When he looked over at her, the frown she wore was deeper than any other he had ever seen.
I will do whatsoever it takes to put that smile back on her face.
Seventeen
“Ihave a surprise for you,” Windham said the following morning when he found Isabelle throwing a ball for Rose in the apple orchard.
Isabelle tossed the ball again. “There is nothing you need to do for me. Supper last night was disastrous but I shall be fine. It was only a moment of weakness.”
“Yes, but there are still weeks to the season and you need something to ground yourself.” Windham tilted his head in the direction of the house. “Come with me.”
Curious, she followed him with Rose trotting along at her heels. “I really am fine. You know that, do you not? Cruel words from women are nothing new. They are as common in America as they are here.”
Windham tucked his hands into the pockets of his breeches. “Must you be so infuriating?”
“Always.” She gave him a small smile. “I will try to be less infuriating in the future.”
“No,” Windham said quickly, his gaze meeting hers before he looked away. “I do not wish for you to become someone you are not. It is simply an observation.”
Isabelle wished that the butterflies in her stomach would become less relentless. Her heart skipped a beat each time she looked at him. She didn’t know what to think anymore. This was a side of the duke that didn’t make sense to her.
“Will you tell me what this surprise is, Windham?” she asked as they drew closer to the house.
He took a sharp turn down a small path, leading to a little building with a base of stacked stone and walls of glass. “How can a surprise be a surprise if I tell you what it is prior to you seeing it?”
“I do not know. I am horrible about keeping surprises. Each time my mother has tried to surprise my father, I let it slip. She does not tell me about the surprises anymore.”
Perhaps that is the reason I do not know what else your arrangement with my father entails.
She was certain that whatever Felix was taking great pains to hide from her would only upset her more.
Isabelle took a deep breath and pushed it out of her mind. Now wasn’t the time to think of such things. She had made her decision to save her friend and she was going to stick to it.
If none of the suitors were tolerable she would find another way to convince her father to help. It would be a Herculean task, whereas entering into a marriage would be much easier, at least for the short term. Looking into the future was murky at best.
Running away is always an option.
Windham looked back at her. “You look like you have a million different things going on in your head right now.”
“It is seldom quiet in there, to be honest.” Isabelle stopped with him outside the little glass building and waited while he unlocked the door before handing the black metal key to her. “What is this for?”
“This is going to be your art studio.” Windham stepped to the side, sweeping his arm out in front of him.
She stood there dumbfounded. “My what?”
“Victoria mentioned that you wished you had brought watercolors with you. I had this little building, and I thought that it would make you a proper art studio for the time being.:”
Tears welled up in the corners of her eyes. “Why did you do this? This is too much, Windham. Thank you.”
He shrugged and waited for her to enter before following her in. “I know that this household can be a lot to deal with at times. I would not survive it if I didn’t have a place to be on my own every now and then. This studio will be for you to use whenever you feel like it.”
She ran her fingers over the stack of canvases and sheets of textured paper stacked on one of the counters. “This is all too much. Thank you.”
“You are willing to help my family. This is the least I could do for you.”
Isabelle took a deep breath and went to the little pots of paint, looking through all of the colors lined up in a neat row. She knew it would have cost several pounds to stock the little building. For a moment, she considered offering him money to pay for all that he had done, but she knew he would take her gesture as an insult.
Isabelle realized that this was the most selfless thing that anyone had ever done for her.
