Free After the War Is Over by Jennifer Robson Page A

soft voice faltering near the end; the hymn “Now Thank We All Our God”; the first
     lesson, read by Lilly’s friend Constance Evans, one of the WAACs she’d known in France.
     Then the psalm, sung beautifully by the choir; the second lesson, read by Colonel
     Lewis, who had commanded the clearing hospital where Robbie and Lilly had worked;
     and a mealymouthed homily by the vicar, who was new to the parish and entirely unequal
     to the occasion. And, last, a moment of peace in the Lady Chapel, as she and Edward
     witnessed the marriage register, and Robbie, embracing his wife, bent his head so
     he might hear her whispered thoughts.
    They assembled before the altar, ready to depart, but instead of the expected chords
     from the organ, a surprise: the rising, skirling notes of a single piper outside the
     church. They all looked to Edward.
    “How could I not?” he confessed. “It will give Mama indigestion for days .”
    Outside the sun was shining, the sky was a perfect shade of blue, and a crowd of well-wishers
     from the village was waiting to cheer the bride and groom. Lady Cumberland and her
     daughters and sons-in-law, together with the ever-obedient George, retreated to their
     carriages, not troubling to offer a word of congratulations to the wedded couple.
    Charlotte watched Edward’s face as his family’s carriages moved away, but he betrayed
     no sign of annoyance or disappointment. It wasn’t as if such behavior was unexpected,
     after all.
    He was squinting in the sunlight, his free hand shielding his eyes, and although he
     looked well enough in his morning suit, he was still far too thin. He had shadows
     under his eyes, dark smudges that gave wordless evidence of late nights and lost sleep.
    “Are you—” she began, but he smiled at her and squeezed her arm fraternally.
    “Shall we be off? I’m bound to take longer than everyone else. Ought to have brought
     my cane.”
    “I’ll hold tight,” she offered, and was immediately horrified by her boldness. What
     if he thought . . . ?
    “That’s very kind of you, but I had better offer my arm to Mrs. Fraser. My tiresome
     relations didn’t think to offer her a ride back in the carriages, so I had best see
     to her. And I suppose Helena will wish to walk with me. You’ll be all right, won’t
     you?”
    “Of course. I’ll walk back with Lilly’s other friends.”
    “Then I shall see you back at the hall.”
    She watched as he went over to Lady Helena, who really was looking very pretty, and
     detached her from the group of Cumberland cousins with whom she’d been speaking. He
     then approached Mrs. Fraser and said something that made her smile from ear to ear.
     She offered her arm and he set off with the two women, his pace measured and precise,
     along the graveled path that led back to Cumbermere Hall.
    Feeling a bit like a bump on a log, Charlotte walked over to Lilly’s friends from
     the WAAC—Constance, Bridget, and Annie—all of whom she had met for the first time
     the afternoon before. Most of the wedding guests, with the exception of immediate
     family and Mrs. Fraser, were staying at the Haverthwaite Arms, the village’s modest
     inn. Lady Cumberland hadrefused to countenance hosting everyone at the hall, insisting that she was still
     too overwrought by the loss of her husband to bear the ordeal of having strangers
     under her roof.
    Charlotte had been relieved to be at a distance, even if it meant she saw less of
     Lilly over the wedding weekend than she would have liked. As the inn was small, she
     was sharing a room with Constance, whom she liked enormously.
    “Hello, ladies,” she greeted the women. “Shall we make our way back to the hall for
     the wedding breakfast?”
    “Would love to know why they call it breakfast when it’s nigh on half past twelve,”
     Annie grumbled. “Shouldn’t it be the wedding dinner?”
    “Hush, you,” said Bridget. “Quit your mithering.”
    “I hope this breakfast is easier