Page 21 of A Spinster to Heal the Duke
"Well, I enjoy Shakespeare, but I suppose we all cut our teeth on his work," Noah considered, speaking in a relaxed and casual manner the Drowtons had not yet seen in him. "I suppose if I were combining the best of both worlds, adventure as Charles mentioned and the deeper emotions that really connect us all, I would say Alexander Pope's translation of the Iliad spoke to me."
"The tale of Achilles," Charles observed happily.
"Or a tale of fate, pride, glory, and homecoming," Noah replied. "What do these things mean to each of us? What are they worth? What waits for us at home or in the perceived glory of battle?
"Perhaps I should reread that one now that I'm older," Charles considered with a laugh.
"I should reread everything, simply because I am old," laughed Jeremy even louder.
"What else do you enjoy reading?" inquired Anne, smiling with curiosity but not laughing in the slightest. "Pope's translation of Homer was remarkable. TheOdysseywas another work of Homer's we all read, but many missed the depth of the work."
"Yes," replied Noah, focusing his attention on Anne. "Ah, let's see. I also enjoyedThe Sorrows of Young Wertherby Johann Wolfgang Goethe,Robinson Crusoe, of course, andReveries of the Solitaire Walkerby Jean-Jacques Rousseau.
"Fascinating," Anne said.
She and Noah held each other's gaze a moment before he cleared his throat and finished his glass of wine. Anne looked at her unprepared plate and sipped her wine as well.
"Fascinating indeed," Lord Reedley repeated softly, looking at his grandchildren and the guest at their table.
Conversation stalled briefly, but once they had all eaten about half their meal, Jeremy directed the discourse once more.
"I must admit that I hoped this conversation might break the ice and allow me to get to know you better, Grandon," Jeremy said. "You will be with us for some time, and I want you to feel welcome and comfortable in our home."
"I know that I was abrasive when I arrived and can still be," Noah confessed. "I suppose it is that I rarely interact withanyone outside the dictates of necessity. Most of my visits and dinners are centered around formality and position."
"Then, for the remainder of your stay, I must request that you cast such notions aside," Jeremy insisted. "You are a man staying in the home of a family that has welcomed you. When you depart, should you return again, you will come back as such."
Noah wasn't sure what to make of the older man's comment and generosity, but it struck a chord with him. Everything about that meal and his time with the Drowton family was beginning to resonate with him in a way that he could not explain, nor could his education or extensive reading elucidate.
CHAPTER 7
Noah woke early the next morning and the morning that followed and the next morning still. He woke eager for the day from breakfast to teaching Charles while Baron Reedley smoked his after-breakfast pipe and Anne read.
I'm becoming complacent,he told himself when the realization of his enthusiasm for his days at Reedley struck him.It is too easy to be content here in this country life.
When he rose to dress and freshen himself in the washbasin, he had another realization.
"My leg and ankle aren't nearly as sore this morning," he thought.
He paced the length of his room a few times, lifted his left foot and rotated his ankle, and managed a few small hops before he felt a tinge of pain.
Noah spoke to his reflection in the mirror over the basin.
"The doctor said to begin short walks when my ankle was rested," he told himself. "I overdid it the day Esther and Judith came, but I was blinded by anger and embarrassment."
He heard footsteps pass his door and traipse down the stairs quickly.
Charle, ready for his morning hot chocolate,Noah thought.I wish something motivated him that same way when I worked on his ledgers and financials with him.
Then, Noah chided himself for his growing knowledge of the young man. His concern. His attachment.
He thought of Baron Reedley, likely preparing his pipe, so it would be ready after breakfast.
He thought of Anne.
She's likely made a table full of things that will all taste exceptional. I imagine she and Peggy are setting the table,he thought, imagining Anne giving instructions though completing most of the tasks herself.
He wiggled his ankle again.
