“Thank you,” she said.
He looked down, away from her, but a ghost of a smile touched his face for a moment.
Good. Anything that makes you smile is a good start.Selina cracked open an egg and added it to the cake mixture, then stirred the batter with a spoon. “Now, watch closely, and you will be able to make lemon cake any time you wish for it.”
Percy watched as she mixed the ingredients together and turned them into a smooth batter. He pointed to the spoon.
“Do you want to stir?” Selina asked. He nodded in response.
Holding back her happiness, she handed him the spoon.
I should really make him roll up his sleeves to keep them from getting dirty, but I do not want to destroy this moment by ordering him around.Oh well. A little bit of mess will not hurt. Not this once.
Percy carefully stirred the batter. His movements were clumsy and unsure at first, but with Selina’s gentle guidance, he grew more confident.
“Good job!” Selina praised. “You are doing so well! Do you want to taste the batter?”
He looked up at her, as if shocked by her suggestion. She smiled. “All good chefs and bakers taste their food as they go. It is how they know they are doing a good job. So, would you like a taste?”
He nodded eagerly.
She grabbed a spoon and took out only a little bit of batter, so he would not get sick, and handed it to him. “Here you are.” She grabbed a small spoonful for herself as well.
Percy cautiously tasted the batter before his face broke out into a smile from the sweet, pleasant flavor. Selina’s heart soared at the sight. Maybe there was hope for them after all.
Fourteen
Dominic was in his study when a maid burst in. She looked almost fearful at him. “Your Grace, the duchess is in the kitchen. She dismissed us and said that she was going to bake herself.”
“She didwhat?” He could hardly believe it, and could not contain his disbelief at the thought of his wife doing something so scandalous. She was not supposed to be bothering the servants. A duchess did not belong in the kitchen. “Is she still there?”
“Yes, Your Grace. She isbaking.”
“I will handle her,” he said, getting up from his desk. He pushed past the maid and quickly made his way to the kitchen.What has gotten into her? Perhaps she has lost her mind.
He did not fully believe that his wife was in the kitchen, doing servant’s work, until he heard her cheerful laughter. The sound of it only incensed him.
But when he entered the kitchen, he froze. His son was in the kitchen too, helping her make the cake. Both of them were sweaty, their clothing wrinkled. Flour dusted Selina’s nose and Percy’s hair. He certainly never expected to see either of them in such a state.
But Percy was smiling.
His son had smiled very little in the past year.
Dominic considered backing away and telling the servants to leave her be until she was done. He wouldn’t mind it if dinner was a little late if it meant Percy smiled.
But before he could start backing quietly out of the kitchen, Selina looked up and smiled at him. “Good morning, Dominic,” she said. “We are making lemon cake. Would you like to join us?”
He felt his scowl deepen automatically as a way to hide his discomfort of being caught spying on them. He looked at Percy, whose expression was unreadable. At least he did not look blatantly afraid of his father at the moment. “I have no intention of making my clothes dirty,” he said.
Percy’s face fell.
“But I will stay and watch the two of you,” he said quickly. He certainly was not going to leave if Percy wanted him to stay.
Selina smiled at him, looking satisfied with his answer. He stayed in the background and watched as she and Percy mixed the cake together. She explained everything she was doing and why as they worked. Percy did not say anything, of course, but he was very interested in the process. He smiled when she let him taste the batter.
Dominic stayed quiet. He was careful to stay out of the way, and even though he pretended not to be interested, he could not help but be a little fascinated by the process. He had never considered everything that went into baking and cooking before, and it was interesting to him.
Finally, the cake batter was poured into a pan and placed in the oven. “It will take some time to bake,” Selina said. “And then it will need to cool. However, as soon as it is ready, we can all have a slice.”
