Miss Pendleton (Update to C.222 END) - Chapter 214

“Jane Hyde, you little rascal.”

Ian Dalton strode forward with large steps and scooped Jane into his arms. Jane, her face a mess of tears and snot, scrunched up her reddened cheeks. A droplet of snot, precariously perched at the tip of her nose like a soap bubble, swelled and shrank with each puff of her breath.

“Your crying could be heard all the way to the registry office. Stop it!”

Jane, of course, paid no heed to Ian’s scolding and continued to wail as if her life depended on it. Fortunately, Ian knew a more effective method.

“Whee! Whee!”

He held the child with both hands, stretching his arms out and lifting her up and down in the air. After about a dozen rounds, her crying stopped abruptly. Jane looked at her father with a dazed “huh?” expression.

He let out a sigh of relief and cradled the child in his arms. Having often held his nieces and nephews when they were babies, his movements were reassuringly steady.

Gently rocking Jane, he glanced at Laura Pendleton. She was leaning back in a rocking chair, smiling. It was a weary smile.

“Jane still doesn’t seem to like this world very much.”

“She’ll be fine soon. Olivia Fairfax was just like her. After a couple of months, she settled down.”

“So we just need to endure one more month.”

Laura leaned deeper into the chair’s backrest. Dark shadows lingered under her eyes. Soothing Jane and breastfeeding both children had kept her from deep sleep.

“Did the birth registration at the registry office go well?”

“Yes. It was simpler than I expected. Now both of them are proper British subjects.”

Laura gave a shy smile.

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