The Reverend's Daughter (Book 2 after The Duke's Daughter)

Chapter Thirteen

Betsy helped the babes into their nightshirts, after they had used the privy, and washed their hands and faces. Paulie was due for their story any moment, but had not yet joined them.

This was the time when Betsy liked to see how well they remembered their lessons of the morning. Michaels had made Betsy some wooden shapes he had crafted out of driftwood pieces that she kept in a drawstring bag, and she pulled it open to the children's delight. She withdrew a piece and held it clasped in her palm.

"Do you want to guess which hand it is in?" She watched them nod their heads, all three of them, as they liked this game the best.

"All right, Sarah is youngest, so Sarah, which hand?" Betsy held the piece behind her back, both hands fisted, only one holding a piece.

Sarah looked at Betsy's arms, then up to her face. Betsy winked her right eye at the two year old, and Sarah jumped at the clue, pointing to Betsy's right arm.

"That one!" Sarah exclaimed.

Betsy brought her hand around and opened it to reveal a wooden circle. "You are so smart Sarah, good for you! Can ye tell me what shape it is?" Betsy asked, as if it were a great mystery only Sarah could answer.

As the little girl bounced on her bottom, under the blanket which came up to her small waist, "It be a circle, Miss Lisbeth!"

Betsy touched Sarah's nose with her fingertip, "You, my smart little Sarah, are absolutely right!"

They smiled at each other before Betsy dug around in the bag for another piece.

Hands behind her back again, she looked at Jonah as he was still a bit younger than Lila, by around six months, they had figured out. Luckily their older brothers, Timothy and Johnny, knew all their birth dates.

"Which hand Jonah?" She asked of the little one, who felt compelled to copy Sarah's bouncing while he had his turn.

He also looked at Betsy's arms and she moved her left one slightly, smiling at the way his eyes lit up. "That one!" He pointed to her left side.

She brought it around as she opened her hand, revealing the small wooden square hidden in her palm.

"You are a smart one too, Jonah! Do you remember what this shape is?"

"It 'tis a sqware, Miss Wisbeff!" He was so excited, his bouncing took on new heights as Betsy laughed softly.

"Lila's turn." She smiled at Lila and put a piece behind her back. Lila wanted no clue and did not mind if she missed her guess, she got almost as much fun out of missing as she did in getting it right.

This time however, she was right the first time, and named her triangle correctly.

"My goodness, we are three," Betsy tapped each of their noses, "for three this eve."

She was able to give them each one more turn before Paulie asked Violet, who had been peeking in the door for the last ten minutes, to excuse him, as he needed to get by.

Violet could not help his grin, as he had been caught watching his wife with the wee ones, yet again. He loved to sneak down here once in a while and watch her when she was not aware of it. The children were always so wrapped up in whatever she was doing that they had not given him away yet.

Vi patted Paulie's shoulder as he passed, and watched the smooth transfer of the children into his keeping. They loved their story time with Paw Paw before bed.

Betsy loved that Paulie now said their prayers with them. As a matter of fact, it was Paulie who now reminded them before meals to bow their heads to pray.