Page 22 of Stolen By the Duke of Stone

That very softness was now why she offered this truce.

“I know you disagree with the way I choose to raise William,” she said, “but he is none the worse for it, and I think he would if I went about things differently. Even if you disagree, surely you can accept things the way they are?”

“I do accept them,” he said unexpectedly. “I will not fight you on this, so long as I perceive no harm coming to him.”

“I would do nothing to harm him. And,” she added, “neither would you. After I informed you that our nursemaid has her own children and family, you gave her an extra half day off a week. I know it, and you know it, though that means you have had to hire another nursemaid for that single day, so William may still be fed.”

She had overheard the interview, where Andrew had calmly informed the nursemaid of William’s current feeding and napping schedule, and what her duties would be.

Jessamine hadn’t known he had paid so much attention, but evidently he had. Mealtimes, too, were different. While the food was still prepared for the same times, he would come up to check with her to see if William was likely to settle in time, and if not, he prepared a tray for her and had someone bring it.

Those small gestures, along with the way he sometimes tiptoed into William’s room just to, one would presume, look at the baby, suggested Andrew was not as cold-hearted as Jessamine had first suspected.

A muscle in his jaw flexed. “Believe it or not, I am not regularly cruel to my servants, and I do what I can to support them. I am not my f—” He cut himself off. “I am not a tyrant.”

“So will you enter a truce with me?” She stuck out her hand.

After a long moment, he took it, his fingers engulfing hers. “I was not aware we were at war.”

“Were you not? Is that not what marriage is?” She smiled at him, and for the first time, she thought she saw the tiniest hint of a smile in return. “Marriage is a never-ending battle.”

“How long will this truce last, then?”

“Until we next find something to disagree over, which is to say, not very long at all. But for now, we should take advantage of it.” She nodded to his armchair. “Read. I will read as well, and then we may get on with our day in our respective ways.”

For a moment, his fingers tightened on hers, and she wondered if he would reject her offer. Arguing was certainly a state they were more familiar with, and she rather suspected part of him enjoyed the arguments. Having her present peace as an option was perhaps unsettling.

But then his mouth twitched again, and he dropped her hand. “I fear remaining in the same room as you for too long would disrupt our truce sooner than necessary. Enjoy your break, Jessamine. It’s well-deserved.”

He bowed and left the room.

Jessamine stared after him. Would this fragile truce hold, or would it break at the first possible moment?

Chapter Eight

Andrew wasn’t entirely sure what had woken him. He lay in the darkness for a moment before the urgency in his chest compelled him to rise. He strode through his bedroom, paused at the door leading into his wife’s chambers, then moved for the door that opened into the corridor instead.

The moment he stepped out, he realized the source of his disturbance.

A baby’s cry echoing through the house.

He didn’t pause, moving through to the nursery. A single lamp was lit by the window, and Jessamine paced, William in her arms. This was a familiar sight, but what was less familiar was the sight of his wife in her nightclothes, the thin fabric catching on her nipples and hugging the generous curves of her backside.

He blinked, forcing any inappropriate thoughts from his head. William ordinarily slept at this time. He woke several times a night for a feed, and sometimes Jessamine soothed him back to sleep, but nothing like this.

Andrew had memorized the baby’s routine. Of course, he knew it would change, but it behooved him to know everything that occurred in his household. And when it involved William, even more so.

Jessamine turned when she saw him, her eyes ringed with dark circles and her hair loose around her head. It made her look undone in a way that briefly made his loins awaken. Just as quickly, concern eclipsed any amorous feelings.

“What is it?” he asked crisply, trying not to give rise to any suspicion that he might be concerned.

“He won’t settle. And look at his face.” Jessamine tipped the babe toward him, revealing a red face and eyes that were squeezed tightly closed. “He’s too hot. I’ve done everything I can to soothe him, but he won’t settle. I think there’s something wrong.”

Panic thrashed through Andrew, but he kept his voice extremely calm. “Have you sent for a physician?”

“Not yet. What if it’s nothing?”

“If you have cause for concern, then it’s not nothing.” He reined in his temper with difficulty. None of this was her fault, not William’s illness, nor the memories it brought back. “I will send for a physician. Have you rags and cold water?”