Owen laughed first, and I tried to keep myself from bursting out in a similar fashion, but failed after a few seconds. My giggles only added to my embarrassment, but they couldn’t be stopped. I hadn’t laughed this hard in years. Perhaps it wasn’t only Mrs. Everard’s comment, but the look on Owen’s face that brought me to such a state. I sighed as my laughter subsided, feeling much lighter.
“I certainly agree, Grandmother,” Owen said with a playful grin in my direction. “In fact, I already made the same suggestion this afternoon.”
Mrs. Everard’s distressed expression lifted for a brief moment, and she joined in the laughter. “You were not lying when you said they were mischeivous, Miss Downing.”
I groaned. “I did try to warn you.”
After the chaotic events of dinner, I made sure to send Peter and Charles to bed without joining the others in the drawingroom. I insisted on taking them to their room myself rather than sending a maid to tuck them into their new beds. For years, I had been the one to wish them goodnight and blow out their candles. I wouldn’t stop now, especially when they were in such an unfamiliar place.
With my brothers drifting off to sleep, I walked down to the drawing room where the others had gathered after dinner. I paused at the door, tempted to hurry back to my own bedchamber rather than continue socializing. My heart fluttered, sending a spiral of nervousness down to my stomach. Did anyone even want me there? No matter how many times Mrs. Kellaway had told me I was welcome, I still felt like I was imposing.
For several seconds, I stood outside the room, wringing my hands together and watching Owen. He sat in the same place as he had before dinner. He was laughing at something, which came as no surprise, his dark blond hair falling over his forehead. The cushion beside him was still indented from where I had been sitting before.
Why was I so determined to dislike him? Was it a defense of some sort? I was fully aware that I had no shortage of defenses, but taking them down was a task I didn’t feel capable of. My feet felt like they had been nailed to the floor. With my brothers tucked into bed and far away from my side, I felt incomplete. Who was I without them? What was my purpose? I was an intruder in this beautiful house among such kind people.
“Annette? Is that you?”
It was Mrs. Kellaway’s voice. I retreated one step backward into the dark corridor before calming my nerves and moving forward instead. I put on a smile, but my legs were shaking. “Yes.” They must have all thought me to be such a strange creature, lurking in the darkness, watching them all converse and laugh.
I forced myself to walk into the room, taking the available seat beside Owen. I didn’t look at him, keeping my posture straight and my eyes fixed on Mrs. Kellaway.
“How are the boys?” she asked.
“I suspect they will sleep well. They’ve had an eventful day.”
Mrs. Everard snorted, a wry grin on her face. “Eventful, indeed.”
“I’m glad you could rejoin us,” Mrs. Kellaway said with a smile.
I was quickly learning that she didn’t hold a grudge. She seemed to have forgotten the mouse incident already.
I gave a polite nod in response. I could feel Owen’s gaze as he studied my profile, and it might as well have been flames for how dangerous it felt. Why did I allow him to unnerve me so much? He didn’t mean any harm. Did he?
I glanced in his direction.
“Will you please accept my apology?” he asked in a quiet voice, displaying his playful grin. Contrary to his mother, he seemed to remember past quarrels perfectly.
I waited several seconds; I didn’t want him to know just how relieved I was that he had asked again. “Yes,” I said with a reluctant smile.
“And my compliment?”
My heart stumbled, but I managed not to blush, which I was quite proud of. “I suppose.”
He sat back, relief apparent in his eyes. “I hope to remain undeserving of your wrath for what remains of your visit at Kellaway Manor. I will be on my best behavior.” Something in his voice failed to convince me.
I looked at him from the corner of my eye. “I fear that your best behavior may be another man’s worst.”
“He must be a very boring man, indeed.” His smile grew. I couldn’t help mine from doing the same. “Do you think we can be friends?” he asked.
The question rang loud in my ears, pulling at my heart. When was the last time I had considered anyone I knew as a friend? After moving to Silton, I knew no one. My grief had been fresh and I had no intention of making friends. I had taken on the role of a mother to my brothers and that had been the sole purpose of my life.
“At least something better than an enemy?” Owen’s voice brought my mind back to the present.
My lips curled slowly into a smile. Something within me yearned for friendship with fresh longing. I wanted to say yes, but I couldn’t bring myself to flatter him so completely. “I suppose,” I repeated.
He still smiled like he had just been granted a knighthood.
As I lay in bed that night, I was surprised by how easily sleep was evading me. After such a long day, I had expected that I would fall asleep the moment my head hit the pillow. Instead, my mind raced as I stared up at the dark ceiling. Embarrassment, worry, and excitement all played their part in my inability to sleep, and my thoughts refused to dispel their thick clouds of questions.
