The Quality of Love (34 page)

He was thin and dark haired, with horn-rimmed glasses. His name was Ion Quinn and he was exceedingly prim and proper. He always had a worried look on his face as if he was afraid he was going to do something wrong.

Ion was constantly asking questions and demanding detailed explanations about almost everything. At first Sarah found this very irritating, but he learned her system of working very quickly and he was extremely efficient.

He proved to be so dependable that Sarah found that as the time for her confinement drew ever closer she was quite happy to pass considerably more of her work over to him. She knew that she could trust him not only to do it well but also to do it in exactly the same way as she would have done it herself.

The month of June was hot and rather humid and Sarah found that her increasing bulk was something of a burden. The nights were warm and muggy and she often found it difficult to sleep, which added to her feeling of tiredness.

Both Bryn and Owen constantly pleaded with her to take things more easily and to spend more time at home resting but she took no notice of them at all.

‘I'm quite all right and I feel better working than moping around the house waiting to go into labour,' she insisted.

‘Surely there are things you still need to get ready for when the baby arrives?' Bryn suggested.

‘No, I have everything ready and waiting and I even have a bag packed ready to take into hospital.'

She was stubbornly determined to work right up until the very last minute. The only thing she had relented over was agreeing with Owen that she would go into hospital for her confinement rather than having the baby at home.

‘I'm thinking of your father as much as I am of you,' he told her. ‘I think it might be rather an upheaval for him if it took place here. Alvia and Marie will take every care of him for a couple of days and it will give you the chance to have a really good rest.'

When she protested that they couldn't really afford it and that it would be much better to save the money for things they really needed,
Owen admitted that it was not simply his idea but Bryn's as well.

‘Bryn is paying for it and it would be very discourteous to refuse,' he pointed out.

Sarah was still not completely happy about the arrangement but in the end she had no option. She went into labour early one afternoon at the end of June and there was no time to argue about where she was going.

Sarah's baby arrived on the first of July. She weighed seven pounds and had a mop of dark hair and a rosebud mouth and Sarah thought that she looked like a little angel.

The first time she held the baby in her arms Sarah wept as she remembered Cladylliss, her first baby, and the dreadful experience of her being so frail and weak and then eventually dying when she was only a few weeks old. She never wanted to go through something like that ever again.

This baby was plump and perfect in every way, though, with strong lungs, and Sarah resolved that she would watch over her every minute of the day to make sure that no harm came to her.

When Owen was allowed in to see them a few hours later he couldn't believe that a newborn baby could be quite so beautiful. He stared down at her in awe and seemed to be almost afraid to touch her, she looked so delicate and lovely.

‘She won't break,' Sarah smiled when she asked him if he wanted to hold her and saw that he was nervous in case he held her too tightly and hurt her.

‘She's so tiny, so fragile,' he protested as he took her from Sarah and cradled her in the crook of his arm, gently stroking her face with his forefinger.

‘Not really,' Sarah assured him. ‘She weighs over seven pounds and that is a very good start in life. Most newborn babies are a great deal smaller.'

‘She's still like a little doll,' Owen murmured, looking down at her proudly.

‘Give her a couple more years and she'll be a little tomboy, and will probably be climbing all over you and wanting you to toss her up into the air or give her rides on your knee.'

Lloyd was equally delighted and proud of the baby and eager to hold his granddaughter.

‘I'll be able to help you for a change when you need someone to rock her off to sleep.' He smiled as Sarah placed her in his arms.

His one regret was that he would only be able to help look after her while she was in a pram and someone else was on hand in case she needed more attention because he knew that he probably wouldn't be capable of picking her up or doing anything for her.

‘Tell me, have you and Owen decided what you are going to call this little angel?'

‘We have talked about it but not really made up our minds yet. We did think of Rhoslyn if it was a girl because it's a name we both like,' Sarah told him thoughtfully.

