Mrs. Brandon: The Story of Christopher and Marianne

Chapter 7 - Hovering Colonel

Thank you for reading! I don't own any of Sense and Sensibility! Please let me know if you enjoy! Updates on the second and fourth Saturday of each month!
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Marianne woke to find a pair of wide eyes staring down at her.

She started as a gasp of utter surprise escaped her lips.

After that split second of shocking terror, she placed a hand over her pounding heart.

Once she recognized who peered at her so vigilantly, she exclaimed in an irritated huff, "Christopher!"

"Are you well this morning, my love?" He frowned as he furrowed his brow in concern while he gazed down at his darling wife.

"Not very well at all right now, you've given me such a fright!" Marianne laughed as she laid her head back on the pillow and willed her racing pulse to slow.

"I noticed that you moved slightly in your sleep." Christopher explained with grave seriousness etched into his face as he looked at his lover worriedly, "Forgive me, I feared the worst."

As Marianne examined the startling softness in her husband's gentle gaze, the irritation fell away from her expression.

Her lips curled into a grin before she smiled and laughed in amusement.

Christopher frowned as he watched his beloved place a hand on his cheek and sigh as she asked, "Christopher, is this about what we spoke of last night?"

"Of course......." He answered in his low drawl, "My darling Marianne, your well-being has been my utmost priority since the day I first heard you sing......However," His eyes flickered down to her middle that lay covered under the sheets before he met her gaze again and went on, "Now, my only concern in this life is to ensure your survival of this process and to see our son or daughter born safely."

Marianne tenderly stroked her husband's face as she looked into his eyes and smiled again.

Her breasts heaved as a heavy sigh escaped her chest.

She wouldn't dare say anything obstinate about the kindness and devotion that her thoughtful husband had already shown her, nor would she dare mock the heightened protectiveness he had displayed mere hours after she had revealed her pregnancy to him.

Regardless, Marianne realized that the next few months would seem terribly long if Christopher intended to hover over her each second of every day.

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Colonel Brandon eagerly announced Marianne's condition despite the midwife's advice that the couple wait until the perilous early period of pregnancy had passed.

The happy news garnered congratulations, gifts, and smiles as British society celebrated the lovely notion that the kind, chivalrous Colonel would finally have a family of his own.

Marianne did her best to appear at the social gatherings required of her.

She made a tremendous attempt to smile, to be polite, and to have patience, but carrying an unborn life presented challenges that she had not expected.

The first few weeks after the midwife's discovery had been easy and without much trouble at all.

However, as one month turned into two, there were many mornings during which Marianne found herself opening her eyes with the urge to vomit.

Whenever she clambered out of bed to lean over the chamber pot, Christopher followed swiftly behind her, careful to hold her hair behind her neck while she finished retching.