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He opened the door to the terrace, and my breath caught as I looked out into the warm evening. Before us sat a small round table that overlooked the man-made lake. The trees rustled on either side of us, and hanging in the sky like a painting was the moon.
“It is beautiful,” I said, walking around the table and to the patio edge. “I could have dinner like this every night.”
“The spring rains and heavy winter might change your mind on that. But if you would like, any moment, night or day, as clear as this, we can be out here.”
“We will need another chair for Emeline,” I replied. “Where is she now?”
“When you were dressing, Mrs. Watson informed me Emeline had eaten earlier and gone to bed. You do not need to exert yourself—”
“As you keep telling me, but I am not,” I replied. “When I was younger—actually, that is a lie. Just weeks ago, I desired nothing more than a good book, sweets, hot milk, and a beautiful view. I craved to be left to my own devices and able to soar wherever I wanted to go. I felt very much like a bird in a cage, brought out whenever someone demanded I perform or be on exhibit.”
“I know. That is exactly why I wish you to be permitted here to worry of nothing,” he replied.
“That is the thing, Evander. I am not worried. And magically, I no longer feel as though I am trapped in that cage. It was quite frustrating that only marriage could give me such freedom. But now that I am married, I feel as though the door has been opened and I have been set free, and instead of flying far away, I have chosen to nest.”
“I do not understand.”
I took his hand. “I want this place to be a haven for both—for the three of us, I should say, as I seek to be part of her life, too. One day she may even call me Mama.”
He simply stared at me, which forced me to calm down.
“Am I being too optimistic?” I whispered. “Forgive me, for as I look to my future days and see they are not so dull, I’m glad. There are true tasks for me now other than sitting pretty at a ball or practicing my needlework.”
“You amaze me.”
“I have yet to do anything, Evander, so do not be amazed by so little.”
He lifted my hand and kissed the knuckles. “You have done more than you even know.”
It made me glad to hear, but I did not say it because the door opened and the footmen set the table and brought out our supper. Evander led me to the table, and under the light of the moon, we ate, laughed, and spoke to each other of nothing significant at all.
It was glorious.
21
Aphrodite
It had been several days since we’d arrived, and I felt as though I had spent almost all of them on my back. The journey and Evander had exhausted me. I could not continue this way. I arose from bed early. Evander was still naked and asleep. Part of me wanted to stay in his arms. However, I truly did want to be a good mistress here. It felt ironic, since I had often bemoaned such work, wondering why my future could not be more exciting than the tending of a house. Why could I not go on the adventures I so often read about? There was still part of me that wished to see those wonders. But currently, there was a much larger desire to conquer this battle. My first priority was Everely, and it was essential to the wellbeing of everyone’s lives here.
“My lady—I mean, Your Grace.” Eleanor smiled as she appeared in my private room.
I was quite glad Mother had chosen her to be my lady’s maid, as she was only a few years older than I, but she had been beside me most of my life. Her mother worked for my mother as well.
“You have had much time to settle? Apologies, I know it is earlier than when you would normally come,” I said. I had told her last night to come to me at this time.
“Yes, I am very well familiarized now. Should I bring you breakfast, or are you waiting for the duke?”
“Before that…” I stepped closer. “Tell me. What is it like here? What do they say? Whether it be the servants or tenants. The more information I have, the better, and do not think to spare me my feelings.”
She nodded. “Yes, I know, Your Grace, and I meant to talk to you when you had adjusted, for it is a lot.”
“That bad?” I sat down, motioning for her to sit as well, since I had a feeling this would not be easy to take standing.
“Your Grace, I mean no offense to the duke, but Everely is a mess.” She shook her head. “Never have I seen or heard of a great house run such as this.”
“How so?”
“Half the staff is not permanent. Apparently, when your husband became the duke, he dismissed almost all those hired by Dowager Duchess Datura, but did not seek to replace many of them because he disliked many people within his house. His former wife seemed to have no care of such things. One would think she did not even live here, as nothing has been upkept for years. The candles are wrong, the place settings are mismatched, and the mistress’s accounts are all backdated. Furthermore, the rooms are not dusted daily. They do so only every other day, as they prioritize the rooms in which the duke and Lady Verity remain. Cleaning is not as it should be because the maids who remain are far too old for such hard work. I discovered that the dowager duchess hired most of them at a later age as she worried…” She paused, frowning.
