her friends arranged a dinner or something so she's delayed her visit."

"Yeah, I remember," Charles said. "So, uh, what do you think?"

"Charles, you know you're always welcomed," William said. "What's going on?"

Charles shrugged.

"Charles…"

"I just think it would be nice to get out of the city."

Charles was being purposely evasive and William questioned him about it.

"Maybe there will be something to celebrate," Charles said, "and if there is, I can't think of a better place or better people to celebrate it with."

William looked at his old friend, his eyebrows raised in silent question.

"Don't ask me to say more now; that would…be against the guidelines under which I am supposed to be operating. But can we? Join you, I mean."

After a moment spent studying Charles trying to assure himself that there was no need for concern, William repeated his earlier statement, "You know you are always welcomed. We're leaving Friday morning; when will you…?"

"Saturday morning. We…have something to do Friday night."

William continued to stare at Charles, who, although he tried to play it cool, soon broke. "She told me some things, explained what was going on and…we've sorted them out."

"That's promising," William said carefully. Although all of Charles' words seemed to indicate he and Leah had gotten past their problem, William didn't like to assume.

Charles couldn't help himself and started to smile. He nodded and William smiled in return.

"You know she's going to tell Elizabeth tonight." It was the night of their music group get-together.

"She's not supposed to," Charles said hastily. "She's the one that insisted." He stopped abruptly when he saw William was silently laughing at him. "Oh bloody hell," he muttered.

"Don't use that language around my children," William said.

Charles made a face at him. "We're having dinner with Leah's parents Friday."

"Ahh," William said with sudden understanding. Obviously, the couple wanted to give the news to parents first. "Louisa and Gregory?"

"I'll talk to them next week."

The two men looked at each other and slowly William's smile broadened. Charles returned it.

"You're happy?" William asked.

"It feels so…right," Charles said as he nodded.

William stood and walked around his desk. Charles had also stood and when they were close enough, the two men shared a short embrace.

"I'm really happy for you," William said. "Or I will be when you tell me."

They laughed and soon after Charles returned to his office. William considered sending Elizabeth a message, but thought he should let Leah tell her (or at least hint broadly enough that Elizabeth figured it out); she would enjoy the surprise.

Leah couldn't keep the secret from Elizabeth. She was distracted during the time that the group was playing and afterwards did nothing other than nod offhandedly to Elizabeth's suggestion of dinner locale (having dinner afterwards was part of their routine).

"Okay, Leah, what's up?" Elizabeth said as soon as they sat at a table.

"Hmm?"

"Something is going on and you know I expect you to tell me. Charles?"

Leah fiddled with the menu card in her hands. "What makes you say that?"

Before Elizabeth could answer, their server approached and the two women ordered drinks and food.

"So are the plans progressing for your lunch with our esteemed future head-of-state?" Leah asked as soon as the server turned to leave them. She hoped to divert Elizabeth's attention.

"Yes and I'm not that easily distracted. What's going on?" Elizabeth looked at her friend expectantly.

"Don't ask," Leah said.

"Leah…"

"No, really, Liz, don't ask. I'm not supposed to say anything and I know it will be almost impossible not to, to you at least, and I almost cancelled this evening just so that I wouldn't be tested."

"And why aren't you supposed to say anything?" Elizabeth asked arching her eyebrows as a smile played on her face. It was clear from Leah's attitude that what she had to share was not bad news.

"Because my mum and dad should be told first. You know they'll be hurt if they think they weren't and all of that."

Elizabeth's smile grew. "I see."

Leah blushed and fiddled with her flatware. "Charles was going to ask William about us joining you at Pemberley this weekend. We assumed you were going at least."

"Of course; Agnes has withdrawal symptoms if she doesn't see Rosie and Nicky at least twice a month."

Leah chuckled.

"Leah…" Elizabeth said subtly suggesting her friend needed to say at least a little more.

