Making Jane Proud

Chapter 46 - Another Elephant

Tom spent the entire flight thinking of Ellie and their baby, his gaze often lingering on his wedding ring and remembering the vows they'd made to one another. Since learning of her pregnancy he had longed to beg her to return to England to be close to as much medical attention as they could both possibly need, but he hesitated to do it. The teaching exchange had been her dream long before she met him and he couldn't be the one to shatter it. Still, it did complicate things.

After landing at Heathrow and catching the Tube home, he let himself into the flat, noticing - not for the first time since Ellie had left - how quiet and empty it felt. Looking around, it dawned on him that it would be woefully inadequate as a home for three of them, so he made a mental note to see about looking for somewhere bigger. Perhaps his mum could help him with that, once they had the test results back and could tell their families their news.

Before heading to the shower to wash away the travel grime, he called Ellie. "Hello darling. Just wanted to let you know I'm home. What did you do with yourself today?"

Her voice sounded so far away that he felt a twinge of loneliness. "Anaya called and invited me to go with her to the Lodhi Gardens," she replied. "It was lovely – so beautiful and serene. How was your flight? Did you have enough leg room?"

"Yes, it was fine. We landed fifteen minutes early which was a bonus."

"You'll be heartily sick of planes after all the flying you've done in the last few weeks."

"It's not so bad. I missed having you there to thrash me at card cricket though," he teased, delighted to hear her laugh softly, then in the next breath she gave a huge yawn and he remembered the time difference. "You're tired; I'll say goodnight. I'll give you a call some time tomorrow."

"Okay. Goodnight, darling; I love you."

"I love you Mrs Hiddleston. Take care."

The next morning he was picked up at five for the two hour drive to Gloucester, where they were beginning filming at the Cathedral. Hustled straight into wardrobe and make-up, it was a while before he got the chance for a private word alone with Richard, the director, to explain the situation with Ellie and negotiate the weekend off when the test results were due. Richard understood and promised to keep the details to himself, offering full support as much as was possible within the confines of the shooting schedule, to Tom's relief. When filming broke for lunch he called her and chatted for half an hour then joined Jeremy to talk about the scene they were to do that afternoon.

His week continued in much the same vein; an early start, long day of filming broken by a short phone call to Ellie, the drive home again to shower, read lines and fall into bed. Whenever he was on set and surrounded by his fellow actors he found he had no trouble immersing himself in his role as Prince Hal, but in every idle moment his thoughts invariably turned to his wife and child, wishing fervently they weren't so far away. In spite of his busy schedule the days seemed to be passing incredibly slowly, so that by the middle of the second week he was growing impatient and spoke rudely to a grip. Mortified, he apologised profusely and berated himself for his lapse. When Friday evening finally arrived he was immensely relieved to board a flight to Mumbai; Ellie would meet him there and they'd travel together to Chandra's rooms. He slept as much as he could to combat the jet lag he knew the flight time and time difference would cause.

Striding through the arrivals hall next morning he had no trouble spotting her vibrant hair amongst the multitude of dark and covered heads. Below it brilliant green eyes and luscious lips smiled at him, tugging at a heart full of love and longing. Dropping his bag, he wrapped his arms around her and held her close, breathing in the essence of her; she murmured incoherently and buried her face into his neck, holding him just as firmly.