Thomas cast a sideways glance to the door of the room, before he focused all his attention on her.
“Go on,” he prompted.
Jane cleared her throat, hoping that she sounded as concise and as deliberate as possible.
“My friend... the duchess of Westerdale is hosting a ball on behalf of our friends, the duke and duchess of Ironwell. And she invited us both. I hope you might be able to attend it with me,” she said.
He did not look displeased, but was clearly not particularly to receive the information he had attained either. Thomas inhaled deeply and nodded.
“When is it? The ball?”
“The date has yet to be disclosed but I imagine we will receive an official invitation once the time is nigh. I... I only wanted to ask you ahead of time.” she replied uncertainly.
“All right. I will accompany you to the ball. What is your second request?”
Jane glanced at the door to Reuben’s room, hesitating for a moment before she shifted her gaze to Thomas. His eyes met hers, the pools of dark green threatening to pull her under swiftly. Hastily, she blurted,
“I want you to have a meal with me.”
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
“With... you?”
Jane blinked, realizing her mistake moments too late.
“Oh – no. No! What I meant was... with us. Reuben and I. I think it is important to spend some time with him, so that he can feel as though he is being thoroughly cared for. He is a child who, up until recently, only had you. I want him to be aware of just how much you love him.” She explained hastily.
“I think we spend enough time together –”
“Hardly, Your Grace,” Jane cut him off swiftly. “How many times a day do you actually see him? Do you actually speak with him?”
“It is hard to do so when he never responds,” Thomas snapped, looking irritated.
“Then you can speak ‘to’ him. He’ll listen. If that is all he does, it counts for something. You cannot dismiss him simply because he is not reacting the way you expect.”
The look he gave her was the coldest she’d ever received from him. Fear started to take root within her but Jane resisted, determined to stand her ground.
“You know nothing about us. Do not presume to understand him perfectly when you have only been here for a handful of days.” He told her, his tone cold and sharp.
Jane shook her head slowly. “I have no desire to be presumptuous, Thomas. He is a child. He only knows what he sees and hears. I and everyone else in this house knows that you love him. We are sure of it, every day that we wake up and interact with you both separately. But does he know that? Does he know that I am here because you asked me to come with you? Does he know that the reason he felt comfortable enough to say that single word to me was because you brought someone who would listen to the silence and fill the air around him with words he might like to hear? You are as responsible for the single utterance we heard from him, even more so than I am. So... I implore you. Just, one meal, for now. Then we will see how we can orchestrate a single mealtime interaction each day.”
Thomas regarded her with a look that spoke of disbelief and confusion in loud volumes and for a moment, Jane feared he might turn down her request.
Then he exhaled deeply, his expression one of annoyance as he pointed out,
“He might not wish to speak to me. He can barely even stand the look of me on most days. What am I to do when that happens?”
“Well, it is a good thing I will be there, perfectly capable of holding a conversation with either of you,” Jane smiled innocently.
He made a noise that sounded like a grunt, before he turned away and began walking past Reuben’s door. Jane, unwilling to relent, called after him,
“Shall we say at breakfast tomorrow?”
She was worried he would not answer but he replied,
“Perhaps.”
“Set an extra place for the duke and Lord Wetherby at the table today for breakfast,” Jane had instructed the housekeeper right after she had awoken from her slumber.
