Of course she went to the funeral. There'd never been any doubt in her mind that she would. She wasn't even really sure why. Perhaps it was simply a morbid curiosity to find out what a grieving Henry would be like.

At the chapel, she signed the register, sat in one of the back rows, and looked around to see who else was there. Henry's sisters and their husbands, Jane's brothers and their wives, Charles and Anna, Catalina and Maria Tudor, and a couple dozen people she didn't know.

Jane lay in the open casket at the front, her blonde ringlets perfectly arranged against her pale skin, her eyes closed as if in peaceful slumber. Henry sat in the front row, his face wet with tears, family members trying to comfort him, to no avail.

As the priest began the ceremony, Anne found her eyes drifting toward Catalina and Maria over and over again. Would a funeral be an appropriate time to attempt to make amends? She knew that, regardless of how Henry had treated her, Catalina had never stopped loving him and had always thought of herself as his true wife. With the birth of his much desired son and the loss of Jane, would she hope to recapture his love?

At last the rites were over, and the pallbearers lifted the casket and began to carry it to the grave site, Anne and the others all following behind. At one point during the following brief service, it looked as if Henry was about to lurch from his seat in the front row and throw his body over the casket and was being forcibly held back by family members.

When the priest finished speaking, she looked at Catalina, and the two women's eyes met. Gathering her courage, Anne took a few steps toward Catalina. "I'm sorry," she said. Catalina barely nodded in acknowledgement. "He did the same thing to me too, you know," she added.

"Yes." Catalina's voice was crisp, precise. "I heard about your miscarriage. I am sorry."

"Thanks." They both looked at Henry, who was barely able to stand.

"Now it is his turn to know sorrow." Catalina's voice held no malice.

"Yes."

"So how are things for you now?" Anne was surprised to hear Catalina speak again. "Someone new, perhaps?"

"I've been dating this locksmith I met one day when I was stupid enough to lock my keys up in my car." Anne chuckled, and Catalina smiled. "He's kind of shy, but he's really sweet. How about you?"

Catalina shook her head. "I no longer desire marriage. I've decided to dedicate my life to the Lord and his work instead. I am happy for you though, and I hope your new romance works out."

"Thanks." Anne felt as if a weight had been lifted off her shoulders. She turned to Catalina's daughter. "How have you been, Maria?"

"Fine, thanks." The teenager smiled.

"She's doing well in school," said Catalina. "I'm proud of her."

Anne exchanged greetings with Charles and Anna, and then Henry appeared, gazing at her with bloodshot, swollen eyes. "Thanks for coming," he mumbled.

"How's Edward?" asked Anne.

"Doing well. He's a beautiful baby." Henry gave a slight smile.

Anne had very mixed feelings as she drove home. Although relieved that Catalina and Maria seemed to no longer feel ill will toward her, the tragic circumstances of their reconciliation caused a deep melancholy to settle over her.

She spent a quiet evening at home, and was busy the next day catching up on housework. Later, she took a short nap, then showered and got ready for her date with Louis.

She was in the middle of putting on her makeup when he arrived, looking very handsome in black slacks and a grey shirt, his cologne smelling very sexy.

"Come on in and have a seat," she told him. "I'll be ready in a few minutes."

"Sorry I'm a little early," he replied.

"Oh, that's all right!" She returned to the bathroom, where she applied blush to her other cheek, then put on lipstick and lip liner. When she was satisfied that everything was perfect, she went back to the living room, where she found Louis staring at the abstract painting on the wall. He turned to her and smiled.

"Ready to go?"

"Yep!"

He opened her car door for her, as she'd known he would.

"Nice weather we've been having, isn't it?" he asked as he was driving to the restaurant.

"Gorgeous," Anne agreed. "It was a bit windy at the cemetery yesterday."

"Oh yeah, that's right. How did that go?"

"Very depressing, of course, although I did get up the courage to talk to Catalina. "Turns out she isn't still mad at me, after all."

"That's good." Louis smiled. "He must really be something else to have had both his ex-wives attend his third wife's funeral."

Anne laughed. "He's something else, all right." Just not in a good way. "I thought Catalina might still be carrying a torch for him, but she told me she wants to dedicate the rest of her life to the Lord's work. I guess she means like joining a convent or something."

Louis gave an approving nod. "A noble ambition." It occurred to Anne that she and Louis had never really discussed religion.

They entered the restaurant and were handed menus. "Order whatever you want," Louis told Anne, but she remembered what he'd told her about saving money for Reese's visit and ordered a medium-priced dish. Louis ordered only a salad for himself.

"You can't be serious!" Anne exclaimed.

"Really, it's fine. I'm just not very hungry tonight," Louis replied, but Anne suspected he'd probably wolf down a couple of bologna sandwiches when he got home that night.

When her own food arrived, she ate slowly and kept offering to share with him. He accepted a couple of bites but turned all subsequent ones down. When she finished eating, he asked if she wanted dessert.

"Oh no, that's all right," she told him.

"Would you still like to walk around the mall? Like I said, I'm really sorry I can't afford a movie this time."

"That's OK. We could do that. There's a couple of shops I'd like to look around in."

He drive the short distance to the mall, and they entered it holding hands.