"It is true that she was not born in England," the duchess responded, but then, neither was the queen. It is another thing that they have in common, becoming used to their new homeland. It helps her majesty to acclimate, and now that she is expecting a child, do we not want her to be especially happy? Come now, Estella, do not be jealous. Lady Hawkesworth will soon be gone, and very unlikely to return to London for some time. She is admittedly a country woman as opposed to a city woman, and does not really enjoy the court."

"Well, it is a fact that the court is duller now than in the old king's time," Lady Jarvis said. "All this high moral tone is irritating, and the strong emphasis on family that the king is promoting is amazing, especially considering his own background. King George I was always at odds with his son, the second George, and the second George was at odds with his eldest son, whom we all called Poor Fred. Both these previous Georges flaunted their German mistresses, but, by God, the court was fun then! I wonder if Poor Fred would have had his ladies, too, had he become king, but alas, he died when his son was thirteen, and now that lad is our king, and a man grown who claims that the family and the land are everything that a good Englishman needs to be happy. Gracious! What sort of thing is that for a king to say?"

"Vhat is dat you say about the king?" young Queen Charlotte said, just catching a vague reference to her husband.

"I was saying that his majesty rightly believes that one's family and one's lands constitute complete happiness, your majesty," Lady Jarvis responded quickly.

"Indeed, yes," the queen replied with a smile, and then she turned to Aurora, who was seated by her side. "You are so fortunate to live in the country, your grace. I love our little house in Kew, but it is said of it dat it is not majestic enough. His majesty is purchasing Buckingham House in Pimlico for us because there have been complaints dat our dear Dutch House is much too simple." She lowered her voice. "I do not like grand houses. You cannot get comfortable in a grand house, and there are too many prying eyes in a grand house. Do you have a grand house?"

"Hawkes Hill is a large home, your majesty, and set most beautifully in its own park and woodlands, but I do not think it palatial, although it is certainly larger than my home on St. Timothy."

"Do you miss St. Timothy?" the queen asked.

"I miss my family, and the sunny, warm days," Aurora said thoughtfully, "but my home is wherever Valerian is now."

The queen nodded, then said shyly, "Do you love him?"

"Yes," Aurora answered simply.

"Good! Dat is very good. I am coming to love my George. He is a fine man, but of course none can know him as I do because he is the king." She sighed. "It is very hard to be a king, you know. Everyone vants your attention, your favor, and for the king to do things their vay." Her blue eyes twinkled, and she gently patted her belly. "Poor little Liebling, this baby of mine. He vill not have an easy life. Do you vant Kinder… children?"

"I may be with child now, your majesty," Aurora confided. "I cannot be certain because I have no one to advise me if my symptoms are those of a breeding woman. Martha, my serving woman, might know, for she was my mother's servant, but she cannot keep a secret. I might ask my husband's grandmother, but she is at Hawkes Hill."

"Has your link vit the moon been broken?" the queen queried.

"Yes."

"Are your breasts beginning to feel fuller? Are your nipples sore?" the queen continued in a soft voice.

"Yes."

"Do you feel a revulsion for certain foods, or a desire for others?"

Aurora nodded. "I do!"

"Then more than likely you are vit child, your grace. Vould you like me to arrange dat you see the royal physician?"

"I would be most grateful, your majesty," Aurora said. "We are not due to arrive home until May first. I do not want to wait until then to consult Dr. Carstairs. I would know now."

"I vill arrange it," the queen said. Then she giggled. "Do you think dat Lady Jarvis looks like her spaniel?"

"I do," Aurora agreed, and the two young women were overtaken by a fit of conspiratorial laughter.

"Such silly creatures," Lady Jarvis murmured to the other women. "I do hope that the queen will gain a more regal manner as she grows older. Young women are so impossible."

"I think the queen and Lady Hawkesworth most charming," the Duchess of Hamilton said. "Their youth is infectious, and it keeps us all younger by association. I know I like that!"

The doors to the queen's drawing room opened, and the king entered with Valerian Hawkesworth by his side. They bowed to the ladies, and then the king said to his wife, "Lotte, Hawkesworth has been telling me the most fascinating things about his village mills. The cotters weave their own cloth to his specifications, from his own wool and the additional wool he purchases. He then sells the cloth and allows them to share in the profits!"

