“I feel the very same. There are some new faces here, but those I recognize have hardly changed. It has been nice to talk to them, and they have all asked me if the two of you plan to dance tonight.”
“We do.” Cassian nodded. “And I do believe that the music will start soon.”
Thankfully, he was right.
As the first notes began, he swiftly led Adelaide to the dance floor, and they took their position. He could feel that they werebeing watched more than before, but his wife was not looking at anyone else. Instead, her eyes were locked on his, unmoving.
Her gloved hand felt exquisite in his, and as the dance started, he wondered just what she was so concerned about.
“You have formed a bond with my mother, then,” he said quietly as they moved.
“It would seem so, though I do not know precisely what I did. One moment, she wanted to get rid of me; the next… Perhaps it is her age?”
“It is not,” he replied, shaking his head slowly. “She is too young for such an affliction. You see, she hates me, and she is under the impression that it is for a very good reason.”
“Oh? And what might that reason be?”
“I do not know.”
It was a lie. Cassian knew precisely why his mother loathed him so much, and there was nothing he could do about it. He had hoped that she would not extend her hate to whoever he took as a wife, and he was pleased that she had come to like Adelaide. But he felt the sting of rejection all the same.
“You know,” he continued, “I did not plan to take a wife for a long time. I was hoping that she would have passed away by then.”
Adelaide gasped.
He could hardly blame her. It was a terrible thing to say, but it was the truth.
“She may not like you, but she is your mother all the same.”
“Which is exactly why I continue to house her. And it is not that she does not like me; it is that shedetestsme. There is no changing that. But I suppose if she likes you now, there is no harm in her remaining.”
“Well, she likes me today. That could well change by the next morning. She seems to change her mind about me rather often.”
He twirled her, earning looks of appreciation from the onlookers.
“Be that as it may, she has at least behaved in an acceptable manner. If she ever hurts you, though, I will send her away. I can assure you of that.”
Cassian knew that she did not like to hear it. It was not appropriate to discuss having his ailing mother removed from their home during a ball, but that was something he was more than happy to do if she was going to cause trouble for them. He could not allow it, not when Adelaide had done nothing to warrant the hatred he had been subjected to.
“It would be good for the two of you to discuss it all. At least you would know why she dislikes you.”
“I have asked many times. She simply tells me that I know what I did, and it never goes any further.”
That was a half-truth. In the beginning, his mother had delighted in telling him just what he had done to earn her scorn, but soon she tired of it and only told him that he knew. Over time, he had learned to accept it.
“I rather like a waltz,” Adelaide noted after a moment. “It is slower, easier to manage than a quadrille.”
“All the better for conversation.”
“Precisely.”
“And do you like talking to me?”
“Of course! You may not like to hear it, but you are not the villain you think you are.”
“Who is to say?”
“Your wife,” she reminded him, tapping her ring finger against his shoulder. “I do not mean to be brazen, but it is entirely possible for you to be a good man who is simply not liked by all. That is rather common, actually.”
