The thought of jumping headfirst intolove—if such a thing was even possible for the two of them—seemed far too daunting. No, it was much better that they took things slowly. For both his sake and her own.
“Perhaps we do have more in common than I originally thought,” Isadora mused to herself. Both of them seemed to be deathly scared of love.
How ironic, then, that they had ended up with each other. Isadora smiled to herself at the thought.
She would have to spend her days getting to know her husband. Andthatsounded as lovely as it did frightening.
“Good morning, Evan,” she greeted him brightly as she walked into his study. At the use of his name, he looked up at her briefly. She knew that it would get his attention.
“Are you lost, sweetheart?” he asked in his usual sarcastic tone before averting his gaze back to his desk.
“No, I am happy to announce that I came here on my own free will,” she laughed, moving closer to him. “Whyin heavens would I be lost?”
Evan simply pointed at the clock in the corner of the room. “It’s half past nine in the morning. Isn’t this about the time that you’re usually prancing about doing your duchess duties?”
Isadora chose to ignore the mocking tone of his voice. “Well, it just so happens that my duchess duties consist of seeing what my husband is up to this morning. It is important after all.”
“Then, I am doubly regretful of disappointing you,” Evan smirked. “For I cannot give you the pleasure of my company this morning. I am terribly busy with work.” He pointed towards the stack of ledgers on his table.
“All the better that I am here, then.” She plopped herself eagerly on a chair beside his desk, earning a wayward glance from him. “I can help.”
Evan chuckled, “I was going over the estate’s accounts. I am not sure if that’s under your area of expertise, sweetheart.”
“Must you underestimate me so?” she shot back. “I can take a look for you. In fact, I’m quite familiar with ledgers, so I should be able to assist.”
Evan almost did a double-take, lowering his reading glasses slightly. “I beg your pardon?”
“You heard me correctly,” she smiled, triumphantly. “Now, let me see…”
“Wait a moment.” He snatched away the papers from her reach when she tried to pick at them. “What business do you have knowing anything about ledgers? It is a responsibility that is usually designated to the head of the household.”
“Well, my father did not like doing them, so he transferred over the responsibility to me.” Isadora shrugged casually, only adding to Evan’s surprise.
“He—he let a child handle the accounts of the manor?” he managed to stutter out.
“Well, I was very much an adult by the time I got acquainted with them,” she argued. “He started me out young, though. But that only means that I have experience.”
“Isadora,” he said in a tone that made her freeze immediately, “how old were you when your father first asked you to do this for him?”
Isadora bit down on her lip, suddenly aware of his all too scrutinizing gaze on her. “I don’t see how that matters?—”
“It matters to me,” he asserted, cutting her off.
Isadora exhaled a sigh. Evan preoccupied himself with the oddest of details, she thought. “Not that it makes a difference, but I believe that I was fourteen years of age when he first asked me to do it. He taught me, actually. And then the things I did not know, I learned on my own using books.”
Evan was shaking his head now. “Just when I thought that he could not get any worse…”
“It is not as bad as you make it seem.” Isadora lifted her chin. “I balanced the accounts, ensured the debts did not consume us, and handled the household’s expenses. I think these are all useful skills to have, wouldn’t you agree?”
“It was not your responsibility.” Evan’s jaw tightened.
“Well, someone had to do it,” she replied, keeping her tone even. “I had a hunch that he considered it beneath him or perhaps that he found the whole thing a tad too dry.”
Evan let out a sharp exhale, standing abruptly. The movement startled her slightly, but she did not step back as he stalked toward the window, running a hand through his hair.
“So, while he was out chasing his ambitions, his own daughter was left to bear the weight of his responsibilities?” he muttered, more to himself than to her.
“You’re making it sound a lot more dramatic than it was,” she tried to argue.