"I did what you said. I knew you were right and so I told him about my meeting with Dave and that opened a whole floodgate of stuff and…"

"And?" Elizabeth wanted a final indirect (if direct was out of the question) acknowledgement that what she was thinking was correct before she said any more.

"And I took a leap. I decided I had no reason – no good reason – not to trust Charles and in fact I have every reason to trust him and so I decided that I do."

Elizabeth's smile broadened.

Leah continued. "And, once I brushed aside the stupid doubts – which I am ready to acknowledge were fully about me and never about him – it became really easy to admit what I want."

"Charles," Elizabeth stated.

Leah smiled happily and nodded.

Elizabeth reached across the table to take her friend's hand. In a quiet voice, she said, "I am so, so happy for you both. I know what wonderful people you both are and I love you both and if you can be happy together – and I know you can – then, then…this is just wonderful!"

"I know!" Leah squeaked also quietly. It was as though they felt that no secret had been shared if they discussed it in hushed terms. "It is. It was like….a switch went off in my head and a voice said, 'Leah, you are being an idiot. Here is this fantastic man who loves you and who you love and he's ready to promise you forever and you're busy letting stupid fears, brought on by a self-involved jerk who never deserved you and your loyalty, ruin it!' Once that happened, everything fell into place right away. I think I might have been the one to ask him. I don't even know. It happened so quickly and the next think I knew we were planning our life and deciding when to tell people and oh my G-d, Liz, Charles and I are…" She stopped herself abruptly and they laughed.

"Don't say it," Elizabeth said joyfully. "If you don't say the actual words then you haven't told me. That will be our official stance; ignorance until you come to Pemberley this weekend and tell us officially. When are you telling your parents?"

"Friday night. We're going to have dinner with them and we thought we would drive to Pemberley Saturday morning."

Elizabeth nodded. "This is so exciting! Tell me everything you can and I promise to wipe it from my memory when we leave so that you can tell me all about it again at the weekend."

They shared another laugh and spent a very enjoyable hour eating and talking.

After dinner, Elizabeth went home to William and their babies. She was there in time to tuck the latter two into bed and spend a few minutes talking with them and sharing hugs and kisses. The rest of the evening was dedicated to William.

"So, you saw Charles today?" she asked as he finished changing into his pyjamas. It was still early, but they had retired to their rooms for the evening and they both changed and made themselves comfortable in the sitting room to talk and enjoy a cup of tea.

"Yes," William said as he sat down on the sofa next to Elizabeth.

She sat sideways so that she could look at him. They looked at each other knowingly for a minute, smiling.

"I told Charles there was no way she would be able to keep it from you."

"And I told Leah there was no chance you hadn't wrestled it out of Charles," Elizabeth said, laughing. She snuggled closer to her beloved husband, wrapped her arms around his neck and gave him a happy kiss. "I am very happy for them. Not that we know anything, of course."

William smiled at Elizabeth, his eyes sweeping her face. One hand rested at her waist while the other made its way to the back of her hair so that he could remove the clip that restrained her hair. She usually remembered to take it down, but sometimes forgot (or purposely left it up so that he would do it for her; he was never sure).

"Mm," he said as he ran his fingers through her hair.

"Mm? Nothing else?" Elizabeth said, teasing him to his delight.

"I'll express my joy when we are officially told on Saturday."

Elizabeth nodded and affected a serious mien. "That sounds very reasonable, Mr Darcy."

"Dr Bennet," he said, sitting back and looking at her, genuinely serious now.

Elizabeth arched her eyebrows and waited for him to go on.

"It's almost our anniversary; the fifth."

A soft, loving smile grew on Elizabeth's face. "So it is," she whispered. "One of my favourite days of the year."

They kissed for a long moment, before settling down with William's arm around her shoulders and her head resting on his.

"We should celebrate," William said.

Elizabeth smiled. "We celebrate every year," she reminded him. It was sometimes hard to do much with two little children and, two years ago, Elizabeth had been heavily pregnant with Nicholas preventing (for William's peace of mind) even a trip to Pemberley.

"Yes, but five needs something…more."

