“Look, Monseigneur, someone comes here to pray,” Amé pointed as they approached the grotto.
“The gardener, I should imagine,” the Duke replied, “and perhaps his wife and family.”
“There are shells set among the stones. A child might have done that and the flowers have not only come from the garden, look, there are wild orchids and fresh field flowers amongst them.”
Quite simply she knelt down before the shrine and said a prayer.
The Duke stood watching her and, when she had finished, she rose and put both her hands into his.
“It feels to me,” she said, “as if our happiness here tonight in this garden has been blessed because we have found this holy place dedicated to Our Lady.”
“I hope our love will always be blessed in such a way,” the Duke answered.
For a moment his voice was very
