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A giggle left her lips, and Victoria covered her mouth with her palm. “Does it happen so quickly?”

He shrugged. “It will for us.”

Victoria squirmed in glee. “I will be your wife tomorrow.”

He nodded and kissed her lips once more. “And when your uncle finds out?” There was a hint of worry in his eyes.

But her smile broadened, and she answered with every ounce of confidence she possessed, “I shall stand by your side. As your wife.”

Chapter 14

When Victoria stepped inside the women’s shelter, she immediately sensed a festive atmosphere. She couldn’t quite pinpoint what was going on, but the house was bustling, with women running back and forth, their faces lit up with huge smiles.

Those smiles only widened when they noticed her and her escort—the carriage driver, Matthew, and the guards—entering through the door.

“Princess!” Maggie, the housekeeper of the shelter, cried from the staircase landing. “We were waiting for you. Please, come inside. And we’ve been waiting for you lads, too,” she added, gesturing to the men.

The first time Victoria had arrived with her new escort, the men had followed her inside just to check for safety and had spent the rest of the day inside the carriage. The second time, Maggie had invited them to stay for a meal, and ever since then, they had been spending most of their time in the kitchen, eating hearty meals and flirting with the house’s inhabitants.

The men immediately bowed out and rushed into the kitchen, while Victoria followed Maggie into the main room.

That’s when the surprise greeted her. All the women currently residing at the shelter stood in a line. Gertrude, the woman who had stayed at the shelter the longest and acted as an assistant to Maggie most of the time, had two large sacks by her side.

“Ever since we heard of your wedding, we have been hard at work,” Maggie said. “Everyone here loves you, and we wanted to give you a gift.”

Victoria was so surprised she was momentarily speechless.

“We collected them into these sacks and prepared them for you!” Gertrude added.

Excited and deeply touched by the gesture, Victoria thanked everyone profusely.

“Do you want to look through them?” The women led her to the bed, and she opened one of the sacks, going through every gift they had given her. All the gifts were handmade with such care that Victoria felt tears gathering in the back of her eyes. She looked in awe at beautiful quilts, a gorgeous dressing gown with multiple layers of frills, bedsheets, and even curtains embroidered with beautiful patterns.

“You must have worked so hard!” Victoria said, recognizing the amount of labor that must have gone into these items.

“We wanted to show you our appreciation,” Maggie said. “You’ve spent so much time with us when you should have been spending this time with your new husband. Not only that, but ever since you stepped into this shelter, you’ve filled this house with hope. Even just that is a significant accomplishment, not to mention all the new patrons you’ve involved. All of the items we’ve made for you are from silks and other materials the ladies donated during your ball! And we have quite a bit to spare.”

“We wish to start selling things such as these!” Gertrude added. “To raise money for the upkeep of the shelter. We couldn’t be more grateful. And we hoped we could give a little back.”

“Thank you very much. You are all so kind, but it’s my pleasure. I do this because I love it, because I want to make a change in people’s lives, and helping you is an outlet for my soul. I do not need praise or gifts. And I am happy to be your first customer and pay for all this!”

“Oh, but making these things was our pleasure,” Maggie said. “Take them as gifts. And if you like them and decide there’s something more you need for yourself, your new home, or perhaps your husband, we shall happily accept your paying order.”

Victoria looked at the quality gifts she’d acquired in awe. “I already know that I shall be ordering a lot more! And perhaps at the next ball, we can have a little auction!”

“Great idea, as usual!” Maggie chuckled, before noticing that a few children had toddled into the room, and chaos started to unfold around them. She turned toward the women. “Very well, I think it’s best that you all move along now and take care of your usual business.”

Gertrude timidly approached Victoria, her cheeks flushed. “Did um… Did Matthew come with you today?”

Victoria tried to conceal her surprise, but she was probably unsuccessful.

Had she missed Gertrude’s interest in her carriage driver? Matthew was a young man roughly the same age as William judging solely on his appearance. He was a good-looking man with a gentle spirit. What he was doing in William’s employ, Victoria had a difficult time understanding.

She did notice his eagerness to drive her to the women’s shelter. Was that eagerness based on the prospect of seeing Gertrude?

Victoria smiled. “Yes. He and the guards, John and Bryce, are in the kitchen.”

“Should I warm up a meal for them, Maggie?” Gertrude asked, fairly brimming with excitement.