"What do you have in mind?" she asked.

It took William a long time to answer, but it was entirely Elizabeth's fault. She began to kiss his neck and jaw and he found it delightfully diverting.

As he stood, pulling Elizabeth with him, and began to walk into their bedroom, he said, "I don't know yet. I have some ideas though." He smiled mischievously.

"Oh?" Elizabeth asked laughing and smiling as she readily allowed him to lead her.

"Maybe we can…experiment with a couple of them. See what we think," he said quietly, but with a most alluring smile.

Elizabeth laughed. "Oh goody, research. I do love research."

"The quest for knowledge," William said as he stopped by the bed and she took the final step to close the gap between them.

They whispered words of love and devotion as they joined their bodies and their minds.

Friday morning William, Elizabeth and their two children were off to Pemberley. Rosalind and Nicholas were accustomed to the journey and managed well. Elizabeth and William engaged them in games, sang silly songs and watched fondly as the youngsters invariably were lulled to sleep by the car's motion.

They were awake and growing increasingly excited as they approached the estate. With her nineteen months of greater experience, Rosalind guided Nicholas' attention to their surroundings, pointing out trees and stone walls. Nicholas ignored her.

"Mama, Nicky hungry!" he said showing them all in what he was really interested. Elizabeth sometimes wondered if there would ever come a time her son didn't think with his stomach.

"I know, love," Elizabeth said, twisting in her seat to look at him. "We're almost there…"

"That's what I say!" Rosalind exclaimed interrupting her mother and feeling her little brother should have taken her word for it.

Elizabeth picked up where she had left off. "Yes, Rosie, and you were right. Nicky, I'm sure Nana is anxiously awaiting us and you know she'll have lots of yummy lunch waiting for you."

"Nana," Nicholas said happily. He picked up his special friend – a stuffed koala – and started to play with it, whispering incoherently.

"Mama?"

"Yes, Rosie?" Elizabeth asked.

"Me hungry, too."

Elizabeth smiled lovingly. "I'm sure you are. I bet Daddy is, too." She turned a teasing look on William who had his eyes fixed on the road. They flickered momentarily to Elizabeth, happy to see the twinkle in her eyes and feel her hand on his thigh. "What do you think Nana has for lunch?" Elizabeth asked her daughter.

Rosalind thought very seriously about this, furrowing her forehead.

"Mama, Coco want a kiss!" Nicholas said thrusting his koala forward. Elizabeth reached back, took the toy from her son and gave it a tight squeeze, a kiss and a tickle before returning it to Nicholas. He often did this, demanding Elizabeth give his 'little friends' motherly attention.

Coco had been a Christmas gift from Edmund Gardiner. When he had come across the toy, it reminded him of the one he had long, long ago given to Elizabeth. 'Cookie the koala' was still living in a box in Elizabeth's closet at the time. After Nicholas opened his present, Elizabeth told him and Rosalind the story of Cookie and it had been Rosalind who decided Nicholas' koala needed a similar 'sweet' name. Coco was decided upon after several others had been tried, but failed to stick. It was a shortened version of 'chocolate', chosen in honour of Nana's special hot chocolate. After Christmas, when they returned to London, Elizabeth introduced her children to Cookie. The toy had taken up a new position on a shelf in Nicholas' room where – wise old marsupial that she was – she kept a watchful eye on the other 'animal friends'.

"Sannwiches," Rosalind pronounced, slurring the word. "Nana make sannwiches and maybe strawberries. Nana tell me last time that maybe this time we have strawberries!"

"Nicky hungry!"

"Look, children," William's deep voice broke in; "you can see the house."

There were cries of excitement which Elizabeth was sure to join. William smiled happily to himself.

They pulled up to the house and Mrs Reynolds exited. She had been on the lookout for the family's arrival.

Elizabeth and William exited the car first, Elizabeth immediately opening the side door near Nicholas so that she could unlatch him from his car seat. William greeted Mrs Reynolds and then went to release Rosalind who had managed to undo the straps of her seat.

