He could just picture Catherine changing the menu several times, choosing the most cost-effective option each time, regardless of whether it was what she wanted. He felt the corner of his mouth quirk upward, but forced it down.
“Her Grace feels a sense of duty to the financial well-being of the estate, yes.” Mrs. Danvers smiled.
“While she is here, I would have her not worry about such things. Though I know that is easier said than done, and it is not your place to command a duchess.” Alaric stroked his chin as they continued to walk down the corridor. “Ensure that each week we have one meal with guinea fowl and the other is venison. You can tell her it is my insistence, and that she is free to choose everything else.”
“Very good, Your Grace,” Mrs. Danvers said.
“And what about wine? I know we will have to pair it with the meals, but does she have a preference for a particular vineyard?” Alaric canted his head toward his housekeeper.
“Not that I have noticed,” Mrs. Danvers admitted.
“Find out, and ensure we have it stocked.” Alaric gestured down one of the halls in the direction of the wine cellar and the kitchens. “And have Cook prepare her favorite puddings and cakes. That will be good for Oliver as well. I am told children often have a rather sweet tooth.”
“They do, and young Master Oliver is no different.” Mrs. Danvers’s face warmed as she mentioned Oliver.
“And you will of course see that the Duchess has everything she needs.” Alaric’s eyes drifted to a vase of flowers on the table, and he gently touched a petal with his finger.
I still do not know what her favorite flowers are.
“I am told that women like flowers and such.” Alaric kept his voice neutral and disinterested, as if the thought had just occurred to him. “Ensure that the ones throughout the house are safe for children and reflect my wife’s taste. They should be refreshed as often as needed.”
She should be surrounded by things that bring her joy.Alaric swallowed the words down and turned to face his housekeeper.Though she hid it well, he could tell from the slight raising of her eyebrows and the parting of her lips that she was surprised.
Is it my request that surprises her, or that I wish to think of my wife? My wife.The words felt right, and he had to fight the temptation to say them as often as possible.
She will leave.
The warmth in him vanished instantly. He did not understand why he had wanted to keep her away. What rational man would not want someone like her around? She was beautiful and kind. Yet, she was determined to leave once they uncovered the truth about Oliver’s parentage and arranged his care.
Who knows how long that will take?
“Will that be all, Your Grace?” Mrs. Danvers’s voice jerked Alaric back into the present.
“Yes, thank you, Mrs. Danvers.” Alaric clasped his hands behind his back and nodded, signaling her dismissal. “I shall leave this in your capable hands.”
Mrs. Danvers curtsied and left the room.
Alaric massaged the back of his neck as he listened to her footsteps disappear into the distance. “We may not have chosen each other, but she is mine.”
His eyes drifted toward the ceiling, in the direction of the Duchess’s rooms. He felt the skin of his scar stretch.
“I cannot tell if this accident is a blessing or a curse. Perhaps it is both.” He supposed only time would tell. For now, he knew what he wanted. “I will make her stay a good one.”
He did not let himself dwell on just why that felt so important to him. He would honor his wife’s rules, and what he had asked Mrs. Danvers seemed perfectly in line with her request.
“There is nothing improper about it. No touching and no going into her rooms.” He nodded to himself. “I cannot change the past, but I can fix the present.”
He would make her feel welcome and ensure she had choices. After all, it was the least he could do.
CHAPTER 11
“Do you like the cake, Oliver?” Catherine gestured to the plum cake on the plate in front of her.
Catherine and Oliver sat in the e astern drawing room, with a tray of cakes and tea on the coffee table between them. Oliver was in his usual spot on the floor, with his new piece of slate and chalk beside him.
At her words, the boy gestured to his now empty plate, grabbed his slate, and drew a triangle, a circle, and then a small figure of a boy. Catherine waited for him to hold it up to her.
“I shall take that as a yes and that you would like more.” She waited for him to nod, and then cut another piece and put it on the plate. “Though that is the last, I do not want you getting too full to eat your dinner.”
