At this point, Diana seemed to realize what he was doing, following him as he studied the paintings.
“This one is another of Arabella’s.”
When they had finished studying the paintings in the room, he strode out without a word. But she seemed to realize that he wanted her to follow him, so she fell into step with him.
Again, he stopped at the first painting along the way, and she looked at it with a soft smile.
“This is one of Valery’s as well. One of the early ones she did, but she was a natural from the start.”
“It does look nice,” he admitted, and she looked even more startled.
“I have always been so proud of the way she painted this one. And as she continued to get better. She is always so pleased when she is painting. She loves it.”
“These paintings are quite good. And… they do improve the look of the place.”
Diana seemed even more surprised by that, but she also seemed pleased. A tinge of satisfaction shot through him upon seeing the sparkle in her eyes.
Quickly, he shook it off and moved to yet another painting. “Now… what about this one?”
“Oh… this is…” She paused, and he turned to look at her, his eyebrows raised.
This painting was definitely not on the same level as the others they had looked at.
“It is… well, I don’t really know. I-I never asked Arabella what this one was about.”
“And yet you included it here.” Matthew raised an eyebrow at her again.
“Well, I was…”
“You were looking to fill in space.”
At first, he could see the way she bristled, pulling herself up to her full height, her eyes sharp, but then she looked at him and seemed to see something there. Because she relaxed, and her lips curled into a reluctant smile.
“Perhaps,” she admitted.
“Is this something that we really need to have on our walls?” he asked, trying to remain as objective and gentle as possible.
Diana seemed to notice because she didn’t get mad. Rather, she just stared at the painting.
“Arabella was never… well, she wasn’t a natural like Valery. But she enjoyed painting. So, this is one of her early ones.”
“I do not think it is… quite right for this space, do you?” Matthew was trying to be as tactful as possible, which was new for him, and she seemed to realize it as well.
“It is one of her earliest paintings,” Diana argued, though she did not seem angry with him even now. “I have actually had this one hung in my rooms ever since she painted it. And for years, I have told her it was my favorite.”
“Why is that?” he asked, trying to make sense of the swirls of color and globs of paint that were splattered across the canvas.
“Because she loved to paint. And she wanted so badly to paint the way Valery did. So I encouraged her as much as I possibly could. I would tell her that her paintings were wonderful, and I would show them off just like Valery’s. And I would encourage her to keep trying and never give up.”
“And did that work?”
“Arabella still enjoys painting to this day,” Diana replied proudly. “And she has gotten better at it, as you’ve seen with the other paintings.” She paused for a moment, but Matthew could tell she had something else to say. “And it was not just Arabella with her painting. It was Valery with her piano. And Marigold with her embroidery. And all three of them struggled with riding for some time. But I encouraged them to try. Encouraged them tokeeptrying when they weren’t good at something. I would not have them give up on something they were not immediately good at for lack of support.”
“And so you gave them the support they needed.”
“Our mother… she was not the sort to encourage them when they needed it,” she admitted. “And so it was my responsibility tosupport them. To ensure that they felt… capable. No matter how good”—she glanced at the painting and smiled softly—“or not so good they were.”
There was something about that smile, that soft look, that seemed to change something inside him.