‘Rhoslyn! Well, that sounds a pretty name for a lovely baby who looks so much like you did that I know she will one day be a gorgeous little girl.' He beamed. ‘Yes, I like the sound of Rhoslyn. I think we should have a little party so that you can tell everybody what her name is going to be.'

‘Party!' Sarah stared at him in astonishment because it was so unlike her father to want something like that. ‘I think that's a wonderful idea,' she agreed quickly before he could change his mind. ‘I'll have a word with Owen first and see if he agrees with us. Is there anyone you'd like me to ask?'

‘Well, Bryn Morgan for a start, and Marie and Alvia, of course, and anyone else you'd like to be there.'

‘I think that's probably enough, don't you? We haven't room for too many people and I'm not used to entertaining. I can't really expect either Alvia or Marie to help with the preparations, not if they are going to be guests.'

‘No, that's true enough,' Lloyd agreed. ‘In fact, don't say anything to either of them until the last minute or else they will insist on taking over and it would be nice to give them a surprise.'

Sarah smiled and agreed but as she went to change Rhoslyn's nappy and feed her she did wonder what on earth had got into her dad because normally he wasn't all that keen on entertaining.

As she sat feeding the baby in the armchair that had been her mother's favourite, she wondered why a party, even a small one, was of such great importance to him and why he was so keen on the idea. He obviously didn't realise that she was still feeling extremely tired and also that she was finding it difficult to cope with the baby because Rhoslyn seemed to be very demanding.

Still, she reflected, her dad didn't have much fun in his life these days and if he'd set his heart on having a party so that they could show off little Rhoslyn, then she didn't mind going along with it.

She decided that Sunday would be the best day because Owen would be at home and would be able to help with the arrangements. When she mentioned it to him he seemed almost as keen on the idea as her dad had been.

‘I'll buy some champagne so that we can celebrate in style,' he insisted. He also suggested that they should ask Bryn Morgan to bring his wife along.

The thought of what a grand house she probably had and the several full-time servants she must employ, made Sarah feel nervous about doing so, but she could see that it might be considered rude to invite Bryn without her so she kept her thoughts to herself.

As it turned out Celina Morgan was a motherly middle-aged woman with grey hair and a warm smile. Sarah felt comfortable in
her company from the moment they shook hands. When Celina offered to sit and nurse the baby Sarah was more than happy to let her do so while she sorted things out.

After they'd all helped themselves to the variety of sandwiches and savouries that she'd laid out ready, Sarah cut the iced cake that Alvia had made in honour of the new baby. Owen poured out the champagne and made sure that everyone had a glass. He then announced that they were going to call the new baby Rhoslyn and asked them to drink a toast to her.

There were murmurs of delight and surprise at the name as they clinked glasses and sipped their wine.

In the weeks that followed, Sarah found that having a baby in the house certainly made a tremendous difference. As well as the daily routine of bathing and feeding Rhoslyn, which seemed to take up far more time than Sarah remembered from caring for Cladylliss, there was also all the additional washing and ironing.

They also had several sleepless nights and even after the baby had adjusted to her routine there was still night-time feeding to be undertaken. Sarah very soon found that having to feed the baby late at night and again in the early hours of the morning meant that she was not getting anywhere near enough sleep herself.

For a few weeks she struggled to undertake as much office work at home as she possibly could but in the end she was forced to admit that
she wasn't able to cope any longer and that the time had come to hand everything over to Ion.

‘Remember, I'm always here if you want to ask me about anything or check over anything you are not sure about, so don't hesitate to get in touch,' she told him.

‘Thank you, Sarah, but I feel quite confident that I have most things under control now; you've been a splendid teacher but I'll certainly take advantage of your expertise if I need to do so.'

Bryn agreed that she'd made the right decision. He added that, like Owen, he felt that her main concern for the present should be concentrating on looking after Rhoslyn and her father and that was a full-time job.

He also suggested that she took the baby along to see his wife now and again if she could spare the time.

