Freddie stared down at the pin, and when he finally looked up at me, his eyes were swimming, too. “It’s perfect,” he said. “Listen, Bex…”
“This had better not ruin my makeup,” I warned him.
“I think it’s too late for that,” he said. “I just wanted to say thank you. I know you and Nick have had your doubts. Thank you for understanding that I needed this. Because…”
He reached out then, haltingly, and placed his hands so gently on my belly. We said nothing, until he let out a long slow breath and dropped his hands. “It is ever so hard to go, and that’s why I have to.”
“Freddie…”
“Our bond has never just been about sex, or love, for me,” he said. “I’ve been so emotionally dependent on being able to talk to you, to have you in my family and in my life. Not very many people have known me as well as you do. Maybe no one has. But it can be hard to untangle all those things, so even though that chapter is behind us…”
“It still has to change,” I finished for him. “I know. Daphne has to be that person for you now.”
Freddie nodded. “But you never do forget your first,” he said.
He pulled me into his arms for a long hug.
“Thank you for making me want to reach for more,” he whispered.
“Thank you for all the times you held me together.”
“And thank you for not having any pointy bits on your hat or else I’d have just speared myself,” he said. “And then Princess Persil Liquid Detergent and Princess Duracell Batteries will have to be told I’m a pirate.”
I snorted and we pulled apart, smiling. “Okay,” I sniffled. “I need to clean myself up so we can go marry your ass off.”
Freddie chuckled, and then carefully wiped a finger under one of my eyes. “There. Beautiful,” he said. “Have you and Knickers decided what to do yet?”
“No,” I said. “We only talked to Richard last night. I know you did, too.”
“It was a good conversation,” Freddie said. “He told me what he planned to say to you. I hope you know I’m behind whatever you and Nick decide.”
“Even if it involves living in your guesthouse?”
“Especially then,” Freddie said, smiling. “You can earn your rent by doing odd jobs. I’m a very untidy person and I always did think Knickers would make a wonderful maid.”
“Awesome. He already has the costume,” I said.
Freddie guffawed at that. “Right, my girl,” he said. “On that note, time for the tripod to become…a tuning fork? Perhaps you were right to try to use cycles as the analogy.” He offered me his arm. “After all, a bike runs very well on its own without the extra part.”
I put my hand in the crook of his elbow, and we walked out of his room and down the stairs and into the new life that waited for him. For both of us.
* * *
“Bex,” Nick said, the sound coming at me distantly, as if through a haze. “You did it. You made it.”
My eyes fluttered open. “Wow, I really conked out,” I said. “But it’s done. I can’t believe it.”
“You did wonderfully,” he said, stroking my hair as I struggled to sit up. “I know you were really in pain there at the end.”
PPO Stout came over and opened my car door, reaching in a hand to help pull me to my feet. Cilla and Nick and I had flown back from the wedding as soon as the festivities ended, and they blearily followed me out of the car and each took an arm to help me hobble up our front steps.
“I should have bought bigger shoes for this,” I said. “And my back is killing me. I feel like one of those people who chains themselves to monster truck tires and pulls them around, except they do that on purpose. For fun.”
“No more lugging anything for you,” Nick said. “We’re home now. Nothing to do but rest until Mars Bar and Toffee Crisp decide to—”
“WELCOME HOME!”
Nick stiffened, but I fully shrieked. And then we relaxed at the sight of Gaz, Bea and Gemma, and Lacey and Olly and my mother, who was staying with us in the countdown to the twins’ arrival, waiting for us in our foyer. Gaz bounded over and folded Cilla into his arms as Lacey rushed to hug me.
“You almost broke my water!” I scolded, but I was laughing. “Where’s Danny?”
“My sister’s watching him,” Olly said as he shook Nick’s hand and patted him on the opposite arm. “We didn’t think you’d be up for his brand of chaotic energy after such a big weekend.”
“Sorry for the to-do,” Gemma said, nudging in for the next hug. “Gaz wanted to bring you some snacks, and we decided to have a bit of fun with it.”
“I didn’t want to have fun with it,” Bea said. “I wanted to bring over some legal paperwork to do with the hospital and birthing suite and all our logistical arrangements, and they thrust the fun upon me.”
“Pastries are in the living room,” Gaz said. “In exchange, of course, for wedding gossip.”
“I told you, it was blessedly gossip-free,” Cilla said. “Also, that nondisclosure agreement was quite draconian.”
“You look so tired, sweetie,” Mom said, taking my hand. “Sit down and let us wait on you while you tell us all about it.”
“I’ve been poring over the papers,” Gemma said, trailing me into the living room. “Daphne looked stunning. Everyone is going to be wearing that neckline now.”
I heaved myself down onto the couch with an unladylike grunt and took the copy of the Mail she’d brandished. The front page bore the formal portrait of Daphne and Freddie in a drawing room at the palace, beaming at the camera—him in his uniform and her in an ivory silk Valentino with a high, gentle cowl neckline and three-quarter-length sleeves, her sixteen-foot lace-edged train curling around in front of them. Down in the bottom corner,
