Marriage of Practicality--3 Book Box Set by Betty Neels

Author:Betty Neels
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Mills & Boon Special Release
Published: 2015-01-15T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER SIX

LAVINIA WAS curled up in a corner of one of the great sofas in the drawing-room of the Amsterdam house, leafing through a pile of magazines, and opposite her, sitting in his great wing chair, was Radmer, reading his post. They had been married that morning, and as she stole a quick glance at him, the wry thought that anyone coming into the room might have mistaken them for an old married couple crossed her mind. She dismissed it at once as being unworthy. No one could have been kinder than Radmer during the last two days, and at least he liked her, she thought bleakly. He had considered her every wish and his generosity had been never-ending. She turned a page and bent her head, pretending to read while she reflected on the past forty-eight hours or so. She was bound to admit that everything had gone splendidly. They had arrived back with Peta to find Sibby waiting for them, and the liking between the two girls had been instantaneous and genuine; she had felt almost sick with relief, and Radmer, who had been watching her, had flung an arm around her shoulders and observed easily: ‘Exactly as I anticipated; they’re just right for each other—give them six months and they’ll be as close as sisters.’

Lavinia had been grateful for his quick understanding, but when she had tried to thank him he had stopped her with a careless word and gone on to talk about something quite trivial. And that night, after the hilarious dinner they had shared with the girls, he had taken her to spend the night with an aunt of his—a nice old lady living on the other side of Amsterdam in a massive house furnished in the heavy style of Biedermeier. She had been surprised at being whisked off in that fashion; quite under the impression that she would stay in Radmer’s house. It was only after he had left her with Mevrouw Fokkema that that lady had remarked in her slow, careful English: ‘It is correct that you stay here until your marriage, my dear—we are an old-fashioned family, but we all know, and dear Radmer too, what is due to a ter Bavinck bride.’

Lavinia, somewhat taken aback, had smiled and agreed, and wished that her betrothed had taken leave of her with a little more warmth; his casual: ‘See you tomorrow, Lavinia,’ had sounded positively brotherly.

But the next day had been all right. He had fetched her after breakfast and although he had been at the hospital most of the day, she and the two girls had gone shopping together and come home laden with parcels and talking excitedly about the wedding; at least Peta and Sibby had; Lavinia had been wholly occupied in overcoming a severe attack of cold feet… She thought that she had concealed her apprehension rather well, but that evening, when the girls had gone to Sibby’s room to try on their new dresses and she had found

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