This suggestion surprised Sarah but, remembering how kind and helpful Celina had been, she fully intended to do so. To her delight, however, Celina took matters into her own hands and paid her a visit.

Sarah felt rather nervous as she invited her in, conscious that she was wearing an apron to protect her dress because she'd been changing Rhoslyn's nappy. Nevertheless, she asked her to sit down and offered her a cup of tea.

‘That would be lovely but only if you let me nurse Rhoslyn while you make it,' Celina said smiling.

‘Of course.' Sarah indicated a comfortable armchair and then settled the baby in her arms before she went through to the kitchen. When she returned a few minutes later she found Celina and her father chatting away as if they'd known each other all their lives.

After that, Celina became a regular visitor and both Sarah and Lloyd greatly enjoyed her company. Sarah found that she was extremely knowledgeable about young babies, but when she asked her if she had any grandchildren of her own, she saw the disappointment in the other woman's face and wished she'd said nothing.

‘No, I haven't any grandchildren, I'm afraid,' Celina said in a sad voice. ‘We only had one son and he was killed in an accident when he was twenty-four.'

‘Oh, I'm so sorry, that must have been heart-breaking,' Sarah exclaimed.

‘Yes, it left a great gap in our lives. Bryn never talks about it these days, but I find that never a day passes when I don't remember some small incident,' she admitted.

The baby had now become the centre of her life and Sarah was more than happy to concede that they were right and that she needed to be at home full time. As Rhoslyn began to develop a personality of her own Sarah delighted in her every look and gesture and didn't want to miss out on a single minute of Rhoslyn's babyhood.

Although she said nothing to either Owen or Lloyd she also watched anxiously to see if there were any signs that perhaps Rhoslyn was going to suffer any of the same effects that Cladylliss had developed when she was a small baby.

When Rhoslyn was four months old, she was not only alert and taking notice of everything that went on around her but also physically fit and well in every way. Sarah felt that her cup of happiness was overflowing. Owen had received a substantial pay rise so the fact that she wasn't working no longer mattered.

Even Lloyd seemed to have taken on a new lease of life since Rhoslyn had been born. He delighted in watching over her while she was asleep and Sarah was busy with household chores.

Together they noted when her first tooth came through, listened to her first words, and applauded the first time she managed to sit up on her own.

‘You would have missed out on all this if you'd stayed on at work,' Lloyd reminded her the day Rhoslyn started crawling.

‘Yes, you're quite right, I would have done, and that would have been a great pity.'

‘Mind you,' he chuckled, ‘she'll be into everything now so you won't have a moment's peace. There will probably be days when you wish you were back at work.'

‘I doubt it.' Sarah smiled as she picked up some of the toys that Rhoslyn had discarded
and put them back into the wooden toy box that Owen had made for the purpose.

By the following Easter, when Rhoslyn was nine months old, she was taking notice of all that was going on around her. She loved being taken out in her pram, sitting up so that she was able to see everything.

One of their favourite destinations was Roath Park. Usually they would meet Celina and after a walk in the park go back to her house in nearby Pen-y-lan Road.

At first Sarah had felt uncomfortable about this because everything from the carpets to the curtains and cushions were so pristine and expensive that she was afraid Rhoslyn might spill something or make a mess.

Celina soon put her mind at rest. ‘They're only possessions,' she pointed out. ‘Her enjoyment is far more important.'

Each time they visited it seemed that Celina brought out some new toy or something which had belonged to her son Twm and which she had treasured but now wanted Rhoslyn to play with and enjoy.

‘You must remember that for me Rhoslyn is the grandchild I will never have,' she told Sarah. ‘You can't possibly imagine how much happiness I get out of seeing her sitting here on the floor playing with them.'

Sarah accepted that this was true and marvelled how fortunate she was to have such a good friend. Her only worry was that with
so many people dancing attendance on her Rhoslyn could become spoiled. When she mentioned this to Owen he pointed out that she had such a sweet, happy nature that he thought that was unlikely.