Page 41 of Married to the Icy Duke
“No,thisis the point. Every single one of us endures bad moods and tempers. It’s entirely natural. But one cannot take those moods out on a child like Tommy.”
Isaac’s eye darkened. “I had no intention of doing such a thing.”
“No, you did not,” she conceded. “But you would have sat at that table, scowling and furious, and the atmosphere would have turned cold. We would all have been uncomfortable, and Tommy would have felt that. You would not have intended to do it, but you would have ruined the ices for him.”
For a moment, Isaac looked furious, as though he were going to argue. Then his shoulders sagged, just a little.
“I had not thought of that,” he muttered, half turning away.
“I know that you would not have been sharp with him,” Charlotte added. “But you would have been sharp with others. With Mary, perhaps. That is not fair, is it?”
“I would have regretted it later.”
“Well, I have prevented you from regretting it at all.”
He glanced back at her, eyebrows lifting.
“Yes,” he murmured at last. “I suppose you have. You are more insightful than you appear, Charlotte.”
She chuckled. “That is not exactly a compliment, but I shall take it as one anyway. Thank you.”
Isaac gave the tiniest smile, a bare twitch of his mouth, but it made Charlotte’s chest constrict even so.
Stop it,she scolded herself.You brought him out here to calm him down, to stop him from ruining Tommy’s first experience of Gunter’s, and that is all!
At that moment, a pair of women entered the park, arm in arm, chattering eagerly about something. They threw curious glances at Charlotte and Isaac, and recognition flared in their eyes.
“Curses,” Charlotte whispered. “We should walk over here, where it’s more quiet.”
Isaac did not object, allowing her to steer him towards a narrow walkway which circled the path. It was enclosed by thick trees and undergrowth and provided a little privacy. The moment they stepped under the trees, the air seemed to grow cooler and cleaner. Charlotte breathed in, allowing herself to luxuriate in the fresh air. She could almost forget why she was here.
“Green,” Isaac said, thoughtfully. “Your favorite color. Tommy’s favorite color, I think. I can see why. It is a restful shade.”
Charlotte gave a wry smile. “Green isn’t his favorite color. He chose the color almost at random, because it is my favorite. When he grows older and becomes more … morehimself, he’ll choose a new color.”
Isaac walked along in silence for a moment or two, absorbing this. Charlotte braced herself for what came next, but was still not quite ready for it.
“Why would he choose your favorite color,” Isaac said at last, slowly, “and not mine?”
She glanced up at him to see whether he was joking or not, but he seemed entirely serious.
“What do you mean?”
“He’s known me for years, and you for a week, no more. Why would he choose your favorite color as his own?”
She bit her lip, eyeing him thoughtfully. “Have you ever told him your favorite color?”
There was a longer silence this time.
“I am not even sure that I have one,” Isaac admitted at last, his voice heavy. “Black, perhaps. I take your meaning, Charlotte.”
She gave him an encouraging smile. “Tommy needs a man to look up to. Somebody to imitate. Why should that not be you? If you’d only make yourself available for him to imitate, that is. I am glad you came out with us today.”
He threw her a quick, answering smile. “In truth, I am glad I came. With the exception of running into Matthew, I am glad I was here.”
At the very mention of Lord Bentley, however, his expression darkened, and he seemed to withdraw into himself. Charlotte bit her lip, eyeing him curiously.
“It’s not my concern, of course,” she ventured hesitantly, when he made no move to break the silence, “But what was Lord Bentley speaking to you about? You were clearly angry, and he was … he was angry, but in a cold sort of way. He made me feel uneasy.”
