“Thank you, Thalia,” he said to his sister, as she took a seat beside Evelyn, who sat to his right.
“Are you well, your grace?” his mother asked Evelyn, who paused a moment before leaning toward her, a small smile on her lips.
“I am very well,” Evelyn said. “But, perhaps, we might dispense with the titles? It does become rather tiresome after awhile, all of us referring to one another as ‘your grace’ again and again, does it not?”
Asher groaned inwardly. This was not going to go over well.
“You would like us to dispense withtitles?” his mother repeated with a sniff.
“What I mean to say is that I am happy for you to call me Evelyn,” she said, appearing unruffled.
How she maintained that outward calm, he had no idea. Especially when that mind of hers seemed to work so quickly.
Every time he looked at her, his thoughts shifted back to their kiss in the alleyway. How he had let himself consider continuing it once they returned home. But it worried him. They had agreed this was a practical partnership and nothing more. Heneededit to be so.
He was already unable to make sense of this growing protectiveness he felt toward her. If it became more than that, he could be in trouble.
Best to keep her at a distance for now — emotionally, at least, to safeguard his family, his title, and his heart. Too much affection could be dangerous. He could offer his respect for what she had sacrificed for her own family, for his, for how she was trying to solve this mystery along with the many others she tackled every day — but he couldn’t give her any vulnerability.
He couldn’t afford it, for it was already hard enough keeping himself on track, regimented enough to look after all that was required of him. To return to that part of himself that took time for enjoyment, for considering what else there might be to life… it was no longer an option.
“That is rather familiar, is it not?” his mother was now saying.
“We are family now,” Asher cut in, wanting to provide some peace to the table, and his mother had been the one to say thatEvelyn was the duchess now, that this was her household to run, as difficult as his mother was finding to give it up.
“Very well… Evelyn,” his mother said, though she almost choked on the word. Asher caught Thalia’s eye across the table, and soon enough, they were both holding back their laughter, for never before had they seen their mother challenged like this, especially by someone who did so with such a serene sense of calm.
One thing was certain — Asher had a deep curiosity about his wife, one that was proving very difficult to ignore.
He passed the next few days as he always would have, except for the continuous encounters with Evelyn. Asher would pass her in the hallway, their eyes meeting or their hands accidentally touching. They had brief exchanges at meals, in his study, over estate repairs or society events, or while reviewing correspondence or staff questions.
She didn’t suppress her opinions, and she never hesitated from telling him exactly what she thought he should do, even if it regarded something that didn’t directly involve her.
He always told her that he would consider her opinion, making sure she understood that he was still the one making the decisions.
Although he secretly enjoyed the feeling of no longer doing this alone.
They kept their exchanges polite, but there was an underlying current that Asher couldn’t remember ever feeling with another woman before.
Before his life of responsibility, if he had seen an opportunity with a woman, he had taken it. As long as she was not a young lady who might hold expectations, he saw no issue.
But now… now the future was what held them together.
That, and the diamond investigation. Not much had come of their inquiries yet, so they discussed their theories about who itcould have been and why, but the truth was, they didn’t know enough to offer any logical explanation.
Instead, every time she spoke, Asher found himself longing to kiss her again. He promptly scolded himself for having such thoughts when he was trying to be rid of them all.
One thing was certain — he had never had his patience tried like this before.
And he wasn’t entirely sure what to do about it.
Evelyn had nearly given up.
In every exchange with Asher, she tried to find a way to get closer to him—physically or to the man he was inside.
She would brush her hand against his if they passed one another in the corridor. She provided him with her opinion if she thought it would help.
She did all she could to try to ease some of the burden he so obviously carried. From what she could observe, he did nothing for himself. His days were spent overseeing his estates, making decisions for his staff and the people who answered to him across all the areas he owned, attending parliament and meetings required of him by his peers.
