A Daughter's Duty

Epilogue:

     Charles stood outside the bedroom, trying his hardest to listen in on what was going on within. Several of the maids passed by him carrying clean towels, linens, and blankets. All of them nodded their heads towards him as they went into Cordelia's bedroom, mumbling "my lord," as they quickly closed the door so that he could not see what was going on inside. 

     Just as they closed the door, he heard Cordelia scream. He jolted up from his seat and began banging on the door. "Elizabeth, please allow me to come in," he yelled to Cordelia's friend. He saw Elizabeth's head peek out from behind the door and she turned to look at him.

     "You really must try to acquire some patience, Charles. Rome wasn't built in a day..." She let out a 'tsk tsk' as she turned away back into the room. 

     "Is she okay?" He asked nervously.

     "Elizabeth sighed and turned around. "Your wife is doing fine, baby Heyworth is just taking her time," she admitted, retreating into the darkness of the room. 

     "His time," Charles mumbled under his breath. While Cordelia was adamant that they've been expecting a girl, Charles had sworn it would be another bouncing baby boy. Speaking of baby boys, their first child, Alfie, was bounding down the hallway with a governess chasing after him. 

     "Alfred Charles Heyworth, what on earth are you doing out here?" Charles exclaimed, picking up his six-year-old son and giving him a kiss on the head. He had inherited Cordelia's eyes, though he looked exactly like Charles in every other regard. 

     "Papa, Mrs. Kenning was trying to force me to read. When I hear Mama yell, I thought that meant my baby sister was here..." He trailed off, looking for the baby that appeared to not be in sight. Like Cordelia, Alfie was hoping for a baby sister. He was already very protective of his own Mama, so if the baby truly was a girl, he knew Alfie was prepared to be her own personal bodyguard. 

     "Mrs. Kenning, perhaps you should retire for the day, I can look after my son," Charles suggested. The governess breathed a sigh of relief, and she turned to the staircase to go down to her quarters. Cordelia and Charles knew their little boy was a bit of a troublemaker, but they hoped he would grow out of it someday. At the thought of having another son like Alfie, Charles inhaled sharply. 

     He and Cordelia loved being parents. She found out that she was pregnant shortly after their honeymoon, and Charles couldn't have been more excited. Watching the life within her grow and grow and knowing that it was something they had created together was, to him, the greatest miracle on earth. 

     When it wasn't necessary, they gave Mrs. Kenning time off so that they may parent their son on their own. Perhaps that was why he was so rambunctious. Looking at his rounded pink cheeks, Charles couldn't help but want to give him the world. Alfie was their pride, and he must know it too, for he often walked around like he was the young prince of England!

     He was named for Cordelia's dear father, Lord Alfred, who had passed just before Alfie's birth. Cordelia was heartbroken. After he permitted the engagement between her and Charles, Cordelia and Alfred had grown inseparably close. Alfred helped both Charles and Cordelia learn to run the estate, and was an important mentor for Charles.

     In his lap, Alfie was squirming and restless, and while Charles understood his restlessness, his son was making him more anxious. "Alfie, have I ever told you the story of how I got your mother to agree to marry me?"

     The two sat in the chair for what felt like hours, waiting for Elizabeth to come outside to announce the birth. Charles hoped his story was helping Alfie to drown out the sounds of his mother in labor. Eventually, he noticed Alfie's dark lashes fluttering and eventually, closing shut. He held his sleeping son in his arms and thought back to the very first time he'd met his beautiful wife. 

     While he knew it was uncommon for a man of his station to solely be faithful to his wife, Charles wouldn't dare to imagine a world in which he was anything but. He felt like the luckiest man on earth to share a life with her, and loving her was the easiest and most natural thing he'd ever done. Holding his perfect son in his arms, he realized that he wouldn't have wanted their story to go any other way. 

     Looking at Alfie while he slept, Charles realized whatever the baby's sex was, as long as they and their mother were healthy and happy, he couldn't care about anything else. He heard a bit of commotion from the wall behind him and Elizabeth popped her head out from the doorway once more. 

     "Charles, would you like to meet your daughter?" She asked with a huge smile on her face. Charles realized his smile was just as big-perhaps bigger-and he picked up his son and walked into the room.

     "Alfie, wake up son, meet your little sister!" Cordelia said, smiling at the beautiful family that was now sharing the bed with her. Alfie's eyes fluttered open and he grinned. 

     "I told you Papa!" Charles kissed him on the head and reached for his pink baby girl.

     "Mama, what are you gonna name her?" Alfie asked, trying to peel back the blanket she was swaddled in to peek at her face. Cordelia looked to the love of her life, and back down to the daughter they created together. 

     "Well, I haven't spoken to Papa about it yet, but I was thinking, what about Pearl Elizabeth Heyworth?" Cordelia questioned to Charles. Charles looked down at the tiny bundle in his arms. Her hair was the same shade of brown as Cordelia's, but she had inherited Charles' side of the family's recessive blue eyes. 

     "Welcome to the family, my Pearl."