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“If you are that deep in thought about her, then perhaps you should hasten the nuptials,” the Dowager said after a slice of cake. “All this thinking is what caused my wrinkles.”
Theodore’s eyes glinted. “We both know that your wrinkles are caused by old age and your incessant deception. Maybe God has finally decided to pay you in kind for all of your wrongdoings.”
“You do not tell a woman to her face that she is old, even if she is in the darker ages of seventy. A gentleman should always tell a woman that she is beautiful.”
“Even if she is an insipid wallflower or the veriest frump?”
“That mouth of yours is probably why you are still not engaged, Theo. But that is besides the point. How is it going with the Jarvis chit?”
“Nothing,” Theodore replied quickly, not wanting to give his grandmother any ideas.
Helen merely wanted him because he was a rake. All that desire would end when she found a proper gentleman for herself, and their pretense would finally come to an end. But Theodore wanted it to continue. He wanted to soar with her every response, to talk on the picnic spread and watch the clouds drift by. All he craved was to feel her frame beside him, to touch her in places that might lighten her eyes with passion and hunger for more.
“That,” she gestured to his face, “is not nothing. You have that starstruck look on your face. The one that I rarely see anymore.”
“I do not have a starstruck look,” he corrected with a deep frown etched on his face. “I am trying to marshal my thoughts about the accounts.”
“And I am your grandmother. I have known you since you were just a lad. Do you remember the Farningham girl? The one you always became embarrassed about when she came around to play?”
“That is a preposterous accusation,” he laughed loudly. “I was never embarrassed by any girl.”
“Sebastian once told me that your tongue would not work when she came. How shameful it must have been. But that is exactly what I see now.”
“What do you see, Grandmother? Surely, your eyes must be seeing things.”
“You mean how restless you have been these past days? Theodore, I know you much more than you know yourself. Tell me, what happened on the tour of the manor?”
The air seemed to freeze all around Theodore as he thought about the events of that day. He did all the talking, even though he was known by thetonfor keeping his words short. And then, he opened up to her. For the first time after Isadora’s passing, he talked to someone else apart from his family about it.
He recalled crying in Helen's arms, wrapped around her warmth and letting all of his sadness out. It felt like he was a child once again, able to throw a tantrum. And then, he brought her to a shuddering climax. One filled with passion and heat. Theodore wanted that feeling forever, but no matter how far he reached, he knew in his heart that he could not grasp it. So, he allowed himself to enjoy whatever time he had left before their charade was over.
“Nothing happened, Grandmother. She liked the art room best,” he said, skipping over the delicious details, “and we came into the study to check out the books.”
“She indulges herself in books?”
“Of course,” he said, bragging. “Do you think that I would choose to wed a woman who does not know her literature?”
His grandmother laughed. “And of what use is literature to a married woman? To help take care of the children?”
“So that we have something to talk about, Grandmother. Just like yourself and Grandfather — with the painting and all the art details.”
“Then why have you not proposed, yet?” she asked, wagging a finger at him. “Or you still have not found your paragon? I suggest that you propose fast before another gentleman snatches her away from your clutches. In my day —”
“Yes, other suitors were out for you. I have heard that story a lot over the past year. And I will propose when it is time. I just want to take things slow for now. Get to know Helen before our intended nuptials.”
“You have all the time after the wedding, Theodore. Everything I am telling you about is so that you do not lose your diamond while chasing after a sandstone.”
“And who said that —”
The butler rapped twice on the door of the study before walking in. He bowed, greeting them. “Your Graces, Lady Helen here.”
Theodore was dumbfounded. He did not recall making plans with Helen for her next visit. She left quickly with a smile on her flustered face, covered with passion. And she sent the book a few days after. He looked at his grandmother and saw her smiling sheepishly. He leveled his gaze at her, sneering.
“Did you set me up again? And without giving me a prior warning?”
“I wanted to put you out of the capacious misery you were in. Seeing you hide away all day only turned my mood into a dismal one. Perhaps a promenade will help liven you up.”
Theodore was secretly happy that his grandmother’s deceptions were to his advantage. But he kept up the ruse anyway.
