Daisy hesitated, but before she could ask anything, Veronica spoke again.
“The dinner they brought is quite good,” she said, as she ate. “Do you need to go eat yours?”
Daisy smiled. “I usually go downstairs when you're eating.”
“So you must be hungry too then.” Veronica hesitated. The staff didn’t eat with their employers…but this estate was, as she’d learned again and again, rather unconventional. “Why don’t you join me?”
The pair spent the rest of the evening chatting. Having Daisy for company almost let Veronica forget that Christopher had decided against joining her for dinner.
Almost.
CHAPTER 11
Days ticked by. Shaggy recovered swimmingly. It seemed like no time at all before he was chasing Teddy all through the castle. It warmed her heart to see him doing so well.
The words the tenant had said when they got him were never far from her mind. The poor thing almost hadn’t made it. She would forever be grateful Christopher had let her get two dogs. If he hadn’t, Veronica still would have chosen Shaggy. She would not be able to leave him after hearing he was likely to die without proper care.
Now she had two dogs, and she couldn’t help but think having a playmate was a huge part of why he recovered so well and so fast. She was also glad the pair of them were friends. had bonded so well. When Mr. Barnes had mentioned that Shaggy had been attacked by another dog, she had worried he would be scared of Teddy.
But as she sat watching the pair of them play on the floor, she felt nothing but relief and happiness at just how well they got along. If only everything else was going as smoothly.
Despite the happiness they had brought to her life, she had hardly seen Christopher in all that time. She couldn’t help but feel like he was avoiding her.
Yes, he was the one avoiding her. She absolutely wasn’t avoiding him.
There was nothing for her to be nervous about anyway. They had a good time together for a single afternoon. It didn’t mean anything.
Even if he had been so warm and friendly. So gentle and caring. It didn’t mean anything.
Even if for a moment, she thought she was seeing the same man she had met at a ball all those years ago.
It didn't matter. She had been the one to ruin that far too long ago to expect anything to change now.
At least the renovations were coming along well. Veronica threw herself into them, spending countless hours ensuring everything was going perfectly.
The least she could do was look after the castle.
She was sitting in her sitting room, going over her list of tasks that still needed to be done when the door swung open.
Daisy sprinted in with a bright grin. “I have letters for you. I think they’re from your family!”
“What?” she lit up, taking the envelopes from her. She looked them over and sure enough there seemed to be one from all of them. “Thank you for bringing me these. Can you give me a moment to read them over?”
“Of course. Please call me if you need anything.”
“I will, thank you.”
Once she was alone, Veronica opened the first one. It was from her parents.
Dear Veronica,
We will be leaving to visit you shortly. We plan on heading out on the fourteenth, you should expect us around the eighteenth.
We will be bringing your sisters with us, so ensure you have everything ready.
We expect you should be able to manage that on your own, but if you have any questions, any capable housekeeper should know what needs to be done.
They didn’t even sign off with love or send any kind of affection. That was all this was to them, a transaction, and their letter reflected it. There were no questions, nothing asking how she was or telling her how they were.
