"Love is a Choice" by Gratiana Lovelace, 3/15/13 (Completed)

Ch. 17 (R): Saturday Morning Brings the Promise of New Beginnings

“Love is a Choice”, Ch. 17 (R):  Saturday Morning Brings the Promise of New Beginnings,  April 22, 2013 Gratiana Lovelace

               (An original story by Gratiana Lovelace; All Rights Reserved)

[From time to time, I will illustrate my story with my dream cast of:  Richard Armitage as Lord Rafe Wingate, Carla Gugino as Lady Katharine Wingate, Lesley Nicol as Mrs. Plunkett, Emilie Francois as Anna, Mark Strong as Sir Collin MacGregor, Alan Bates as Lord Charles Wingate, and Christian Bale as Stuart MacGregor, Daniel Day-Lewis as Sir Antony Southwick, Michelle Pfeiffer as Lady Charmaine Southwick, Catherine Deneuve as Lady Esmѐ Sinclair, and others, etc.]    

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Author’s Mature Content Note:  “Love is a Choice” is a story of love and romance set in the early to mid 1800’s.  I like Regency sensibilities with regard to comedy of manners, but Romantic period modes of dress.   Ha!  As such there will be some passages in this story involving heartfelt love scenes (perhaps some R rated) and some passages involving highly dramatic moments.  I will label the maturity rating of those chapters accordingly.  Otherwise, the general rating for this story is PG or PG-13 due to some mature situations and topics.  If you are unable or unwilling to attend a movie with the ratings that I provide, then please do not read the chapters with those labels.  This is my disclaimer.

Author’s Recap from the previous installment:   Lady Charmaine awakened Friday afternoon from her stroke induced unconsciousness to learn that she has lost the memory of the past eight years.  Lady Charmaine loves her husband and she does not recognize her now grown daughter Kathy.  And Sir Antony realizes that his wife’s memory loss has wiped out the eight years of marital strife that they have experienced.  With some negotiation between Lady Charmaine’s Mama, Lady Esmѐ, and Lady Charmaine’s husband, Sir Antony, it is Sir Antony who spends the night by his wife’s side to tend to her needs. She also insisted that he sleep under the covers with her so she may have more restful sleep in his loving arms.  Sir Antony is overjoyed to have his wife back and loving him.  He just worries how long her loving feelings for him will last--especially if she regains her memory?

“Love is a Choice”, Ch. 17 (R):  Saturday Morning Brings the Promise of New Beginnings

After a comfortable and restful night sleeping in her husband’s loving arms, Lady Charmaine begins to awaken around 7 o’clock Saturday morning--just twenty-four hours after her stroke.  She is still a little disoriented and weak due to the stroke and her memory loss.  But her health is on the mend.  She turns to gaze upon her husband lying next to her in bed, enveloping her in his loving embrace as he sleeps.  Her good right arm is bent up toward her face, but her hand lies against his chest--stroking it.  Sir Antony breathes deeply and contentedly.

Lady Charmaine:   Lady Charmaine moves her head a mere inch to her right on the pillow, toward Sir Antony’s face on the pillow.  And she kisses her husband’s lips.  “Hhhhhh!”

Sir Antony:  Sir Antony tenderly but gently kisses his wife back. “Hmmm.”   His eyes are still closed.

Lady Charmaine:  She whispers.  “Are you awake?”  She gets no reply, but his eyebrow twitches in response.  Lady Charmaine grins impishly.  Then she twines her finger around one of Sir Antony’s sparse hairs on his bare chest--and she yanks his chest hairs playfully.

Sir Antony:  “Ow!”  He whines louder than he needs to as he opens his twinkling eyes with a sheepish grin.

Lady  Charmaine:  “I thought so.  You faker!  Ha ha ha!  How long have you been awake?”  Lady Charmaine [(2) right] challenges her husband impishly.