He pushed the thought down and watched Charlotte cross the room to speak with Penelope while Joan loudly argued with Irene.
“It is a fact that lemon cakes are better than strawberry tarts,” she bickered.
Harriet attempted to referee the debate with theatrical despair. “Girls, must you argue over everything?”
Oswald calmly continued eating as though chaos did not reign around him.
Victor found himself oddly entertained by their family squabbles. His own household had not sounded this cheerful in years.
“They are loud,” Lionel said dryly as he appeared at Victor’s side.
Victor glanced at his brother and arched a brow. “You say that like a complaint.”
“I merely observed a fact.” Lionel accepted a glass from a passing servant. “Though I confess the house suits it better than silence.”
Victor hummed in agreement, but tension still settled between them all the same. It always did these days. Lionel studied him for a long moment before offering a small nod.
“Well then,” Lionel said, “congratulations, brother.”
Victor inclined his head. “Thank you.”
Lionel looked toward Charlotte, who was laughing now as Penelope nearly knocked over a teacup with exaggerated gestures. “I truly never believed I should see this day.”
Victor smirked faintly. “Nor did I.”
“You swore for years you would never marry,” Lionel continued. “Frankly, I thought even a scandal would fail to force your hand.”
Something cold flickered through Victor’s expression at those words. “You think so little of me?”
Lionel blinked once, clearly surprised by the sharpness in his tone. “That was not what I meant.”
“You implied I would ruin a lady rather than marry her,” Victor said quietly. “I may be many things, Lionel, but dishonourable is not one of them.”
Lionel immediately straightened. “You are right. I spoke poorly.”
Victor stared at him for a moment before finally exhaling. The irritation eased slightly from his shoulders, though not entirely. Lionel had always looked at him as though he were some unpredictable storm waiting to destroy everything nearby.
Perhaps I am.
“I apologize,” Lionel said sincerely. “Truly.”
Victor gave a short nod. “Very well.”
Lionel’s expression brightened almost instantly, as though he disliked tension nearly as much as Victor did.
“Besides,” he added lightly, “I expect you shall make surprisingly devoted parents one day.”
Victor nearly choked on his champagne.
Morgan burst into laughter somewhere behind them while Lionel frowned in confusion. Victor recovered quickly, though a hard knot had already formed in his stomach.
Children.
The very thought sent something dark and terrible curling through him.
“That,” Victor said coolly, “is exceedingly unlikely.”
Lionel looked puzzled. “Why?”