Once out of the car, Nicholas immediately went to Mrs Reynolds who was very happy to lift the little boy up and give him a big welcoming hug. He gave her a loud kiss on the cheek as Rosalind joined them, wrapping her little arms around Mrs Reynolds' body.

"Nicky hungry," Nicholas whispered into his Nana's ear.

"Well, of course you are, my little love! Let's get you and Rosie and Mama and Daddy inside and we can get you washed up and get some food into your belly."

Nicholas, happy to know his next meal was on the way, rested his head on Mrs Reynolds' shoulder. She smiled at Elizabeth and led the children inside the house, leaving William and Elizabeth to collect their weekend bags and stray toys.

The day passed very pleasurably as they usually did. Mrs Reynolds thrived on time with the two children and loved to see William (still 'her boy') and Elizabeth as well. Rosalind and Nicholas were easily amused with all there was to see and do around the estate at any time of the year and regardless of the weather. As it was early summer and quite nice outside, the adults took the children outside to run and play. It made it easy to get them to bed that night.

In the evening, Mrs Reynolds, William and Elizabeth spoke about summer plans and Charles' expected news the next day.

"I do hope you are right," Mrs Reynolds said in reaction to Elizabeth's statement that they expected an official announcement of an engagement. "Leah is a lovely woman and I think they can have a very good life together."

Elizabeth agreed; she did wonder how she would tell Jane the news. Fanny would certainly be upset by it, but at least she wouldn't have to hear her reaction first hand; no doubt, Mary or Catherine would tell her. Jane knew that Charles and Leah were together. She rarely asked after Charles on the occasions she and Elizabeth exchanged emails and never raised his name when they did see each other. Relations between the two women had thawed considerably, but were not by any means warm. Elizabeth knew Jane was relatively happy – Rupert said she seemed content enough with her work and life – but wasn't involved with anyone seriously at the moment. Would she be upset or hurt to know Charles was marrying again (and someone Jane had met and had been friendly with)? Or would she be able to be glad that he had found someone to make him happy? Elizabeth thought that even if she spent an hour or two talking about it with Jane, she still wouldn't know what her sister really thought or felt.

Her mind was pulled away from her ruminations and back to the conversation with William and Mrs Reynolds; the latter wanted to discuss a celebratory dinner menu for the next day. It was far more pleasant than wondering about Jane's thought processes and so Elizabeth pushed all questions of her sister and her response to Charles' news out of her mind.

Charles and Leah arrived just before noon on Saturday. It was a dry if not sunny day and the family was sitting outside. William was teaching Rosalind how to kick a football and Nicholas sat on Elizabeth's lap at a table. He played with a few toys while Elizabeth and Mrs Reynolds talked. They were pleasantly startled when Charles and Leah appeared behind the house. It was William and Rosalind who saw them first.

"Uncle Charles!" Rosalind cried, immediately forgetting the football and running to him. He smiled broadly, bent down and held out his arms ready to scoop the little girl up.

Nicholas had turned at his sister's words and was struggling to get out of his seat so he could follow her lead; he wanted his share of attention as well. The three adults approached the new arrivals with more poise which allowed the children time to be fussed over by both Charles and Leah (who they also liked very much).

After hellos, William, Elizabeth and Mrs Reynolds looked at Charles and Leah expectantly, while Rosalind told Charles he had to see how good she was getting at kicking the football so that it went where she wanted it to go and Nicholas held out a hard plastic figure of a cow and was chattering about it to Leah.

"Okay Rosie, Nicky, let's let them come and sit down," Elizabeth said gently. "Rosie, you should have a drink after all of that running around."

"I want to play football!" Rosalind said.

"Not right now," Elizabeth replied.

"A little later, okay, sweetie?" Charles said, ruffling the little girl's hair.

"Good idea. Come on, Nicky," William said, picking his son up for the short walk back to the table; they had a conversation about Nicholas' cow along the way and as they sat down; William kept the boy on his lap.

