The dowager duchess raised an eyebrow and glanced at Percy, who was very absorbed in his activity of arranging pebbles on the ground. She leaned forward and dropped her voice to a whisper. “I hope the two of you have at least been making good use of your time locked in,” she said.
Selina frowned. “What do you mean?”
The older lady smiled conspiratorially. “When can I expect to meet my next grandson?”
Selina’s cheeks grew hot as she realized what the dowager was asking. “I… never. He…” She practically spluttered over her words as the other woman laughed.I have never been so flustered in my life!“My duty is to take care of Percy,” she finally said. “That is all.”
“Hmph. Back in my day, the wives took care of the children, and the husbands took care of their wives,” she said, sounding grumpy.
Selina wished she could disappear into the ground. “I am perfectly content with my position in the household.” But even as she said it, she knew that was not completely true. Sometimes, at night, she thought about what it would feel like if Dominic came into her room and joined her in her bed. She wanted his hands all over her body as he teased her to heights of pleasure beyond her imagination.
But those fantasies made her ashamed. She should not be thinking such scandalous things, even if they were about herown husband! “My role is to be Percy’s mother,” she said. “That’s all.”
Suddenly, a pebble hit the end of the bench, near where Selina was sitting. She startled and looked up to see Percy standing and glaring at her. “Percy?”
He took off running toward the manor as fast as he could. Selina stood up and went after him, leaving the dowager duchess to continue sitting on the bench.
He was much faster than she, and she had lost sight of him by the time she reached the manor. She stopped a maid in the hallway. “Do you know where Percy went?”
“Upstairs, Your Grace,” she said.
“Thank you.”
Selina went upstairs to the third floor. She checked the nursery and Percy’s bedroom first, but could not find him in those rooms. Then she heard the sound of soft crying coming from her own room.
Selina opened the door to see Percy sitting on her bed, crying. He was clutching something in his hands—a painting. He glared at her. “No!” he shouted.
Selina’s breath caught in her throat at the sound of his voice. Despite the circumstances, pride and happiness filled her. Percy had found his voice again.
She tried not to let her happiness show. Instead, she sat next to him on the bed, careful to keep a little bit of distance between them. “What is wrong, darling?” she asked.
Percy placed the painting on the bed between them. “No,” he repeated, softer this time. Then he dissolved into tears.
Selina looked down at the portrait. It was a painting of a young woman with blonde hair and a heart-shaped face. She smiled softly in the painting, but the artist had also captured sadness in her eyes. She realized this must be Eugenia, Percy’s mother. She remembered what she had said to the dowager duchess.My role is to be Percy’s mother.
“I am sorry, Percy,” she said. “I misspoke when I called myself your mother. I mean that I hope to be like a mother to you. But I know I can never replace her.” She glanced at the portrait. “I would not want to try.”
He glared up at her, his face tearstained. She wanted to reach out and wipe away his tears, but she was sure that would not be welcomed.
“I know all of this is difficult for you,” she said. “I am sure my sudden presence in your life has been stressful, and I would like to make it better. I certainly do not want to try to erase the memory of your mother.”
She looked around the duchess’s suite, which she had slowly been decorating to be warmer and pleasant to suit her. “How about this? I will switch rooms. We can restore your mother’s rooms to their former glory. They will look exactly like they did when she was alive. Would that make you feel better?”
He appeared to think for a moment before he pointed at the railing on the balcony. She looked at it for a moment before nodding. “Yes, those can go too. There is no need for them, after all.”
He nodded and looked down at his lap. He was still upset, but he looked calmer now and was not crying anymore. Selina took that to be a good sign.
She looked down at the portrait. “This is a really beautiful painting,” she said. “Your mother was very beautiful.” She could understand why Dominic was in love with her. She tried not to feel too envious, knowing Eugenia had held his affections, even though the late duchess had not returned them.
She summoned a smile as she looked at Percy. “Perhaps we can get you a miniature version of this portrait. We can put it in a pocket watch. I think you are old enough to have a pocket watch, just like your father. We can go to the jeweler today, and you can pick out your favorite.”
She had been wondering what she could possibly spend her pin money on, and she could not think of a better way to spend it than on Percy.
Percy wiped his tears away and leaned against her. Selina smiled down at him and ruffled his hair. At least he had managed to forgive her little misstep.
Nineteen
Dominic returned home in the early evening. He’d had a busy day at parliament before going out to dinner with Austin. He was tired and ready to retire to his bedchamber with a good book before bed—after checking in on Percy, of course.
