Chapter 113: Love Overflows

Suddenly Hendrix realized with all his being that Miss Estella had been in love with him all along, and that filled his heart, emboldening him to be brave.

"Estella, hand me your bouquet of roses, please," he asked, now in his normal calm, most self-assured voice.

Needless to say, that wasn't exactly what Estella had expected.

"Why, forevermore? You've already given them to me. And now you're taking them back?" she asked incredulously.

"Please," his eyes were pleading, and although she didn't understand why, she softened and did as he asked.

"Thank you," he took the flowers and fussed over them a bit, straightening them up till they were perfectly arranged again.

"Estella, you were magnificent tonight, the star of the entire Operetta, And I was so very proud of you! Will you please accept these roses as the family's way, my way, our way together, of congratulating you, honoring you, and loving you?"

Tears sprang to Estella's eyes.

Those perfect words were even beyond what she had hoped to hear.

She adored acting, but her hobby meant nothing if she couldn't share her joy and love of the Theatre with her family, and especially with Hendrix.

But what happened next shocked her.

Hendrix handed her the roses, but this time leaned in and kissed her cheek.

Still shocked, her hand automatically moved to the exact spot where his warm lips had been.

Then he laid her roses aside on the low table in front of the sofa, and walked to the fireplace to stoke the fire, which he brought back to a blazing roar with added kindling.

Standing there in front of the beautifully be-wreathed and garlanded mantel, this reserved, statuesque gentleman shocked her by quickly moving back to her, taking both of her hands.

"Estella, I love you, and have loved you for a very long time."

Estella's tears were now flowing, fully and freely.

How long had she waited to hear these words!

"I hope…I hope with all of my heart that you love me too, my Dear Estella, because I am hopelessly in love with you."

Estella was so overcome she couldn't speak, so she just nodded her head in the affirmative with the broadest smile on her face, shining through her tears.

"Ah, Miss Estella, you have made me the happiest man in the world with that simple nod and magnificent smile!"

Then even more shockingly, Hendrix took Estella in his strong arms, drew her close, and kissed her most properly, leaving her happily aghast and breathless, all at once.

His kiss was passionate, yes, even had Hendrix been French, and it took Estella completely off guard. She had assumed being British, Hendrix might be much more reserved as far as affairs of the heart might go.

But goodness, was she ever thrilled to be wrong as wrong could be!

Estella felt dizzy like she was eighteen-years-old all over again, yet more wonderful than she could have ever imagined.

Never had she been kissed like this…


In the Keeping Room before a rousing fire, Nathan sat absent-mindedly dunking his cookies in his milk just as he had done when he was a ten-year-old, while Millicent sat close, contentedly nibbling on dried fruit and nuts, in a continued conscious effort to raise her iron level.

"I have to be oozing iron, with all the iron-rich foods you've fed me tonight!"

"That's the goal, Love! Sure you don't want a cookie?"

"Afraid that doesn't add to my iron quota. And I do have a Wedding Gown to get into, you know! Besides I prefer watching you eat them. I remember you and Richard doing that when we were children!"

"Doing what?"

"Dunking your cookies into your milk, of course! Remember how Colleen always got on to you both for doing that, saying how highly improper it was? I believe the actual word she used was uncouth?"

"She did, didn't she," he chuckled. "I didn't even realize I was doing it! I suppose now you'll have to take that mantle on and try to make me behave."

"Oh, no! You're not getting that from me. That was Colleen's take. I, on the other hand, always thought it was rather cute! I did it once too, though, and Mother had a fit. 'A young lady does not dunk her cookies into her milk, and that is that!' she said!"

"Oops, I'll have to be careful in front of her, then!"

"No, actually you don't. She never once has chastised Richard or William, come to think of it, and they both do the same thing! Wait a minute! Father does it too. So that's why she never says anything to the men of the family!"

His eyes sparkled.

"Good to know, Love! It must be a Grant-Bradford tradition thing of the males."

"In that case, I'll take my male Grant any day of the year, uncouth habits, foibles, and all," she teased.

He set his glass of milk down, forcing her to take a single bite of his milk-drenched cookie.

"Yum!"

