Chapter Fourteen
Christopher was waiting in the dining room when the door opened. He stood stiffly waiting for the ladies to join him. If he was honest, he was more than a little uncomfortable. The only time since the fire he had been dressed like this was the day he barged into the church. If he was honest, he still wasn’t entirely sure that had gone well. Part of him still wasn’t entirely sure if he had made the right choice in attire.
But before he can over think it too badly, he turned to see Veronica flying inside. To his surprise, she was in a simple lavender after noon dress, hair back in a simple bun, and almost completely free of jewelry.
When she saw him, she paused, breath catching in her throat. “You- you’ve dressed for dinner,” she said in surprise.
He frowned. “Well, we do have company. I thought you would be pleased.”
“I am,” she hesitated. “But-”
“But you didn’t dress. I can see that. I must say, I am rather surprised. I thought you would have jumped at the chance.”
“Perhaps I would have if I had realized, but I didn't think you would want us to.”
“Why wouldn’t I? As I said, we have company. It seemed the least I could do, given the circumstances.”
“Perhaps, but-”
Before Veronica could say whatever was still on her mind, the door opened once more and her sisters stepped inside.
Christopher couldn't help but frown. He didn’t understand why she didn’t think he would do something that was widely considered to be common etiquette. It might have been years since he’d hosted anyone, but that didn’t mean he’d forgotten how.
And, if he was honest, he was rather hoping to make a better impression on her sisters than he was sure he had on the day of their wedding.
The smaller one locked her eyes on him then crossed her arms. “Veronica! You said we weren’t going to dress for dinner, buthedid. Did you just ask Rose to tell me that as some sort of prank? Because that was rather mean of you if you did!”
“I wasn’t- I mean- It isn’t like that. I just-”
“We aren’t in the habit of it,” Christopher cut in. “I’m afraid I have grown rather used to living alone, but we have two lovely guests. I could hardly slack on such an occasion. Veronica was simply trying to ensure I would be comfortable. I hadn’t had a chance to tell her I would be dressing you see, so she assumed we would be doing things the way we usually did. My apologies.”
“This is my mistake,” she cut in, finding her voice again. “I should have checked with him before saying we wouldn’t be dressing. My apologies.”
“Does this mean we can go change Veronica?” Milly begged, eagerness shining in her eyes. “Oh please say yes.”
Veronica blinked in shock. “Of course. I suppose there’s no harm in it, but do try to be quick.”
“Oh, thank you! We will be quick. You don’t need to worry! I’m so excited for you to see our new gowns and jewelry!”
As the pair scampered off, Veronica turned back to him in shock, chewing on her lip. “New gowns and jewelry? How could they afford something like that? I do hope my parents aren’t making foolish financial decisions again.”
Christopher looked away. “I doubt that.”
“But how else could they afford such things?”
He rubbed at the back of his head. “After we talked that first night, I may have invested in a few of his businesses. They seem to be doing rather well now from what I have seen. You don’t need to worry. Your family is doing well.”
“I - I don’t know what to say. Thank you.”
“Perhaps you should think about expanding your own wardrobe now.”
“What?”
“Well, you do have dinner with a duke every night. Seems like an occasion that might warrant dressing up every now and then.”
She lets out a small laugh.
“I mean it. You deserve to be dressed in finery as often as you like.”
