In fact—and while it might have been her imagination—Helena couldn’t escape the feeling that the Duke was trying to avoid her. Although she could only guess why he would do such a thing, she could only guess.
Taking my warning seriously, it would seem. Unless there is another reason.
They did not dine together that first evening, nor did they break their fast the following morning. Helena was not overly surprised by this, even if it was a little annoying. She was set to live in this manor for the next few months, and the last thing she wanted was to be treated as if she did not exist.
But she was also stubborn, and she refused to speak with the Duke about any of it because she knew exactly what he would do.
He would mock her, she was certain. He would make fun of her. And likely, he would insinuate another reason why she wanted to spend time with him, making her flush and squirm under his indomitable gaze, teasing her because he seemed to thoroughly enjoy how uncomfortable he could make her.
Helena was still convinced that there was a good reason for this. All it was was a matter of circumstance. She had been caught by surprise; that was all. Uneducated in the ways of romance and courtship, and so out of her depth that the smallest fraction of attention saw her undone. It had nothing to do with the Duke!
It was the truth as she knew it, but she did not want to take the risk. Nor did she want to give him the satisfaction of seeing her squirm.
So it was that her days took on a routine of their own. One needed to pass the time. One needed to keep her distracted.
She spent most of her days writing. Although her manuscript was finished, it was far from perfect, and she threw herself back into it with a mind to seeing it published.
How she would do that, she had no idea. But that was a problem for later.
She explored the estate, getting to know the staff as she did, learning her way around and how things operated. This was her home for now, and she needed to treat it as such.
She wrote to her family and her friends. She read often, devouring books beyond what was normal. She took up stitchwork. She found the music room and renewed her skills on the pianoforte.
She… she… she… she was bored. And as the days wore on, as the Duke continued to avoid her, she was starting to realize that this way of doing things simply could not go on.
It was thus a surprise when one week after their marriage, as she sat at her desk and scribbled notes in the margins of her manuscript, the Duke appeared suddenly in her room.
It was early in the morning, she had just finished breaking her fast, and as had been the case all week, she was not expecting to see him.
“Good day,” he greeted as he strode inside, not bothering to knock. “I thought I would find you here.”
“Oh!” She just about fell from her chair in surprise.
“Careful,” he chuckled wickedly. “I would hate for you to fall and bruise yourself. People might begin to wonder at the cause. They might say I’ve been beating you.”
He was in good spirits, and the way he spoke to her might have suggested that they had not spent the past week without once seeing one another. Nor would it suggest that he was the cause.
This annoyed Helena to no end. It probably shouldn’t have. Probably, she should not have cared. But there was just something about her husband that frustrated her more than anything ever had. Seeing the smirk on his lips and the smile in his eyes, she could not contain her wrath.
“Oh, I would not worry about that.” She put down her quill and turned to face him, crossing her arms and cocking an eyebrow. “That would require you and me to be in the same room together. Which, as far as I have seen, is as likely as the sun rising in the night sky.”
It was stupid, but Helena wanted to upset him. But typically, she received no such reaction.
“Are you upset with me?”
“Of course I am not,” she snapped.
“You have a funny way of showing it.”
She exhaled, the anger leaving her as quickly as it came. “I am not upset with you. I am merely… I have not seen you all week. I have not heard a word from you. You might have left the country, for all I know.”
“Is that not what you wanted?”
“What? No, I never said such things.”
“You implied them,” he said simply. “The speech you forced upon my ears, about wanting to be free to do as you please. Strangers, I believe, was the term you used. How insistent you were that this marriage was for appearances only. I thought the less you saw of me, the better.”
She opened her mouth to argue, only for any sensible argument she might have had to die on her tongue.
