He looked startled for a moment, then let out a whoop of joy and spun me around. "My darling Anna, you have made me a happy man indeed!"

He kept his arm tightly around me as we walked inside together. He regaled me with tales of life at court, while I filled him in on what the children and I had been up to. I knew that he left out the most sordid aspects of the latest goings-on, as he knew that my sensitive nature was easily upset by them.

King Henry invited me to Whitehall Palace to celebrate Christmas. I sent two lovely horses ahead as a present for his new Queen, Katherine Howard. Charles Brandon, the Duke of Suffolk, greeted me as I arrived.

"I remember that you once taught me to play cards," I said to him. "I am indebted to you, for as a result, I have won a fortune." He laughed.

Henry greeted me warmly with a big hug. "May I present to you my new Queen, Katherine," he told me.

"I'm greatly honored." I bowed deeply before her. As soon as I saw her, I could easily tell how she'd won the King's heart so effortlessly. She was beautiful: tall, slender, and blonde. Everything that I wasn't.

Yet I wasn't one bit unhappy, as I had everything I could ever ask for materially and, more importantly, I was married to a man who truly loved me, and whose child I now carried within my body.

I enjoyed the Christmas celebration at the palace, chatting with Katherine and dancing. I saw Princess Mary sitting with her betrothed. I smiled at her, and she smiled back. To me she was more like a younger sister than a stepdaughter, and we would soon be cousins.

Later at the dining table, I toasted the King and Queen as he showered her with presents, a lovely brooch and two darling puppies which she generously offered to share with me. As I cuddled the puppy, I thought that perhaps when we returned home, I would ask Ned if we could have one of our own. I'd always adored them, and I knew that the children would love to have a puppy to play with as well.

The wedding of Phillip and Mary took place shortly before we were to leave court and return to Hever Castle. The King's oldest daughter was beautiful in her golden gown with the dark red sleeves and matching head band, while Philip in his blue doublet and black boots and hat had never looked more handsome. Ned and I watched as they exchanged vows, remembering our own wedding day. The newlyweds left for Bavaria right before we began our own journey home.

The children were waiting with their governesses as we arrived. To me if felt like ages since I'd seen them last.

"Papa! Mama!" they exclaimed, running to meet us.

"Darlings!" I hugged first Anne, then Edward. "Did you have fun while we were away?"

"Annie and I made a snowman, Papa!" Edward exclaimed. "John helped me." John was our gardener.

"That's nice," I told my stepson.

"It's all gone now," he told me. "It melted."

"You and I will make another one the next time it snows," Ned promised his son.


At last winter ended, and the snow melted to reveal green grass. Flowers began to bloom, birds to sing. Ned and I went for long walks in the garden of our castle, admiring nature's wonders.

"Is it very important to you that our baby be a boy?" I asked him.

"It would be nice to have another son," he replied. "But to me, it's more important for the child to be healthy."

"If it is a son, may I call him William, for my brother?" I asked.

He considered my question. "William is a fine name. Yes, you may call him that, but what shall we name a daughter?"

I hadn't even considered a girl's name, as I'd been afraid to even entertain the idea that it might be a girl.

"How about Elizabeth, for my sister?" Ned suggested.

"What a lovely name!" I exclaimed. "Yes, let's call her that."

I began to feel my child's movements, usually when I was lying in bed at night. It thrilled me to know that my baby was growing bigger and stronger and that I would soon be able to hold him or her in my arms.

As summer approached, my abdomen grew larger and larger, until eventually it was difficult to move around. I also began to experience backaches. When Ned was home, he could massage my back for me, but when he was gone, I was often miserable indeed.

When July arrived, Ned stayed home from court so that he wouldn't be gone when the baby was born. One day I felt a sudden pain grip my abdomen, one so sharp and sudden that it nearly took my breath away. A few minutes later it happened again, and this time, I felt a trickle of warm water flow down my leg.

"It's time to fetch the midwife," I told my husband.