"I could have had guests," I point out.
"You ordered tea for one."
"Veronica is out riding with the Duchesse.I wasn't invited," I explain.
"Is that a bad thing?"
"No.I'm not actually sure if they meant riding, or if they meant something else."
He laughs."They've actually gone riding.The horses were brought into the courtyard behind the kitchen."
"Oh.Somehow I'm disappointed that I didn't read the situation right."I let out a sigh."I'm never going to be good at reading people."
"Maybe not, but you're good at a lot of other things."
"You don't have to humour me," I mutter.
"I'm not."He reaches out and takes my hands in his."There's nothing to humour you on, Evie.You've got your own strengths.And you don't need to be able to read people better than you do already, not when there are people around you who can help.And last I checked, you're a princess.You have a private secretary whose job it is to do that."
"She's supposed to keep my schedule and make appointments for me," I respond.
"I wouldn't know, I haven't had much of a reason to have a private secretary."He picks up his cup of tea and takes a sip."I brought the curd tarts, if you want to try them."
"Oh."I look at where they sit on a decorative plate, and a horrible feeling settles in my stomach.
"Evie?"
"I already ate some," I blurt out."They served the curd tart after we had lunch with the Duchesse, and there was no way for me to avoid it.And I feel awful, because we were supposed to be trying them together, and..."Tears prick at the corners of my eyes.
"Evie," he says softly.
I look up at the sound of my name, seeing a caring expression in his eyes.
He reaches out to touch my cheek."You don't have to feel bad about that.You didn't do anything wrong."
"I feel like I did."Tears run down my cheeks, and he wipes them away with his thumb.
"But you didn't.But if it makes you more comfortable, I can send two desserts up to every meal."
I sniff louder than I intend to."You can't do that.It's so much more work."
"It would be worth it to not make you feel like this," he says.
I shake my head.
"All right, well, we'll come up with a solution later," he says."But I promise that I'm not upset about it.You've had curd tart before."
"I know."
"We can save these for later if you want," he says, looking over at the plate.
"No, it's fine.I want to try them.I was just upset that I was in a position where I couldn't say no."I still am, but his reassurance does make me feel a little better about the situation.
"I can understand.What did you think of the piece you had?"
"I barely tasted it," I admit."Though your pastry was perfect.Not that I'm surprised.And the Duchesse said that your croissants were excellent.Almost as good as her chef back in Gaullesse."
"That is quite the compliment," he responds."And I see you're talking about me with the visiting delegation."He leans forward and cuts the two small curd tarts into quarters and splits them onto two plates.
