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“I shall accompany you.” She makes the same gesture with her hand, elegant and authoritative.
He advances, his shadow lengthening for a moment near mine, then he moves away. As my mother passes beside me, she leans in slightly.
“Do what must be done.”
I watch them disappear around the corner, the fabric of Mademoiselle Agnes’s gown brushing my hand as we move together, step by step, along the corridor leading outside. The gardens stretch out before us.
“A truly delightful garden, Viscount.”
“I am glad you like it,” I reply as the cold bites at my hands.
“The air is different here compared to Marseille.”
I feel a slight tremor when she pronounces the name of the city.
“Do you miss France?” I ask, without looking at her directly.
“Oui, un peu...”
We continue through the hedges until we reach a wrought-iron bench, adorned with light scrolls that seem to bloom in the shadow of the nearby linden trees. We sit. She turns her torso slightly toward me, and in the tilt, her lilac dress reveals a deep neckline. Instinctively, I look away.
“And you?”
“Sometimes... oui.”
“Your father was French, is that correct?”
I stare ahead at an indistinct spot on the path.
“Correct.”
“We could take a small trip to France... Marseille, Paris, Lyon... wherever you desire, Viscount.”
I turn toward her. “You and I, you mean?”
“Oui, nous,” she says, pointing first to me then to herself. “Together.”
“You should go with your husband, Mademoiselle.”
She shakes her head slightly.
“I do not have a husband, for now. Julian is my cousin. My father is the younger brother of his.” She tightens her grip on my arm.
“I see...” I mumble while looking away from her bright eyes.
“Do you not wish to take a wife?”
With a delicate gesture, I lift her hand and place it back on her lap.
“Is this why you wished to speak with me?”
“Oui, Viscount.”
The sincerity and boldness of her response surprise me. A low laugh escapes my lips, more out of astonishment than amusement.
“Did you expect a lie? A way to conceal my intentions? Perhaps a flushing of the face?” she continues, tilting her head slightly toward me.
“I expected nothing, Mademoiselle.”
