Her heartbeat increased to a tattoo, and Georgie glanced away quickly at the door to the dining room, but then forced herself to meet his eyes. “I suspect there is always more to be learnt no matter the subject.”
Gavin searched her lapis blue eyes. “I have to believe you are right.” He helped Georgie take her seat and, as always sat next to her. “I look forward to having someone give me other opinions and challenging my thinking.”
“Are you?” A hint of doubt entered her eyes, and he knew that although they had spent time together, they had not spent the right time together.
“I am absolutely serious about it. One will become averse to change without it.” They were interrupted by a footman pouring wine and then by dishes being passed around. Dinner with the four of them was extremely informal. “Would you care for Brussels sprouts?”
“Yes, thank you. I adore the way Cook does them with bits of ham.”
He almost groaned, knowing that his friend would launch into the quality of his ham, but surprisingly, Littleton did not. Which made Gavin say perversely, “It is the way the pigs are raised.”
“So I have heard.” Her lips quivered as if she would burst into laughter at any moment.
How he would like to see that. He would especially like to see it at Rivercrest. Merriment had not filled the house in many years. And he was more certain than ever that he would like to see Georgie as its mistress.
She speared a piece of Brussels sprout with a bit of ham and ate it. “I would like to have ham like this. Of course, one must have chestnut trees.”
He was very close to saying,Marry me and you may have what you want.
In fact, he had a grove of chestnut trees. For the first time, Gavin had to ask himself why he had not done as they had at Littlewood and fed the pigs on the chestnuts. “This is excellent.”
“What do you wish to do after dinner?” Adeline was sitting at the end of the very small table next to him.
Georgie glanced up. “Shall we sing? Or rather, the rest of you can sing and I shall play the piano.”
He was surprised that she had not offered to join them. “Do you not like to sing?”
She pulled a face. “My skill on the piano is better than my voice.”
Somehow he doubted that. He wouldn’t push her tonight, but someday, he’d find out just how well she held a tune. He could not be the only one singing to their children.
The talk turned to the house party and the entertainments they would attend and those which they would avoid at all costs.
“Mary and Amanda mentioned a musical evening,” Littleton said. “I enjoy my lovely wife’s voice and yours, of course”—he glanced at Gavin—“but I am not going to be trapped into hearing a bunch of young ladies either sing, play piano, or play the harp.”
“I agree with you, my dear,” Adeline said. “You will have enough of that when our daughters come out.”
Littleton’s face turned to one of shock, and Gavin and Georgie exchanged looks as they stifled their mirth.
“My daughters will not make their come out until they are at least five and twenty.”
Georgie cut a look at Gavin before saying sweetly, “In that case, they will have the right to marry as they choose.”
“Drat. I hadn’t thought about that.” Littleton drank a healthy portion of his wine. “I shall have to spend the first eighteen years of their lives teaching them how to know when a gentleman is dangerous to them and how to defend themselves.”
“That should be interesting,” Adeline murmured. “Considering I thought you were a rake.”
Georgie held her serviette to her lips as her shoulders shook.
“As did some other ladies.” Gavin took a sip of wine and forced himself not to spew it over the table at the look on his friend’s face. “As Shakespeare says, all’s well that ends well.”
“At least I’ll have years to find a way to deal with all of this,” Littleton grumbled.
He looked so put out that they all went into whoops.
“Wait until you have a daughter,” he groused at Gavin.
“Ah, but you forget that I had my sister to partially raise.” It was a good retort, but he knew that a daughter would be different somehow.
