Again, she studied him. This time, she looked at him in a way she had not before. Her eyes flicked over him. She bit her lower lip. She seemed caught between two worlds, the stubborn side of her rallying against common sense.
“Do not expect me to start behaving like some subservient housewife,” she warned. “What I said before about my writing and my free time—my life as it is—will not change.”
“Nor will I try to change it.”
“But if…” He could see her starting to come around. “But if you wish to stop avoiding me, then perhaps that will not be such a bad thing.”
“I only ask that we are companionable to the degree that we can stand to be around each other without wanting to bite one another’s heads off,” he made sure to say. “Outside these walls, and in the company of others, I will continue to act as I have.”
She snorted. “Somehow, I sense that comes easily for you.”
He could not help but laugh. “I should have been an actor. Alas, I was born to be a duke.”
She rolled her eyes, but there was a smile there now, a visible change that had Sebastian breathing a sigh of relief. “Might I say something?”
“Of course.”
“When we are in the public eye, there is no need to be so…” She considered and then scoffed. “So fake. The things you say and how you say them—anyone who knows anything about romanceand love can surely see how exaggerated they are. That will give the game away long before anything else.”
“Romance and love?” He tilted his head and smirked. “Is that you?”
She looked at him flatly. “You know what I mean. You need not be so over the top. It is so exaggerated that it is almost humorous.”
“Huh…” Sebastian had not considered that. “That’s an interesting point.”
In truth, he had little to no real experience with true love. Most of his firsthand knowledge came from flings and short-term relationships, in which he always oversold the romance because that was just the way he was. A natural performer who used charm and humor to get what he wanted.
He supposed now that he technically had what he wanted, there was no need for the theatrics.
“Anything else?” he asked.
“No,” she uttered, noticeably more relaxed and less standoffish. “I think that’s everything.”
About to turn, she stopped herself and looked at him again. It was subtle, but he sensed her nerves, and the fact that she could not look at him proved the point.
“And thank you.”
“For what?”
“For apologizing,” she said, her voice soft, still not looking at him. “I did not know you had it in you, but I appreciate the effort it must have taken.”
“I am as surprised as you,” he joked. “But you are most welcome.”
“Thank you,” she reiterated. “If there is nothing else, Your Grace…”
“Oh, there is, in fact,” Sebastian said. “You may call me Sebastian. This Your Grace nonsense… I can’t imagine a happily married couple would bother with formalities.”
She forced herself to look at him, smile, and then she ducked out of the room, seemingly determined to put some distance between them before the little progress they made blew up in their faces.
Sebastian breathed a sigh of relief as he sat back down. It was a small step in the right direction, but he felt its consequences would be hugely significant.
He and Helena were to live together for a few months, so why not make it as comfortable and companionable as possible?
Were he a different man, Sebastian might have even said he was looking forward to it.
But that is a bridge too far. At best, I am not dreading it as I was previously, and that is huge.
CHAPTER 10
