At that, he quieted. His silence made her nervous.
He took his seat, and the first course was served. But her appetite had already vanished. They ate in silence for a while, before Iris cleared her throat.
“Well, I like what she has done. It makes me feel at home again.”
“Mother, you were the one who insisted on not making any changes.”
“Yes, and I see now that it was wrong of me. I like what she has done. Do you not like it, too?”
“I—yes, it is lovely, but I still should have been consulted. If I were absent, it should have waited.”
Adelaide bit down on her tongue. She did not want to have an argument at the table, but it all felt unfair. She had alreadyexplained that it needed to be done and why she had not told him, but of course, it was not enough for him.
“My friends will arrive within the week,” she reminded him. “I want everything to be ready for them. When my mother arrived, I did not know how to explain why everything looked so clinical. I did not want to do that again with my friends.”
“And I understand that, but?—”
“So you understand, given your continued absence, why I had to do what I thought was best, yes?”
But instead of answering, Cassian resumed his dinner.
It was a small victory, but Adelaide was pleased all the same. She was not going to be a meek little thing who let him do as he pleased, even if his presence did intimidate her.
When dinner was over, Iris retired for bed, leaving the two of them alone.
Adelaide could not quite look at him, but when she did glance in his direction, he was watching her.
“You should not speak to me in that manner,” he said firmly.
“I tried to reason with you, Cassian. It is not my fault that you could not see reason. The truth is, I had permission from bothof you, so I did what I wanted to do. This is my home too, and I do not need to ask you if I can do what is expected of a duchess.”
He straightened at that. She could have sworn she saw respect in his eyes.
“Yes, well, make sure that you do not speak to me in that manner again.”
“And will you do the same for me?”
“I will.”
Satisfied, she bit back a smile.
Soon enough, the tension eased, and a far more comfortable silence settled between them.
“Where were you today?” she asked. “I told Iris that I had expected one of you to watch what I was doing, but she was out in the village.”
“I do not think you will be pleased with me if I tell you.”
A chill ran down her spine, and her eyes searched his. She knew that husbands took mistresses, but she had not thought him that sort of man. She tried to hide the hurt, for she knew she was not supposed to care much, but it was in vain. It was as though Cassian could read her thoughts.
His face contorted in panic. “No,” he said quickly. “No, it is not what you think. You see, I received a letter this morning, and I had to pay someone a visit. But I knew how you feel about me handling this sort of thing, so I thought it best that you did not know about it.”
“I see, and what was this letter about?”
He took the letter out of his pocket and handed it to her. She unfolded it while looking at him curiously, then lowered her gaze to it.
Your Grace,
I am writing to invite you for tea this afternoon. I am aware that you and I have had our troubles, but I do not want them to continue.
