I’m left stunned. Where’s the rapport we share on the upper floor?
Scarlett, with a book to her face, goes to the steps. She lowers it and looks up. After a quick look at me, she gazes from side to side. “He made it. The duke made it. Oh, good morning, Katherine.”
“Scarlett, you said the duke made it. What are you talking about?”
“The duke has this ritual about powering down the stairs. That’s how he knows he’s fully recovered.”
Oh, no.
Glancing down at the marble, I ask, “If someone helped him down or made him come down? What would happen?”
Her eyes grow wide. “Nooo.” She groans a very unladylike, un-Scarlett-like noise. “That’s how he builds his confidence. That would steal it.”
I can’t be a bigamistanda thief. “Oh, I need to apologize.”
She catches my arm. “No, sis. He’s gone to the garden. He likes solace, time alone to think. Now that he comes down, he might even go to his father.”
“Jahleel’s father is dead.”
“He’s interred in St. George’s.” Her tone sounds like a rebuke that I should know these things. “He probably went there after failing to stop your wedding to Tavis.”
My sister knows Jahleel better than I do. This shames me. No wonder she’s the princess’s favorite. “Scarlett, why does he need to be alone? And why does he have all these secretive grieving rituals?”
Snap.The big book in her hands closes. “Katherine, haven’t you been paying attention? This is who he is. He’s a man of rituals. I believe it keeps the duke focused on the things that he wants. It helps him manage the strain of his illness. It is a lot for one man.”
“You mean what I’ve done to him.”
She shrugs but at least doesn’t point her finger at me. “You’ve been difficult … but that has changed. You spend so much time together. Is hethick enoughfor you?”
“What? His weight. Yes, he gained weight.”
She winks at me. “If that’s what you want to call it.”
None of this feels right. “I didn’t want him to fall, and he seemed confused at the top of the stairs.” Again, I glance to the upper landing. He said all could change when he came down. “How do I let him know I have no intentions of disrupting his rituals or his life?”
“It’s a little late for the latter.” She heads me off in a directionother than the garden. “Katherine, let the duke have his moment. He’ll come back to you soon enough. It’s only a matter of time.”
Scarlett says this like she’s done something.
“Talk. Now. What do you know?”
She grins. “I put a little something extra in his tea, just like he wanted, but for you.”
My sister is too smart for her own good, but this sounds ominous. “What did you think I want?”
“The duke said you requested him thick. So I put gentian root to bolster his appetite for food. And a little angelica and a little wormwood to improve his appetite for you.”
“You did what?”
“A few herbs known as aphrodisiacs increase his desire. They improve blood flow, too.”
My mouth falls open. “You must stop that. That’s not what he … not what I meant.”
“It helps with blood flow.” Scarlett smiles big and says, “Thank me later for any additional benefits.” She saunters down the corridor. Our papa’s boots make such a clatter.
I don’t know if I should thank her, since the duke hasn’t become overwhelmed by any emotion except to flee. The urge to go after Jahleel stirs. What is my excuse for thirsting for Jahleel? I haven’t drunk any tea. How do I manage knowing that drinking an aphrodisiac isn’t enough to make him want me?
Chapter 28
