As to whether this was a feeling to celebrate or not?That remains to be seen.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
Florentia was nothing if not surprised to find Hudson waiting for her the next morning when she walked into the breakfast room. He sat at the head of the table, standing the moment that he saw her.
“Florentia,” he greeted simply. “Good morning.”
“Hudson...” She spoke carefully, as if not entirely certain she believed what she was seeing. “You are here.”
“Is there somewhere else I should be?”
Florentia had spent long hours the previous evening thinking about the night that had just passed. Mostly positive, she decided, though there were still enough oddities and moments of exasperation that warned her from labelling it a complete success. Yes, she and Hudson had begun to bridge the gulf which had existed between them for a month now, speaking to each other on a companionable level that wasn’t at all unpleasant.But that did not mean there were not moments of noticeable unpleasantness.
These were fewer than she might have thought possible of the dispassionate duke, yet they were still there, and she still could not say for certain that she understood him as a wife might her husband. The man was a mystery and if he had not met her to break his fast as he had promised, she would have been disappointed but not surprised.
Thus, to see him there, and having arrived early, was nothing short of groundbreaking. And it spoke of the very real fact that while she still did not know him fully, he was at least trying to rectify this.
“Not at all.” She smiled pleasantly and made her way toward the table. “And I apologize for my tardiness.”
“You are right on time.” He stood waiting until she was seated, before he sat back down himself. “I am the one who was early.”
“Were you that excited to spend more time with me?” she joked. “I should feel flattered.”
“I woke earlier than expected,” he responded without humor, only to see the smile on her lips and then a grimace. “And now I realize you are making a joke.”
“At least you are beginning to realize when I am,” she noted, still smiling because she found it to be a good sign that hewas at starting to understand her better. “Which is a huge improvement, I must say.”
“Perhaps one day I will even find myself laughing.” He considered, brow furrowed, a flittering smile passing his lips, and she could tell how hard he was working with whatever thought he was having. “But that would require one of your jokes to be humorous.”
She laughed without thinking. “Fair enough. Perhaps you are the funny one. Which makes me wonder what I bring to the table.”
He relaxed considerably, no doubt pleased that his joke had landed. “Everything else, in my estimation.”
Not a joke, but a compliment. And Florentia found herself blushing to hear it.He really is trying, isn’t he? But is it just because he wishes to make life easier for himself, or for another reason?
Breakfast wasn’t awkward after that, but only because Florentia made sure it wouldn’t be. Despite Hudson’s clear efforts to try and create a sense of companionship between them, she was wholly aware of the man’s temper and knew that one wrong thing said might set him off. Worse too, she wasn’t yet in a place where she trusted herself to diffuse his temper, or where she might even know how to do such a thing.
She could not forget the previous evening and his sudden angry outburst.Best to do everything I can to ensure that doesn’t happen again.
When breakfast wound to an end, the conversation began to falter, both recognizing the need to end this morning on a better note than the previous evening.
“So...” Florentia began, setting down her knife and fork and folding her napkin on her now empty plate. “That was pleasant.”
“And filling.”
“It was,” she said with a soft chuckle. “And thank you again, for joining me.”
“It was the right thing to do,” Hudson said simply. “We are married, and it should not be such a big thing to join my wife for breakfast each morning.”
“Oh...” She tilted her head and raised a discerning eyebrow; albeit an amused one. “Does that mean I can expect to see you tomorrow morning also?”
“I do not see why not.”
“And this evening?”
“What about it?”
She rolled her eyes at him but made sure to smile. “If it is no big thing to join your wife for breakfast, it should be the same for supper, no? Or was last night a one-time thing?”
