There's Something About Lady Mary by Sophie Barnes Read Free Book Online Page A

nod. “Answer me honestly, Miss Pinksworth. Are you likely to faint at the sight of blood?”
    “N. . .no, my lady. I believe I shall be quite all right.”
    “Good, because I am going to need someone to keep the bladder out of the way while I open up the uterus. Do you think you can manage that?”
    Lucy’s face paled momentarily, but then she appeared to pull herself together “I. . .yes, I believe I can,” she replied with a surprising amount of conviction as she watched Mary fish her tools out of the boiling water before setting them side by side on a clean white towel.
    “All right,” Mary said as she drew a long breath. “Then let us get started.”
    I t took about an hour for Mary to complete the operation, and since the viscountess fainted from the pain very early on, Lord Arlington and Helmsley were left with very little to do. Lucy, on the other hand, performed admirably. She followed Mary’s instructions to the letter, without flinching as much as once.
    “Congratulations, Lord Arlington,” Mary said as she lifted a squealing baby from its mother’s womb. “It looks as though you have a very healthy baby boy.” She handed the child over to Lucy and began the monotonous process of stitching up her patient.
    As she finished the last of the stitches, Mary finally allowed herself to relax. She looked up at Helmsley, who was showing marked signs of relief. Lady Arlington and the baby were both alive for now. She knew that they weren’t out of danger yet, but a strong feeling told her that all would be well with both mother and child.
    A soft sniffle caught Mary’s attention. “Thank you,” Lord Arlington choked as he looked at her through misty eyes. “Thank you, thank you, thank you.”
    “You are most welcome, my lord,” Mary said as she placed a reassuring hand upon his arm. “Of course, we will need to monitor your wife closely for the next few days, but I do believe that she will be all right. The internal suture was done using catgut, so it will dissolve on its own, but I shall have to take out the external stitches once the wound is fully healed. In the meantime, I will stay with you until she wakes up. Depending on how she is feeling, we will decide on a time for me to return and check up on her.”

 

C HAPTER F IVE
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    I t was five thirty in the morning by the time Mary made her way to bed, so exhausted that she collapsed fully clothed on top of her covers, her feet dangling precariously over the edge. When she eventually woke up again, it was past noon, and by the time she made it downstairs, fully dressed and with her hair styled to perfection, it was almost one.
    The minute she walked into the parlor, she froze. There were flowers not only on every surface but on the floor as well: roses in a wide array of colors, chrysanthemums, lilies, and carnations, all beautifully arranged in bouquets of varying sizes. Mary just stood there and stared. “Thornton?” The butler appeared at her side instantaneously. “What on earth is going on?”
    “Well, I can take it to mean only one thing, my lady. You must have made quite an impression last night at Richmond House—these flowers have been arriving all morning. And now that it is past lunch time, you will probably be receiving your first caller at any—” The doorbell rang. “Moment,” he finished.
    Mary stared at Thornton in horror. “You don’t mean to tell me that. . .but I just got out of bed. I cannot possibly receive anyone now.”
    “I can fend them off for a while, my lady, but I cannot keep them at bay forever. There is a plate of food for you in the dining room, which will no doubt do you a world of good after all that gallivanting about last night.” He gave her a disapproving look. “In the meantime, I shall see who is at the door; after all, it is the polite thing to do.”
    Mary paused only long enough to realize that once the front door was opened, whoever had decided to call upon her would be likely to