Then he quickly ate the rest, sat her plate of nibbles down, and pulled her closer.

"Come here!"

She snuggled so comfortably into that spot that was made for her alone, as he kissed the top of her head, both thoroughly content to finally be alone together.

"Let's take advantage of this quiet, my Love! Our poor mothers are probably having their ears talked off by our daughter," mused Nathan. "I'll have you know there will be no quiet from that girl as we grow closer to Christmas!"

"Oh, Allie was so happy today! She only called Essie to check on the kittens twice I think."

"Because your family gave her the perfect day! She has her Momma and a big family, now. You know, she told me that was her Christmas wish the last time I was in Montreal! She's in heaven, Mil, all because of you!"

"And I'm in heaven all because of you and Allie!"

"We do make the perfect little family of three, don't we," he winked.

"That we do, Darling! Do you think she will be happy about the adoption?"

"She will be beyond thrilled about the adoption, Milli! Nothing could make her happier. Although piercing her ears will be a close second. Ugh! The very thought makes me shiver!"

"You? You are the Chief Inspector of all the Mounties," she giggled. "This is nothing in comparison, but don't worry. Since Dr. Haversham is doing it himself, she will be in very good hands, and I'll be right there holding her hands, just like our mothers did for Colleen and me. In fact, I think our mothers are planning to come, too, so we can celebrate with a girls' lunch after!"

"You do know all this was a hard no for me, till you reminded me you and Colleen were both her age when you had it done. And I might add she has begged and begged since she was eight years old! Have I been too hard on her?"

"No, Love, you've done a fabulous job. I think it's just that fathers see all the feminine things as growing up and away. But you know, growing up doesn't mean total separation forever. So just relax and forget that 'away part' for now!"

"Keep telling me that! Over and over again!"

She chuckled and reached up to kiss his warm lips, grazing hers ever so softly against them.

"Uhm, you're killing me," he moaned.

"Good," she laughed. "Wonder how poor Hendrix is doing?"

"Truly? I haven't a clue, but please do that again and again and don't stop!"

She did as he requested, ending up in his lap, where she felt as cherished as could be.

"Oh, how I love you, Mil…"


From the plush sofa, Estella watched Hendrix through loving eyes as he added a second log onto the fire and stoked it into a roaring blaze yet again.

'Is this really happening?' she mused.

When he turned to walk toward her, it was clear that his nerves were gone, and his confidence was fully back, but in a way Estella had never expected.

The profound change almost rattled her.

He sat down, beside her and confidently took her hand, which she willingly gave.

"The truth is, Estella, I was afraid even before your Gentleman friend came into the picture. Our lives are about service, and I can't see that changing."

"Neither can I, Hendrix. But we're serving together, and will continue to do so, no matter what our personal lives together look like."

"And that is what you wish?"

"It is. I could never leave Miss Millicent, and now our Nathan and Miss Allison Rose. They are our family, Hendrix. And soon, there will be more children under our care."

"But Estella, that would mean we would never have our own home."

"Not necessarily, Hendrix. But that isn't my focus, and I don't think it is yours."

"No, it isn't. But I needed to be sure we were on the same page. That you didn't wish for something that might be difficult to provide. Not because of the money, which I have, but because of our service together."

"We are on the exact same page, Hendrix. We always have been!"

"I just needed to be sure, Estella. It's one thing to know you love a person and even know you are in love with that person, but it's quite another when it's between two people who serve."

"Hendrix, we are human beings with a huge capacity to love. There is no difference whatsoever. If we don't allow there to be, that is. Not as long as we are together and taking care of each other, loving each other, as we serve."

Hendrix nodded but was quiet, which concerned Estella, causing her to rub his hand for reassurance.

"Hendrix, is there something else that's bothering you?" she asked softly, looking directly into his troubled eyes...

"Estella, I was intrigued with you the first moment I met you all those years ago. But I purposely placed a barrier between us, even back then. A barrier that had nothing to do with you at all."

Hendrix looked down, hesitating, unsure as to how he should proceed. But if the two of them were going to be a couple, they needed to be honest about everything, including their past. And that honesty needed to start right now, before their relationship progressed any further.