"How was the visit with your parents?" Elizabeth asked as she poured drinks for Charles and Leah. She had a knowing smile on her face, but was trying to look casual.

Charles and Leah exchanged a look. "Good," Leah said not very successfully hiding a smile.

"You're acting funny," Rosalind said as Mrs Reynolds encouraged her to have some fruit.

The adults laughed.

"Daddy, Nicky wanna' see real cow. Like before." William and Elizabeth had taken their children to a farm animal sanctuary where they had all delighted in meeting the goats and sheep and cattle and other creatures.

William's attention, pulled to Nicholas, whispered, "Okay, love. I think Uncle Charles and Leah have something to tell us right now though; let's listen." He gave the boy a kiss (or two) on his curls.

"You'll have to get used to calling her Aunt Leah," Charles said. His smile seemed set to split his face in two.

Before anyone could offer congratulations, Rosalind said, "Why?" and Nicholas started to say, "Aunt Eah, Aunt Eah," over and over.

Elizabeth looked at him, smiling lovingly and thinking how adorable he was and that she wished she could be selfish and grab him from William's arms to squeeze. Since she couldn't, she did an equally pleasurably thing – she began to caress her daughter's back.

"Yes, do tell us why," William said drolly.

"We have decided to get married," Leah said.

There was a general round of clamouring and leaping up to give and receive congratulations. In truth, Nicholas didn't understand why everyone was so excited, but as he managed to hang onto both his Daddy and his toy cow (and grab a sheep for his other hand), he was quite pleased. Rosalind decided it must be a big deal as Nana, Mama and Daddy were so excited and she was quite happy to give hugs and join in the mayhem before settling down and finishing her strawberries so that she could have a biscuit.

"This is such happy news," Mrs Reynolds said once they were all sitting down again.

Elizabeth and William agreed.

"So, tell us!" Elizabeth insisted. "What have you planned, how did your parents react, what can we do?"

Charles and Leah, holding hands, smiled at each other. Leah spoke. "Mum and Dad were very…happy." She laughed.

"Penny and Cyril were very receptive to the news," Charles added.

"What's that mean?" Rosalind asked.

Elizabeth whispered an explanation as William looked at Charles for more of an explanation; he had never met Leah's family although Elizabeth had.

"Let me guess," Elizabeth said. "Penny screamed and Cyril said it was about time and then they pulled out a notebook and started making plans?"

Leah and Charles laughed. Mrs Reynolds chuckled and William smiled at Elizabeth, silently giving one of his many daily thanks that she was his.

"Pretty much!" Leah said.

"It was wonderful," Charles added.

William's eyes went to his friend and he could see a level of contentment about him that was new. It had been very hard for Charles to come to terms with the disaster that had been his relationship with Jane. To see him happy now and to be able to believe it had a solid basis (just as his relationship with Elizabeth did) was both a relief and a joy.

While they ate lunch (remaining outside), the newly engaged couple shared their plans. They would have a small wedding; not as small as Elizabeth and William's had been, but no more than fifty people, mostly family and friends. Leah's parents wanted it to be near them and would look into the availability of venues in the coming days. Charles and Leah didn't want to wait long, aiming for an early autumn date. Charles asked William to do best man duties (both ignoring the 'again' part); Leah would ask her sister to stand up with her. Other than William and Leah's sister, there wouldn't be any attendants.

"We are going for casual; nice, but relaxed," Charles said. "No big fuss." A grimace quickly shot across his face.

"Honestly, I'd be happy going to the registry office, but Mum and Dad, well, they do have to celebrate," Leah said.

"As they should!" Mrs Reynolds exclaimed. "I would have been most disappointed to miss seeing William and Elizabeth married, and I'm sure your parents feel the same."

William and Elizabeth smiled at each other at the mention of their wedding.

"That was an incredible day," Charles said, leaning over to give Mrs Reynolds a kiss on the cheek. "Almost five years ago. I can hardly believe it!"

