But before Silas spoke another word, Ruth shot to her feet and rushed out of the study, the door swinging shut behind her.
Chapter 28
Silas stared at his study door, and he didn’t know what to feel at that moment; the Silas of a quarter-hour ago would’ve felt vindicated and justified in maintaining his low opinion of his sister-in-law, but at present, he felt a great gaping emptiness. With a sigh, Silas slumped back into his chair. He didn’t think he had an ounce of energy left.
“My deepest thanks, Miss Delmonte.”
“I was only doing what was best for the children, sir.”
Silas’s eyes slid closed as the spirited Miss Delmonte once more faded from view. His heart groaned, giving a dull thud as a heavy silence settled on the room. The day had been so very long already, yet there were still hours left before he could escape into sleep and hope for a better tomorrow.
The sounds of shifting skirts drew his eyes open once more to see Miss Delmonte moving away from the fireplace. The pain in his chest increased as she stepped to the door, and Silas couldn’t stop himself from calling out to her. The lady paused and turned to face him, her hands clasped as she awaited her master’s dictates. Silas’s mouth hung open as he scoured his thoughts for an excuse to keep her close. Silas couldn’t stand the thought of sitting here alone, and it had been so very long since he’d had any excuse to speak with her. He couldn’t let it slip by.
After seeing her so distraught earlier, he yearned to ask after herself, but that would be unlikely to entice her to speak.
“Might I ask your advice with Helen?” It was the first subject he seized upon, though Silas preferred to speak about something other than his children. The afternoon had been filled with enough of their issues, and he longed for something else. But it was the only thing guaranteed to keep Miss Delmonte here.
The lady took Ruth’s seat and nodded. “Certainly, sir. What do you wish to ask me?”
“Once more, I am lost.”
Miss Delmonte’s brows rose at that. “That is not a question.”
Silas gave her a wan smile. “No, I suppose it is not. But I fear I do not know the questions I need answering. Every time I feel I am making progress, she withdraws again. I had thought we began a new chapter last month when I took her on a drive, but she was sullen throughout it and now refuses to repeat the excursion. After the scene she just witnessed, I fear she may never wish to speak to me again. I will apologize once more, but I have little hope it will do any good: she accepted my last one yet still holds me at a distance.”
Miss Delmonte leveled another look at him that bespoke of impatience and exhaustion. “You truly do not understand, do you?”
“Clearly, not,” he mumbled, rubbing at his forehead.
Then, with a tone that held more than a dash of condescension. “Think back to that afternoon.”
Silas threw his arms wide. “I have. I spoke to Helen and her friend. I offered to take Helen for a drive, and she seemed keen. We had a good moment together. Or so I thought.” Pausing, Silas replayed the memory again, and still, his heart warmed at Helen’s smile. “She’d been hesitant but pleased. And then…”
Miss Delmonte watched him with raised brows and nodded as though urging him forward, but Silas shrugged.
“And then she was sullen and silent the entire journey,” he said.
Shoulders dropping, Miss Delmonte sighed and shook her head, and despite disliking the impatience behind the movement, Silas almost smiled at seeing his friend emerging once more. But any pleasure he felt fled when she supplied the missing piece of the puzzle.
“You invited another lady along on the first outing you’ve taken with your daughter,” said Miss Delmonte.”
“After securing Helen’s permission. She accepted readily enough and voiced not a single complaint about the addition to our party.”
Miss Delmonte scoffed, gazing at him as though he were a lunatic. “Did you truly expect her to say no in front of the lady?”
“Mrs. Talley wasn’t listening.”
“Believe you me, she was, and even if she weren’t, what Helen wanted most was for you not to ask the question in the first place.” Miss Delmonte shook her head, giving a long heavy sigh. “What does it say to your daughter that just as you were about to set off, you decided you wanted someone else along as well? Though it seemed a small thing to you, it proved your invitation wasn’t serious and that you did not wish to be alone with her.”
Silas’s mouth hung open as he considered that. “That is ludicrous.”
“Is it?” And the expression on Miss Delmonte’s face spoke clearly of her opinion, and Silas was forced to reconsider. Leaning forward, Miss Delmonte held his gaze, her eyes warming. “Your daughter wants to love you. If she were indifferent, she wouldn’t be hurt by your missteps. But she is because she continues to open her heart to you. It may be in small ways, but she does.”
“But how do I secure her affection? Clearly, I am not doing it properly,” he muttered, rubbing his face.
“Firstly, you need to listen better. Too many think it only requires remaining silent, but you need to heed not just what she’s saying but how.” Shifting in her seat, Miss Delmonte’s brow furrowed as she sorted through her words. “Helen will keep you at arm’s length. She will push against you. Fight you, even. She will test you until she feels certain she can trust you. With time and caution on your part, she will open her whole heart to you, Mr. Byrnes, and it is so very big.”
Silas nodded, though he struggled beneath the weight of a dozen different worries that settled onto his shoulders. It sounded as though he needed to be a veritable clairvoyant, snatching Helen’s true feelings and thoughts hidden among her silences. He shifted in his seat and wondered how a man was supposed to do such a thing.