So, Hendrix looked straight into Estella's beautiful eyes.

"I was once married, Estella. To a lovely, beautiful young girl named Anemone. We were far too young. Too young even to afford rings, but we were in love, and that was all that mattered. We only had twelve short months together, and much of that was spent preparing for our baby."

"You…you have a child, Hendrix?"

Estella's heart leapt to her throat.

Yet Hendrix was so calm.

"Only one in Heaven, Estella," he answered sadly. "I never got to see our little boy. You see, Anemone and the baby boy died in childbirth. Thankfully, we had chosen his name long before his birth, because I lost them both instantly, at once."

"Oh, Hendrix, I am so very sorry. I had no idea. What was his name?"

"We had chosen both his first and middle names early on in the pregnancy. His name is Henry Wellington, the first name was after me, and the middle name was his mother's maiden name."

"That's a beautiful name, Hendrix. Just beautiful."

"As you can imagine, the loss was devastating and I was in an extremely dark place for a very, very long time. Finally, my brother who works for the Royal Family gave me an ultimatum. He told me if I didn't start living again, I would simply die. He insisted I was already dying inside, and that I owed it to Anemone and little Henry Wellington to live a full life. It was he who arranged for me to come to Canada and serve with the Bradfords."

"This was your first Butlering experience?"

"Yes, I came straight from my training at the Academy. My brother's recommendation, and that of the Crown Prince, who was familiar with the situation, went a very long way towards my hiring."

"I'm just so sorry about all this, Hendrix. I can't imagine you carrying that grief all alone all these years. I could have helped you. The family could have helped you, and we both would have!"

"It was just too difficult, much too painful to speak of, I think, as it was still so raw. But I've said all this so that you know everything and perhaps can understand a bit better when I say love between us grew, Estella, but I was sort of locked into remaining the widower. So, it grew slowly. It wasn't that I was rejecting you, I was just still grieving. Until, one day you sensed something was wrong. Remember that day in the summer, you took my arm, and asked me how I was really doing, on a day I needed you so very much?"

"I remember that day, vividly. I knew you were carrying some huge burden. I just had no idea what."

"That day was the anniversary of their deaths, and my heart was so very heavy."

"Hendrix, why didn't you tell me then?"

There was no recrimination in her voice, only extreme sadness that he had shouldered this heavy burden of grief alone.

"I didn't know how to tell you. But because you cared that day, my Darling Estella, I finally had to readjust my limbo state of thinking and try to reconcile all my muddled feelings, so that I could finally move forward."

"Hendrix, may I ask you something?"

"Anything."

"Why did you leave me for such a long time when you returned to London? You had never done that before, not for that long. I thought it might be because we were growing closer, and perhaps you were running away from us?"

"It was because we were growing closer, Estella," he took both her hands and kissed them. "But I wasn't running away."

Estella was more confused than ever.

"You were the reason for the trip. I needed to say a final goodbye to Anemone and little Henry Wellington. In some strange way, I needed to ask their blessing."

"But whatever for?"

"For this, my dear Estella."

Estella gasped as the statuesque Hendrix fell to one knee.

"I needed to retrieve something my great-grandmother had left me as well. So, I had to travel to Scotland, too. The trip was for you, Estella."

"For me?"

That was when Hendrix pulled out an old tattered blue velvet box from his pocket.

"I love you, Estella more than anything in this world, and I want to spend the rest of my life making you as happy as you can be! Our love isn't sudden, it's been a long time in the making. I can't imagine this ring on anyone's finger but yours. I love you and I'm in love with you. Please do me the great honor of being my wife?"

"Hendrix!" her hand instantly came up to cover her heart.

The ring was early Victorian or older and consisted of a small blue sapphire in the center with two rows of tiny mined diamonds around it. It was everything Estella had ever dreamed of and more!

"Yes, Dear Hendrix, I will proudly marry you! Because I'm in love with you, and I want to spend the rest of my life making you as happy as you can be, too! I want nothing more than to be your loving wife!"

She held her shaking left hand out for Hendrix to slide the sapphire and diamonds on her ring finger.

