It was Burgess that had realized what was happening, despite Kaethe’s protests that her backache was simply a bit sharper than usual. And it was he that swept her up, ran for her bedchamber and all but hurled the poor footman into the hall to summon Hesperia Sigenheim.
None too soon, as it turned out, for the labor went from impending to immediate faster than either von Blau had been prepared for. Burgess had nearly pulled the chamber door from the hinges when he’d thrown himself out to pelt through the house, bellowing for the Sigenheim.
The household had been expecting the birth of Josef’s children, and Hesperia had not been far, but Burgess had been beside himself before the albino had a chance to get down the stairs.
Being banished from the bedchamber had done no good for his nerves, and he paced until an errant foot nearly cracked a floor tile when he put it down too heavily. Although he knew Kaethe was in no real danger with Hesperia attending, her cries had been too much and Burgess had fled to the garden.
By the time the twins were lain in Kaethe’s arms, she had already forgotten the brief determination to never do that again. And gazing at the small, wrinkled faces, her color returned with a rush.
“...Lucinda,” the musician breathed, lowering her head to kiss her daughter’s hand. She almost laughed when she felt the other child stir, head turning blindly to seek her warmth. “And you... Engel.”
It was on the tip of her tongue to ask Hesperia if Josef would approve of the names, but the infants were a more immediate concern, present as they were, nuzzling at her breasts and making faint, mewling sounds. The silvery down on their heads, wide, unfocused blue eyes, tiny hands and feet, small limbs and velvety skin...
Kaethe didn’t even look up when she heard her uncle’s voice in the hallway, so entranced was she with the sight of the children she’d never imagined she would have.
“You have Josef’s chin. And I think the shape of his eyes, or you will...” Kaethe did laugh aloud when she was helped upright, pillows tucked beneath her arms, and the babies settled back in her grasp. Months of anxiety, pain, discomfort and worry had vanished the moment she laid eyes on the children, and now she couldn’t even find it in her heart to fret about Josef finding them distasteful. Or finding her distasteful.
He had given her two beautiful children, and that was more than she could ever have asked for.