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Laura let her. She was grateful for the noise, the warmth of it, for it filled the spaces where Nathaniel’s silence sat heavier than usual on her heart.

Only once the dishes had been cleared away and the governess had come to collect a reluctant, yawning Iris for bed did the room finally quiet enough for her to reach beneath the table and take his hand.

He started at the touch, as though he had forgotten she was still there, still watching him.

“You don’t have to tell me,” she said quietly, when the last of the footmen had withdrawn, and the candles were burning low. “Not tonight, if you are not ready. I only want you to know that I noticed. Whatever happened today, it has taken a toll on you. I could see it the moment you walked in.”

Nathaniel was quiet for a long moment, his thumb absently stroking her knuckles.

“He mentioned Cumberlea,” he said, draining the rest of his wine. “Spoke his name as though it were nothing more than an item in a shipping contract…”

“Rather than the man who destroyed your sister,” Laura finished gently, when it seemed he couldn’t bring himself to.

“Yes.” The word came out rough, almost a curse. “I sat there and drank his brandy and told him business was business. I told him I’d never let sentiment cloud my judgment.”

“But?” she pressed.

“The entire time, I wanted nothing more than to put my fist through his face.” His hand tightened around hers. “I hated myself a little.”

“Why? It’s only natural to have felt that way,” she soothed.

“For managing it so well. For letting him mention my sister’s ruin over brandy and not so much as blink,” he rasped.

“You didn’t manage it because you felt nothing,” she said. “You managed it because you understood, better than I think Alden ever will, that the only way to help Isabella now is to be patient enough to see this through.”

Something in his shoulders finally eased, and he offered a half smile. “I don’t know how you always say the thing I need to hear before I’ve even worked out that I need to hear it.”

“I’ve been practicing,” she quipped, smiling back.

“What else can we practice?” he purred, tugging her off the chair and into his lap in one swift motion.

“I suppose we can think of something else to focus our energies on,” she teased.

He cupped her cheek and pressed a kiss to her lips. “Much better.”

CHAPTER 19

Two days later, Nathaniel visited Laura and Iris in the girl’s nursery.

“I have something for Iris. A surprise. I’d like you both to come with me,” he said.

Iris bounced up. “Is it a puppy? Uncle Everett said I should have a puppy,” she said, clapping her hands together.

“It is not a puppy,” Nathaniel said, rubbing a hand down his face.

“Is it a pony?” she pressed, vibrating in her seat now.

“Iris,” he warned.

“Is it⁠—”

“You’ll see,” he interrupted, the corner of his mouth twitching. “Let’s go.”

He led them up the stairs, past the second floor, and up a narrower staircase Laura had never used before. They reached the door at the end of a dim corridor.

He paused there with his hand on the latch, and she saw something flicker across his face.

“Uncle Nathaniel?” Iris prompted, tugging at his coat. “Why did you stop?”