Page 62 of An Accidental Bride for the Duke
From beyond the room music drifted between them, the candles on the table flickered, and Iris met Philip’s eyes. She smiled and he smiled back.
“Iris, there is something…” Philip began, speaking carefully and clearly with a sense of nerves. “There is something we need to speak of.”
“Oh?”
“Earlier today, my brother, when he…” He grimaced and his eyes flicked away from her. “You saw how upset he was. And no doubt, you heard the reason.”
“Something to do with the villagers?”
He nodded. “That is right. You asked to help comfort him, I denied you, and I want you to know that it was not personal. It is just that my brother and I have always been close. Since he was a boy, I have been the one to look after him, and I suppose that is a tradition that is hard to break from.”
“I understand perfectly well, Philip. No need to apologize.” She did understand too, but not for the reasons that Philip knew.
He smiled with relief. “Also, the reason that the villagers upset him so. There is a good reason, and…” He hesitated, looking away again, biting into his lip as he came to a decision. “I want to tell you. And I will tell you—I promise that I will. I just don’t think I am ready to do so yet.”
“You…” She felt her stomach twist with guilt… and sadness. “You’re not?”
“I will be,” he said quickly. “I promise. But it is not such an easy thing to speak of, and I need time.” He laughed awkwardly. “You know how I am when it comes to my family’s history.”
“You don’t like snooping,” she said with a soft smile.
“Which you have not done, and I appreciate it so much. I will tell you one day soon, I just can’t yet. I hope you understand.”
Seeing as Iris knew to what Philip was referring, she understood better than he knew. No doubt Percy’s birth caused Philip shame and confusion both, just as she had no doubt how embarrassed he was to speak about it. And truly, Iris did not take it personally that he wasn’t quite ready to open up.
If anything, she felt extreme guilt over the fact. She knew about it already. She had been lying to Philip this whole time. Should she come clean and tell him the truth? And if she did, how would he react?
I doubt he would be pleased with me. But might he understand? I am not sure…
For how well she was starting to know her husband, there was still so much she could not say about him. What they needed was time to get to know one another better, which as luck had it, they had plenty of. Time she was more than willing to give.
“I understand completely,” she assured him. “And truly, that you even thought to give me an explanation is enough.” Then, she winked. “For now, anyhow.”
Philip grinned. “And here I was, worried that your stubborn nature might be my undoing. I don’t know what I was worried about.”
“Calling me stubborn!” she cried in jest. “That is rich.”
He shrugged. “If the dress fits…”
She looked at him flatly. “It fits me very well. Although I wonder now how it might look on you.” They laughed at the silliness of the conversation, the tension between the melting away.
And with that, the evening was able to begin.
The first course was served, which was a simple pea and ham soup. As they ate, they spoke about the early days of this marriage and laughed together at how they had both acted.
“You were not much better!” Philip chuckled when Iris teased him about how he had tried so hard to avoid her. “Even if I had wanted to speak with you, you had a nasty habit of forcing an argument.”
“Only because it was the one way I knew to bring you out of your shell,” she shot back. “Either that or I was treated with a glaring silence. Although there wasn’t much glaring to be had, as you refused to look at me.” More laughter.
Their second course was roast duck served with savory eggs, paired with baked vegetables drowned in a butter sauce. As this was eaten, the conversation moved toward the future, that being where Iris and Philip had once seen their lives heading, before this marriage happened.
“Oh, I always knew I would wed,” Iris said matter-of-factly.
“Is that so?”
She shrugged. “What choice do I have—although I do not want to sound as if I dreaded it. Truthfully, I looked forward to it. That’s how I was raised.”
“Having four older sisters must have helped.”
