Page 85 of The Duke and the Hellion Bride

“Yes, yes,” Magnus agreed. “I am coming.”

Diana rolled her eyes and turned about. “I will meet you in the carriage. Girls.” She took both girls by the hands and they hurried from the manor.

“You should not be rushing in your state,” Magnus called after them, coming in quickly. “It cannot be good for the child.”

“You should have thought about that before you decided to take so long!” she called over her shoulder. Reaching the carriage, she began to help the two girls climb inside.

“Diana!” Magnus was at her, quick to lift Josephine from her arms and help her inside. Then, he did the same for Adeline. “What did I say about lifting heavy things?”

“Oh, I am perfectly capable.” She slapped his hand away as he tried to help her climb up next. “Really, everyone is so pedantic. I amfine.”

“Fine, yes,” Magnus agreed. “And terribly pregnant. Now, if you do not mind...” He raised a warning eyebrow at her, half-blocking the entrance to the carriage so she could not climb in without pushing him.

Diana sighed with exaggeration. “Well. Are you going to help me in or not?”

Magnus beamed. “I would love to.” He took her under the arm and helped her into the carriage, at which point Diana was quick to sit down because despite her protests, her back was hurting her and she desperately needed to take the weight off – not that she would admit such a thing!

“There...” Magnus climbed in and sat himself beside her. “Now, how are you feeling?”

“I told you, I am fine.”

He looked at her and then raised his eyebrows at the girls. “Girls, what did we teach you about lying?”

“That it is wrong to do,” Adeline said as if reciting a verse.

“Good girl,” Magnus said.

By that point, Diana was glaring at her husband. Not that he seemed to mind. He shuffled in close to her, took her hand, and gave it a kiss. “By the way, have I told you yet how breathtaking you are? Utterly gorgeous.”

Diana tried to keep her gaze cold but could not help but smile. She looked away, rolling her eyes instead. “Oh, I do not. Not like this.”

“More stunning every day. Girls?”

“So pretty,” Josephine agreed.

“Pretty!” Adeline joined in.

Where Diana appreciated the compliments, she still could not agree with them. She had heard tell of how uncomfortable pregnancy was. They said it bloated you, that it was painful, that it was impossible to truly be comfortable and sweating was as inevitable as breathing. All truths she could say were accurate.

Not that she would take back the pregnancy. Oh no, certainly not. Six months in and with the end in sight, she didn’t think that she had ever been so excited for something in her entire life.

What was more, strangely, while also somewhat predictable, Magnus seemed to be the same.

Indeed, once the carriage began to move, he rested a hand on her swollen belly, a smile on his lips, a shine to his eyes, and she just knew that he was picturing the birth of his first child and how it was sure to change their life for the better. Which was saying quite a bit, as their lives were already near perfect as it was.

It had been six months since Magnus had rescued her and in those six months, she and her love for him had grown seemingly every day. He was no longer as closed off emotionally as he used to be. He was no longer scared to speak his mind and what he was feeling. Such were the positive changes she had seen in her husband that in all that time not once had he had a single nightmare. That alone was telling, she thought.

The girls too, they had grown into themselves nicely. Neither was jealous at the notion that a baby would be joining their little family shortly, and both were excited for what that might mean.

Truly, once upon a time, Diana had used the word ‘wonderful’ to describe her marriage to Magnus. It had been exaggerated at the time, but now felt perfectly apt.

“I wonder how Theodore is feeling,” Magnus mused as the trip got underway. “I bet the man is a mess.”

“I was thinking the same about Evelyn,” Diana tittered. “I never thought I’d see the day.”

“I like to think that we had something to do with it,” Magnus said. “Obviously they met because of us, but I meant the example we have set.”

She snorted. “Are you trying to take credit for their relationship? That’s rich.”

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