Chapter Thirty-Six

"You do know the only reason I did not beat you is because you my lucky mallet." Benedict gave Madeleine a pointed look, picking up the pall mall wickets that were scattered across the yard.

"If that is what you must tell yourself to sleep at night." She quipped, giving him a wink. He chuckled and shook his head, placing the wickets neatly in the bin. The two had spent the majority of the morning tidying up around the house from the day before spent with the family. Madeleine sighed happily as he walked over and wrapped his arms around her waist, placing hers around his neck.

"That was a fun day, we must remember to keep our promise and pay them a visit soon." She smiled up at him.

"Yes, I fear Eloise might up and run away if we do not allow her some brief respite from all of the attention." He chuckled, running his hand gently up and down her back.

"It is quite amusing how different she and Daphne are. Daphne has seemed to rather enjoy her debut into the marriage market this year but Eloise thinks it is the worst fate imaginable." She giggled softly and he nodded, laughing.

"Almost similar to how different Anthony and I are from each other, hm?" He kissed her temple, taking her hand as the two walked inside.

Madeleine walked away to tend to the laundry, Benedict going to clean up around the kitchen. She smiled softly as she folded the clean clothes, still unable to get over the fact that they had their own home.

She hesitated as she picked up the dirty clothes to place them in the sink, staring at her dress from the day before. Her eyes widened as she fished through the clothes to find her dress from two days prior, gasping as she looked at it.

Her heart pounded as she dropped the dresses, hurrying out of the laundry room to find Benedict.

"Ben, Ben!" She called out, rushing to the kitchen and toward him. He turned with a concerned look in his eyes, walking over to her.

"What is it, love? Is everything okay?" His face was worried as he stared into her eyes. She bit her lip, holding back a smile and nodded. He grew more confused, narrowing his eyebrows as his way of telling her to explain.

"I have not gotten my courses this month." She whispered, no longer able to contain the happiness in her voice. Benedict's confused expression remained, before it clicked and his eyes widened.

"Are you saying-" His voice trailed off as he stared at her, eyes wide with hope.

"I'm pregnant, Benedict." She smiled brightly, squealing in surprise as the man nearly tackled her in a hug, picking her up and swinging her around.

"Benedict!" She gasped, laughing as she clung on to him. He set her down on her feet, keeping hold of her waist as he grinned in excitement, tears pricking at his eyes.

"You're pregnant." He whispered, bringing a hand up to her cheek. She smiled brightly and nodded, her own tears pooling in her eyes. He kissed her passionately, holding her waist with one hand and her face with the other.

"Oh, Madeleine. You have just made me the happiest man in the world." He whispered, holding her tightly. "I did not think it possible to be any happier than I already was." He sighed contently, resting his forehead on hers and gently placing a hand against her stomach. She giggled softly and placed her hand over his, intertwining their fingers.

"We are going to have a baby." He whispered in disbelief, smiling at her before planting kisses all over her face. She shrieked in laughter, nodding quickly.

"We are going to have a family of our own." She smiled up at him, bringing a hand to his cheek.

"We must start planning immediately. Oh, and we must let everyone know! Mother will be over the moon with excitement." He grinned, kissing her forehead. She beamed, nodding as he rambled. She could not believe it was finally happening, she and Benedict were finally going to start their own family.

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*A/N: Sorry, this is quite a short chapter! It was my birthday today so 'twas rather busy but I wanted to sneak in a quick one — I hope the good news makes up for the brevity *