William, whose hand held Elizabeth's, lifted it for a kiss. He kept his head bent, hiding the smile of utter joy on his face.

Elizabeth looked at him, understanding his reaction. "I know," she said softly; "five wonderful years."

Before the group could get too wrapped up in reminiscences, Rosalind wanted to know what they were going to do that afternoon.

"First, young lady," William said, "you and your brother will have naps."

"I'm not tired, Daddy!" she protested.

"Quiet time, then," Elizabeth said. Rosalind liked to think she was too old for a nap, so they had to call it 'quiet time' during which she was allowed to look at books; she usually fell asleep.

"Swimming," Nicholas said. "Nicky go swimming wif Daddy and Mama and Wosie and Unca Charles and Aunt Eah and Nana." He yawned.

They finished eating, Nicholas practically falling asleep in William's arms when he was finished. Once the children were tucked into their rooms, the adults sat nearby, indulging in tea and conversation. After Rosalind and Nicholas were up and about again, they went swimming for a while and otherwise relaxed and enjoyed being at Pemberley.

With Rosalind and Nicholas tucked up in bed that night, the two couples and Mrs Reynolds enjoyed an adult-oriented conversation. William and Elizabeth offered their villa in Italy as a honeymoon locale (it would later be accepted).

"I don't know what we'll do about a honeymoon, but your offer is very tempting," Leah said. "The villa is wonderful. A lot of it will depend on the date we settle on. We might not be able to do much depending on work."

Leah was a teacher and it wasn't easy to take holidays during the school year.

"It might just be a long weekend," Charles said. "We can always take a longer holiday later on."

"True," William said. "Any time you would like to use it, let us know."

Charles nodded and Leah said thank you. "When will you go back?" Charles asked.

William and Elizabeth exchanged a look and he shrugged. "We don't have any immediate plans," Elizabeth said. "Sometime in late summer or early autumn probably."

"It is dreadfully hot there in the summer," Mrs Reynolds said and they all nodded in agreement.

"And you have just too much going on," Charles added. William and Elizabeth both confirmed this.

"Starting with their anniversary," Mrs Reynolds said.

"Five years," Leah said.

Elizabeth smiled and looked at William and then the others. "Yes, indeed. We were just talking about that."

"I do so wish you would do something to celebrate; something special I mean," Mrs Reynolds said.

William shrugged; he would like to as well, but with Rosalind and Nicholas still so young, they didn't want to leave them to go on holiday.

Elizabeth expressed his thoughts verbally, adding, "We will continue to consider options, but I'm afraid it may end up being like every other year. Well," she laughed, "except two years ago when I was almost too big to move!" She had been heavily pregnant with Nicholas then. "In any case, we will figure it out and it will get easier as they get older," she said brightly.

"There'll be celebrations before that, too, I imagine," Leah said.

"Ahh, yes; we can't forget your shining moment," Charles said.

Elizabeth groaned and Mrs Reynolds laughed as William smiled.

"Don't remind me!" Elizabeth exclaimed.

"Oh, it won't be that bad; it's quite the honour," Leah insisted.

Elizabeth's work with the FDF had been very successful to date. Not long after she and William got married, she started working on developing and implementing a programme to enhance environmental education among children. She had raised a significant amount of money and the work had attracted the attention of a certain member of the royal family who was insisting Elizabeth attend a small celebration of her successes.

"You have managed to get tight-fisted businessmen to open up their wallets – quite substantially," Mrs Reynolds argued.

"Brought together very diverse groups and got them to agree on a common goal and course of action," Charles added.

Elizabeth rolled her eyes, but stopped when she caught sight of William looking at her. He was smiling and his face reflected his pride and love in her and her accomplishments and, confronted with that, she had to accept the praise.

"And done it all with, what did I read, 'graceful aplomb and gentle brilliance'," Leah added.

"What on earth does 'gentle brilliance' mean anyway?" Elizabeth said, hoping to redirect the conversation.

"You're brilliant, but you manage to not make everyone around you feel stupid by comparison. Usually," Charles said.

