When I looked up at him, he cupped my face and kissed me.
“Say again you’ll be my wife?” he asked, his lips brushing against mine.
“I’ll be your wife,” I murmured.
He kissed me swiftly again and then scooped up my pencil and sketchbook. “Your drawings.”
And, hand in hand, we left Celeste’s garden.
? DIANA ?
Diana peeled off her gloves and lifted the little gray hat from her hair, careful not to catch the net in the wave at her temple. It had been a long journey back from London, where she’d ensured that all of the loose ends were tied up. But now it was done, and in the crocodile handbag she kept firmly on her arm, she had her future.
“Thank you, Mrs. Dibble,” she said, handing her things off to the housekeeper but retaining her handbag. “Do you know where Miss Adderton is?”
“She was in the kitchen garden with Mrs. Hastings. I believe Mrs. Hastings was casting an eye over the potato crop to see if they’re ready to be lifted,” said Mrs. Dibble.
“Could you please ask them to join me in the morning room?”
Mrs. Dibble bustled off to the cabinet to hang up Diana’s coat.
In the large, gilt-framed entryway mirror, Diana gave her hair a couple of pats to mold it back into place.
“You’re looking very smart.”
She glanced up to see Cynthia and Matron McPherson approach. “I’ve just come back from London.”
“I thought you were only going for a day,” said Cynthia.
“My business delayed me longer than I expected. It necessitated a stay overnight,” she said.
“Where did you stay?” Cynthia asked.
Diana dropped her hand and turned, plastering a smile on her face. “The Harlan Club. I’ve retained my membership.”
“Matron was just remarking on your absence. You’ve missed your usual round of letter writing,” said her sister-in-law.
The pop of Matron’s eyebrows told Diana that the conversation hadn’t quite had the judgmental tone that Cynthia implied.
“I only said that several of the men had letters in this afternoon’s post,” said Matron.
“I’ll be sure to make my way through the wards as soon as I’m finished with some urgent business,” she reassured the head nurse.
Cynthia sighed. With measured calm, Diana unsnapped the clasp of her handbag and pulled out the thinner of two envelopes she’d carried from London.
“It might interest you to know that I saw some old friends in London, including a Mrs. Delmonte, who was a fellow student of my old harp teacher. She began volunteering with the British Red Cross before the war, and she’s found herself rather high up in the Voluntary Aid Detachment. She was particularly interested in the work that you’ve done with Highbury House Hospital, Cynthia. So interested, in fact, that she thought it would be helpful to use your expertise as commandant in a convalescent hospital opening in Wales.”
“I’m needed here,” said Cynthia.
Diana smiled wider as she handed her sister-in-law the envelope. “I think you’ll find all of the details in Mrs. Delmonte’s letter.”
Cynthia snatched the envelope from her and ripped it open. A strange calm settled over Diana as she watched Cynthia scan the letter, then lift a glare to her.
“You’re to become commandant of Highbury House Hospital,” Cynthia spat.
“I am,” she said.
“That’s ridiculous.”
“When the hospital first arrived, I would have agreed with you. I thank you for all of the hard work that you’ve done,” she said.
“This is my family’s home,” said Cynthia.
“You may have spent your childhood here, but this is my home. And it will remain so when the war is over. You would do well to remember that.”
Cynthia paled, but still she pushed. “You don’t know the first thing about running a convalescent hospital.”
Matron McPherson stepped forward. “I have no doubt that, given Mrs. Symonds’s experience managing a house of this size and its staff, she will fit smoothly into the role.”
Diana shot Matron a grateful look, and the other woman returned a small smile.
“I think you’ll see that you are due in Wales in a week’s time, so it’s best if you begin packing your things. I’ll be needing use of your office immediately.” As Cynthia sputtered, Diana inclined her head toward Matron. “I would appreciate it if you could find some time to share a cup of tea and counsel this afternoon. I’m sure I will have many questions.”