"See it fits you perfectly! It was made for you, and only you, my Darling Estella…"


Nathan and Millicent glanced up from their cuddling to find a jubilant Hendrix and Estella standing in the doorway of the Keeping Room.

Hendrix, with Estella's arm looped through his, was carrying their bottle of celebratory champagne to share with Nathan and Millicent!

The couple jumped up instantly and ran to congratulate them.

"Congratulations, you two! You don't even have to tell us! We can tell by your faces," exclaimed Nathan.

"Look, Miss," and Estella proudly held up her left hand to reveal her sapphire and diamond engagement ring.

"Estella! Hendrix! How beautiful! An engagement! How wonderful, how magical!" exclaimed Millicent, truly overjoyed.

Then she shrieked in pure joy.

"This ring is absolutely a stunner, Essie!"

"I'm beside myself. I had no idea Hendrix had gone to London, well to Scotland I mean, to get the ring," smiled Essie, so lovingly, holding it up for Millicent to see its sparkle in the light.

"It was my great-grandmother's ring, Miss! She left it to me. But I had to travel to Edinburgh to retrieve it. The ring had been kept there by a great aunt," explained Hendrix.

"Which makes it even more special, Hendrix!" assured Millicent.

Estella's entire countenance had changed. She no longer was just a woman in love unsure if her love was returned, she was now a woman in love who knew she was loved back every bit as much!

Hendrix's countenance had changed completely as well. He was now totally relaxed, but even more than that, it was obvious that he was a man truly in love. With his past burdens changed from pain into memories to be treasured, along with a future that was already moving him into the light and love of the present, he now held more than he could have ever dreamed.

He was smiling with his whole face, completely confident that his own love was now fully and most lovingly returned.

Congratulatory hugs and kisses were exchanged by all. Nathan hugged both Estella and Hendrix, then kissed Estella, while Millicent excitedly hugged and kissed them both.

"This is just wonderful, Hendrix," as Nathan slapped Hendrix on his back. "Congratulations!"

"Are you as shocked as I was, Miss?" asked Estella.

"Oh, Essie, perhaps more so! I'm just so thrilled for both of you! An engagement! I had no idea, Hendrix! You gave us no hints," chided Millicent. "But what a wonderful Christmas Present for all of us!"

"Shall we celebrate with champagne?" asked Hendrix.

"Absolutely! This announcement has to be celebrated to the hilt with Champagne for all of us, Hendrix, but I get to make the toast!" insisted Nathan with a gleam in his eye.

Hendrix smiled and popped the bottle to cheers! Out of habit, he instantly moved to serve, but Millicent took the bottle from him, insisting on pouring the four glasses of golden bubbly at the bar, then proudly serving them, herself.

"Thank you, Miss," cried Estella and Hendrix at the same time.

"Thank you, Darling!" agreed Nathan with a smile.

Then Nathan proposed the toast, holding his glass high.

"To the two treasured people in this household, our family, who mean the world to us. May your new life together be all and even more than you wish it to be! May deep abiding love be your foundation, catapulting you upward. And may your two hearts, together, forever touch the sky!"

"Hear, hear!" rang the chorus.

Everyone happily clinked their glasses.

"What a lovely toast, Son," smiled Hendrix. "Thank you! Estella and I hope to do just that!"

Excited chatter continued till Nathan placed a round of Christmas Carols on the gramophone.

As he reached for Millicent's hand, Hendrix reached for Estella's, and both men formally asked the 'Loves of their Lives' to partner with them for this special dance.

The two couples danced slowly and most romantically together, just like they had in the Entry Hall back in October. But this time it was even more magical in the beautiful candlelight of the Keeping Room with its exquisite Holiday Decor all around them.

The Gentlemen first hummed the Carols in their Ladies' ears, till they too soon joined in humming.

Then finally, all four broke out singing their favorite Holiday Carols while holding each other close.

The moments were heavenly, never to be forgotten, with no better way to celebrate this momentous occasion among the four.

But this time they were two couples not only in love, they were also both now engaged to be married, each committed to cherishing the other for life.

Tonight, the Bradford, now Grant House, was fully alive with love and happiness joyfully overflowing for everyone...