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Gabriel felt a little let down by her demeanor. He knew they would not have a conventional marriage, but he had promised himself that he would bring her happiness. That looked to have failed before it had even begun.
Gabriel went back to reading his newspaper again. Pushing her to eat certain food and sit with him at breakfast hadn’t lightened her mood one bit. Perhaps it was best to give her some space.
Still, as he sat and watched her slowly consume breakfast like a squirrel nibbling on a nut, he knew that he loved her. Even in her current state, he adored the woman she was. Perhaps that was the way forward. He could declare his love and make her even more uncomfortable.
“No mention of our wedding in the Morning Post today,” Gabriel commented. “I’m sure there will be something in the coming days.”
“Mmmhmm,” Eleanor commented.
Gabriel buried himself in the newspaper but kept studying Eleanor across the table. Eleanor asked politely for some tea, and the maid obliged by pouring her some. She added a sugar cube, then stirred it for a while. Then she sipped it while looking at the wall across from her.
The way she acted was killing Gabriel. Eleanor could do whatever she pleased, but he wished she wasn’t acting like this.
He struggled to read a single word of the newspaper as he used it as cover to study Eleanor as she made her way painfully slowly through breakfast. She was a woman transformed.
“Perhaps we can go for a walk through the grounds later?” Gabriel suggested. “Or take a ride. I can have two of the horses saddled. You have not had a chance to see all of the estate yet, and it is now also yours.”
“That would be a fine thing to do in time,” Eleanor agreed. “I am very tired today after only just getting settled into the residence. Would it be fine if I retired to my bedchambers for a while after breakfast?”
“You don’t need my permission,” the duke told her. “You can do as you please.”
“Yes,” Eleanor agreed as if she were not sure.
She reminded Gabriel of a bird that had had its wings clipped.
“There was another thing,” Eleanor brought up.
“Yes?” Gabriel asked.
“My friend Lottie has joined a book club, and I wonder if I might be allowed to go along. It could be a wise use of my time; I know how busy you are, Your Grace.”
Gabriel felt an anger bubbling inside. If she were saying such things to annoy him, he could rise and meet it, but she seemed to say it only because the marriage had broken her.
He took a moment to still himself before answering.
“I know this will take some getting used to, but you are a duchess now, my duchess, and you must address me as Gabriel. Unless you don’t wish to, and I shall make my peace with it.”
“No, I only forgot,” Eleanor said without looking up from her plate. “There is a lot to get used to, but I will try, Gabriel.”
“And, again, you don’t need to ask my permission to do anything. I trust your judgment, Eleanor. If you wish to join a book club, then you should, of course, do that.”
“It might be good for me,” Eleanor said quietly.
Gabriel watched Eleanor as she continued to eat, but said nothing else. He thought about telling her she couldn’t attend the book club just to stir up some friction between them, hoping it would spark something.
Instead, he remained cordial. “If the decorations of the home are not to your liking, we can talk about changing them. I wish for you to feel at home here.”
“That is very kind,” Eleanor replied. “I have not had time to take it all in, but I shall let you know if I have any suggestions.”
Once again, a hush fell over the table.
Gabriel was becoming more and more annoyed, not only at the way Eleanor was acting, but also at his own actions. He was becoming a pleaser when he had never been so before. He was a man who knew what he wanted and how to get it. If he kept this up, he would soon offer all his money and property to his wife just to make her happy.
He didn’t like who Eleanor had become in less than a day, and he liked even less what he was becoming.
“What books do they read at the book club?” Gabriel asked.
“I’m sorry?” Eleanor asked, looking up.
