Page 68 of Tempest and Sunshine
Then, with a sigh, she rested her head against his shoulder. “I feel quite spent. Mrs. Hatwell only participates because she adores designing the decorations, and she is forever insisting we need to spend more on frippery, which eventually leads to disagreements. I wish she would sit out for one or two events, but she is determined to join us for each of them.”
Resting a hand on the swell that held their child, George placed a kiss on her head. “You ought not to rile yourself up so, Marian.”
She lifted her head enough to give him a teasing scowl and poked him in the ribs. “If you start lecturing me about my ‘delicate state’ like all the others, you shall regret it, sir. This child is hardy and hale, and given how rambunctious he is, he isn’t going to be harmed because his mama works herself into a dither from time to time.”
As though to punctuate that point, a little foot pushed against George’s hand, and Marian laid her head back down, her hand coming to join her husband’s. Her fingers entwined with his, resting atop their child as the babe shifted.
“I have thought of hosting a function on my own,” she said, “but I am afraid of managing the whole of it. Do you think your mother and sisters might wish to join me?”
With Marian’s gaze fixed on the fireplace, she could not see the smile stretching across George’s face. It filled the whole of him until he was certain he would burst. “I think they would like that very much.”
Pressing another kiss to her forehead, George rested his head against hers. He’d thought the night of their engagement the finest of his life. Then came the wedding, which surpassed that. And then, the moment she announced that their family was going to grow. Each brought a new wave of bliss, expanding until George was certain he had never understood what “happy” meant before Marian.
But if those pivotal moments served as the bones of their joy, all these little snippets were the sinew that bound them together. These seemingly small points were nothing grand from an outsider’s perspective but meant so very much to George. Someone listening in might think Marian’s question unimportant—she, herself, likely did not understand—but it was indicative of just how well his wife mixed with his family, blending together with more than mere politeness but a true sense of friendship and love.
Never was a man more blessed than he.
*
Her husband presented Marian with a bit of a paradox. Her temper would likely never ebb entirely, but when George set his mind to calming her, she struggled to keep hold of her fury. Which was a shame, as Marian thoroughly enjoyed the methods he employed in doing so. And thus, she was trapped between loathing and loving her slips in control. Perhaps she ought not to improve too much. A bit of temper might not go amiss.
“I received word that Mr. Tomlinson suffered an accident,” said George. “It seems he injured his leg and will be unable to work for some time. Perhaps we might do something for him and his family. With their newest addition, Mrs. Tomlinson has her hands full.”
In a trice, her thoughts sped with all that might be done, and though her heart ached for the family and fretted over their future, Marian stilled as she considered what George had said. She lifted her head and studied her husband. He met her gaze, though his expectant expression lacked any awareness of what he had said. He truly did not see how often he did that of late. Though not always quick to know how to solve such problems, George was becoming quite the font of insight into the troubles of their neighbors and friends, as he was just the sort of person others confided in.
“The world requires both tempests and sunshine to thrive.”
Marian hadn’t entirely understood George’s words when he’d spoken them. Of course, much of that was the shock of having him spout such lovely things. And his kisses were quite divine. However, those words came back to her time and time again as the months passed and she noticed the little changes they wrought in each other. And for all that Marian had hoped for a knight in shining armor, she thought the reality that presented itself was far preferable. Not one saving the other, but the two helping each other.
Touching his cheek, Marian guided his lips to hers. “I love you, Mr. Finch.”
“And I love you, Mrs. Finch,” came the smiling response before George leaned forward to steal another kiss.