Elizabeth made a face at him.

"You've done a remarkable job, love," William said softly, "and it deserves recognition."

Elizabeth sighed, but didn't say anything. She slipped her hand into his and he raised it to his mouth for a kiss.

"Okay everyone, lift your glass or cup – whatever you have," Charles called. "To Elizabeth's success! May there be many more!"

As the others called Elizabeth's name, Leah said, "You'll make DBE* yet!" which caused laughter.

Elizabeth moaned. "Yes, that is the goal I've decided to dedicate my life to."

There was more laughter and various comments about her work and the attention it was getting (Elizabeth was more interested in the results it was having). Soon the conversation moved onto Charles and Leah and their plans and then onto the summer and holidays and activities and anything else that took their fancy.

"You really have done a remarkable job, love," William said when they were alone later that night. "You shouldn't brush it aside."

Elizabeth climbed into bed and sat next to him. She sighed. "I know and I am very pleased with how it has all come together. I don't need the accolades though."

"It raises the project's profile and that can only help."

"Fine," she said; "next time you are receiving an award of some sort, I'll remind you of this conversation when you start to grumble."

Rather than reply, he kissed her.

"Humph," she said. "Is that your answer to everything?"

He smiled and pulled her closer.

Before he could kiss her again, she jerked back and said, "Am I working too hard? Rosie and Nicky need me, they are both so little, but then there is so much…"

William stopped her by taking her face between his hands and kissing her. "You're worrying again, love. Yes, you are busy; yes, I'm busy especially right now with Derek switching positions, but we take lots of time for the children. If anything, what we don't do is take time for ourselves. The two of us, I mean."

Elizabeth snuggled next to him, rested her head on his shoulder and draped an arm around his waist. "Feeling neglected?"

He shook his head and kissed the top of her head. "No more than you are. We both understand and both know this busy period will end, but I don't like it when you get wound up about how you may be failing Rosie and Nicky. You're a wonderful mother, Elizabeth and I don't ever doubt that they are your priority, no matter what is happening at the Foundation or with your other work."

She sighed. "At least I'm not teaching for the next couple of months."

"And it is summer; we always slow down then."

Her head still on his chest, Elizabeth nodded.

"I wouldn't mind a little time alone with my wife," William admitted a moment later.

"Beyond this, you mean?" Elizabeth said. She felt him nod.

"I've been thinking about it especially with our anniversary coming up. Why can't we take a short break, just the two of us?"

Elizabeth sat back and looked at him. Before she could say anything, he did.

"I'm not proposing we go away for a week, but we could leave the children here, for example, and go spend a night in Sheffield or Manchester and just have the time to ourselves even if we don't do much."

Elizabeth looked at the beautiful face of her husband and felt, as she so often did, so much love and gratitude that they could share their life together. It was never perfect – neither of them were naïve enough to expect a perfect life – but it was always comforting and reassuring to know they had each other. The allure of time, even if it was just twenty-four hours, alone with him was strong; they hadn't had such a time since Rosalind was born. Slowly she nodded. "It would be a first step to, eventually, leaving them for longer."

William nodded, smiling and gaining enthusiasm as she gave her agreement. "I know neither one of us will want to leave them for long, but…"

"I could have you all to myself," Elizabeth finished, smiling.

He smiled in return and their lips met, sealing their deal. They spent a few minutes thinking about their plan, agreeing ultimately that, as the Gardiners were due to visit at the start of July, they would propose taking their 'mini-break' then. It would mean Rosalind and Nicholas would have extra distractions in the form of their cousins Susan and David, as well as their aunt and uncle. Between them and their Nana they would be very well taken care of.

Very satisfied with themselves (although perhaps dreading trying to explain their absence to their two babies), they chatted a while longer, looking forward to the summer and plotting an autumn visit to Italy, intermingling kisses and other endearments, before drifting off to sleep side-by-side, which really was the perfect way to go through life.

*DBE = Leah is joking about Elizabeth being named a Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire. See this link for more information.