“A desire to be helpful, then.”
“Oh yes, just like the desire that led you to ruin me in the eyes of thetonand shackle me to you for life?”
“I do believe generally themansees marriage as a form of bondage. How refreshing that you might feel similarly.”
Amelia stood, and Edward could practically see steam coming from her ears as she stepped toward him. “If you are quite done entertaining yourself, perhaps you might consider finding enjoyment elsewhere.”
Edward grinned again. Her short stature combined with her complete fury was rather attractive. Somehow he assumed she would not appreciate such an observation.
He raised his hands to ward off her anger. “Sorry, sorry. Truly, did something occur during your visit? Are you well?”
Amelia was silent as she pinched the bridge of her nose, raising her eyes to the ceiling. Edward settled his weight on one leg. He might be here a while.
With nothing better to do as he waited, he took the opportunity to study her profile. Strangely, he was now finding the sight of her decidedly enjoyable. Even if she was in a bad humor.
She was a beauty, not that this was the first time he’d noticed. In fact, he struggled not to fixate on that fact whenever they were in the same room. High cheeks and dark lashes that swept her eyebrows when her eyes opened wide enough. Her nose was straight and thin, and her hair could neither be considered light or dark. Rather, it was a silky, dark-honey color with various lighter shades catching in the sunshine from the window behind her. Edward shifted his weight and clasped his hands behind his back, still awaiting her response. She had to speak sometime... didn’t she?
Finally, she sighed—an exasperated sound—and her eyes flicked to him before she turned slightly away, studying the fabric of a chair nearby. Or, at least, that’s what she appeared to be doing.
“If you must know, my sisters unhappily informed me of what Society thinks of our marriage.” From what he could see of her expression, that was not all there was to it. But at least she was speaking. Without anger. Progress!
However, he had a feeling that one misplaced smile or teasing word would set her off faster than a horse at a horse race.
“Ah. And what does Society think?”
“You should know. You spend far more time out there than I.” She gestured dully out the window as she spoke, clearly referencing his occasional absences that week.
Her frankness surprised him, but he found he liked it. So unlike the ladies of theton. And with such frank words, she gave away more than she might have intended to. She was not happy when he was absent. Another point in his favor.
“Touché, madam. But if I am being honest, I have not spent much time amongst Society as a whole.”
Amelia shot him a quick, searching look before turning and walking back to the pianoforte. She did not sit, but she kept her gaze on it when next she spoke. “No, I don’t suppose you have.”
Edward’s brow furrowed in confusion. They were getting nowhere.
“So, what does Society say?” he asked again.
“Oh, the usual fodder for the tabbies,” she twirled her hand languidly in the air. “They say we were found in a romantic tryst and forced to marry. It is, apparently, quite the scandal if my sisters are to be believed.”
Edward stared at her. “Well, that was expected, was it not? It is, after all, why His Grace made us marry.”
“Mmm.”
Her response was noncommittal, her gaze still on the instrument he was avoiding looking at directly, and Edward felt a twinge of frustration. For someone who could be quite plain-spoken at times, she also clammed up incredibly easily whenever it suited. And yet, standing there having a stilted conversation with his wife was somehow the most at ease he had been all week. The most entertained, certainly.
He stepped closer.
“I had thought to go to the opera tonight if you are willing.” It would seem he was not particularly suave in his conversation skills just now, jumping from topic to topic with hardly any warning.
Still, it seemed to work as she, finally, looked at him.
She said nothing, and her expression was guarded, so he tried again.
“Unless you would rather not?”
She tilted her head to the side, narrowing her eyes at him. “Oh, you were inviting me, were you?”
Should he roll his eyes or laugh? Either felt appropriate just now. He did neither, simply meeting her eyes. Did she feel the rippling of the air between them? “Yes, I was.”
