“Give Miss Delmonte a moment to breathe, you little savages, or she will abandon us for Yorkshire again,” said Mr. Byrnes with a laugh. Griffith tugged on his tailcoat, but Silas ignored it and turned his attention back to Judith. “No doubt, you are exhausted from your trip.”
“I would say you look more exhausted than I,” said Judith, examining his complexion, which was far too pale for her liking. “Are you unwell?”
“It has been a long few weeks, and I’ve been run off my feet, but I am better now that you have returned,” he said with a smile that would be far more convincing if his cheeks had some color to them. “Dinner will be served in an hour or so, but I can ring for a tray now, if you wish. And no doubt, you would like to get cleaned up. Traveling is such a dirty business—”
But Griffith gave his tailcoat another firm tug. “Papa!”
Mr. Byrnes crouched down, and his son leaned close, whispering into his ear.
“Please, Papa,” he added, his expression the picture of supplication.
Turning back to Judith, Mr. Byrnes said, “Would you rather eat, get cleaned up, or be given a very special surprise?”
Judith straightened, her brows rising as she gave Griffith a grin. “A very special surprise, is it?”
Griffith nodded, his gaze darting between her and his father.
“There is a certain young man who has been exceptionally eager to give it to you,” said Mr. Byrnes. “He has been hounding me constantly to know when you would return.”
“Then that sounds especially important,” she said with a nod. “So, I will choose the very special surprise first.”
Griffith fairly shouted and hopped on his toes before shooting out of the parlor as his father called instructions at him. Helen took Judith by the hand, guiding her to the sofa, and sat her down, snuggling close to her. Leah came over and leaned against Judith’s knees, and the pair continued to tell her all about what had happened during her absence.
A moment later, Griffith burst back through the door, his lungs heaving as he sprinted to her side with a brown paper package in hand.
“Open it,” he urged, placing it in her lap.
Judith turned the package over in her hands. It was thin and rectangular, no larger than her palm, and she took a moment to puzzle over what it might be, though Griffith begged her to hurry. With a tug, she pulled off the string and peeled back the paper. Inside was a leather case, engraved with a floral design on one side and her name on the back. Judith sent Mr. Byrnes a questioning glance, but he nodded at it, and she flipped open the gold clasp.
The hinged case opened, and Judith gasped at the sight of two very familiar faces staring up at her. Rendered in black and white was a copy of her parents’ portraits from her father’s sketchbook. Their features weren’t quite as perfect as the original drawing had been, but they were a far sight better than after the sketchbook had been ruined, and Judith’s vision blurred, her thumb brushing along the edge of the gilded frame.
“We didn’t know what colors to use,” said Griffith with a frown. “I think it’d be better with color.”
Judith pressed a hand to her stomach, though it didn’t calm the flood that swallowed up her heart. Her throat tightened, and tears filled her eyes. The feeling pressed down on her, but it was joy and pain all mixed together until Judith didn’t know what to say or do.
“How?” she whispered.
“You left your sketchbook behind,” said Griffith.
“He wanted to do something to help mend what he’d ruined,” added Mr. Byrnes. “So, we sent it to an artist I know who was able to restore some of the drawings.”
Griffith nodded. “We put it back in your room, and it looks much better now, but you should have your mama and papa with you always.”
Judith met Mr. Byrnes’s gaze, knowing full well their use of “we” was very generous, but he shook his head.
“He wanted to make it right,” he whispered, nodding at Griffith. “The portraits were his idea, and he gave what few pennies he had to pay for it.”
Closing the case, Judith took Griffith in her arms, pressing a kiss to his temple. “Thank you, Griffith. I adore it.”
But even as she spoke, she held Mr. Byrnes’s gaze, hoping he would understand the words were as much for him as his son. Griffith clung to her, burying his face into her neck.
Then the boy pushed away to add, “If you tell us what colors to use, Papa says we can add them.”
Judith shook her head. “I think it is perfect the way it is.”
*
If Silas harbored any doubts about his feelings, seeing Miss Delmonte standing in the parlor doorway dispelled the last of them. His heart swelled at the sight of her smile as she clutched the portraits to her chest, and Silas longed to shove the children aside so he could take their seat beside her and commandeer Miss Delmonte. Though fatigue gripped him, begging him to lay down, Silas couldn’t bear the thought of leaving her company. Not after such a long separation.