"Vhy do you not keep all the profits for yourself, your grace?" the queen asked curiously.

"Because by allowing my tenants to share the proceeds of their own labor, they become more involved in that labor. Our cloth is finer than others because my people know the better the cloth, the higher the price. By allowing them to partake a bit of the profits, they work harder to gain me a better cloth which sells at a better price, your majesty," the duke explained. "The extra income they gain gives them a better life for their families. I have even allowed certain of the families to put money aside for the purchase of their cottages, although I retain the land beneath those cottages. That, in turn, absolves me of maintaining those particular dwellings, although I insist upon a certain standard of maintenance and withhold moneys from those who do not make the proper repairs and keep their cottages whitewashed neatly."

"You are, it vould seem," the queen said, "a strict master but a fair one. Dat is good, is it not, George?"

"Aye," the king agreed. Then he said, "Will you join me at bowls upon the lawn later, Hawkesworth. I am much interested in your breeding methods for cattle. Bute says they are superior, and result in strong stock."

The duke bowed. "I should be delighted to share my knowledge with your majesty," he replied.

"Farmer George, and the farmer duke," Lady Jarvis said low, her tone scathing. "What will happen to the country with such a ruler?"

"I think England will be a far better place when this king leaves it than when he took up his scepter of office," the Duchess of Hamilton said softly.

"Cattle breeding and weaving," sniffed Lady Jarvis. "What on earth is the world coming to, I wonder." Her tone was less discreet than it had been before, and the king overheard her.

"You enjoy a good dinner of beef, my dear lady," he said sternly, "and without weavers of cloth you should be as naked as a newborn babe, madam. Thank God, I say, for the land, and all that it produces, and thank God for the English yeoman farmer!"

Publicly censured, Lady Jarvis looked most uncomfortable, especially as the queen and the Duchess of Farminster had begun to giggle at the mention of nakedness. She flushed irritably, but wisely held her tongue for the moment.


***

Because Aurora wanted to surprise her husband with the news of a possible heir, the queen arranged for the royal physician to examine the duchess privately at the Dutch House on the same day the doctor paid her majesty his weekly visit. He confirmed Aurora's suspicions with a smile.

"Indeed, your grace, you are most definitely with child. From my examination, and from the information you have supplied me with, I should say the heir is due around Martinsmas in November. You are a healthy young woman, and should have no difficulty."

"Will it be safe for us to travel back to Herefordshire at the end of April?" Aurora asked him. "Or should we depart now?"

"It is only the matter of a few weeks, your grace," said the doctor. "I see no reason for you to disrupt plans already made. I presume you have a well-sprung and comfortable traveling coach? And the trip must be made in gentle stages, of course."

"May I ride? The coach is so confining, and I have begun to feel quite queasy of late from motion," the told him.

"As long as you are extremely careful, do not subject yourself to undue jolting-no galloping, madam-and do not become overtired, I see no reason you cannot ride an hour or two a day. The queasiness will pass, your grace, I promise you. And when you reach home, you are to inform your own physician of your condition. You do have a doctor in your vicinity?"

"We do," Aurora assured him. Then she said, "Please do not tell anyone that I am with child, sir. I would surprise my husband. His first wife, my half sister, died in childbirth. I may wait until we are home to announce my condition. He will only worry unduly, and I am not like Cally at all. I am going to have lots of babies!"

The royal doctor smiled. "A good attitude, and a happy heart are most important when a woman is in your condition, your grace. My lips are sealed." He bowed to her, and departed.

The queen hurried into the room. "Veil?" she demanded.

Aurora nodded, beaming happily.

"Vhen?" Queen Charlotte was smiling too.

"November," Aurora said. "Only you and the doctor know, your majesty, and he has agreed to keep my secret. I hope you will too. I don't want to tell Valerian until we reach home. We will be leaving soon, and he will just fuss at me, remembering Cally's difficulties. My sister hated being with child, but I am joyful! History will not repeat itself in this case."