Page 46 of Forget Me Not

“Far be it from me to contradict a lady or to dismiss the possibility that I am wrong,” Mr. Barrington said, “but I am, for the time being, holding to my interpretation. I’m hopeful that you will be patient with him, and kind.”

“Have you asked the same of him?” She, after all, deserved patience and kindness as well.

“Of course I have. We may not be friends of as long standing as he and I, but I do think of you as my friend. I wouldn’t wish to see either of you unhappy.”

The compassion in his words touched her. “Thank you.”

“Someday, you can return the favor when I make a mull of things with my betrothed or my wife or whatever stage of things I might be in.”

She smiled, leaning her elbows on the table and plopping her face into her upturned palms. “Do you have someone in mind already?”

He shook his head. “As much as I rightly accuse Lucas of being something of an idiot where ladies are concerned, I am equally guilty of the same stupidity.”

“It is a shame you never came home with Lucas and Stanley while you were all at school,” she said. “We would have enjoyed having you there.”

“Thank you, Lady Jonquil.” Mr. Barrington rose. “And may I say that I sincerely hope our mutual friend sorts himself out. I suspect you deserve a happy marriage even more than he does.”

“I haven’t had a friend in a long time, Mr. Barrington,” she said. “Thank you for being one.”

He offered a very respectful dip of his head. “With any luck, Lucas will introduce you to the whole lot of us, then you’ll have more friends than you know what to do with.”

“To be perfectly honest, that is a problem I think I would enjoy having. I grew up surrounded by people. Though I have found some enjoyment in being alone over the years since everyone left me, I have to admit that in my heart of hearts, I often grow lonely.”

“Why is it you never had a London Season?” Mr. Barrington asked.

“We were in mourning for Stanley when I might have made my bows. By the time social conventions allowed me to join the whirl, my father did not yet feel equal to it. Then I think he was too... comfortable in the quiet and solitude of home.”

“Did you ever ask about going to Town?” Mr. Barrington had a way of asking questions that, somehow, didn’t feel meddlesome.

“I had also come to value the comfort and stability of being at home.”

“That is not Lucas’s preference,” Mr. Barrington said.

She knew that all too well.

His smile was kind and empathetic. “I will see if I can’t drop a few hints to your husband.”

“Subtle hints, if you don’t mind. He is already being forced to include me in aspects of his life he’d rather not.”

“Very subtle.” With his book under his arm, Mr. Barrington left the book room.

But Julia’s thoughts didn’t fully clear. Lucas had an entire life she knew nothing of—friends, associates, travels, character traits. And he was, according to his closest friend, afraid of her.

Chapter Seventeen

“I know what I saw,”Kes said for the third time during their brief walk up the slopes of the nearest peak. “She was working on differential equations.”

Lucas couldn’t make sense of the unexpected discovery. “Why would she be doing that?”

“My theory: your wife is secretly a genius.”

“Julia has always been remarkably clever,” Lucas said. “But I don’t remember her having a passion for mathematics.”

“And she didn’t seem to know that you have a passion for mountaineering.” Kes eyed him sidelong, even as he motioned slightly with his head at their current location—on a mountain. “Are you sure you two actually knew each other before your wedding? Had anyone formally introduced you?”

“Keep with the jests, Kes. Soon enough, you’ll be navigating your own matrimonial trapdoor, and I’ll offer you exactly as much empathy as you’re offering me.”

He was unmoved. “What I’m hoping is that when the time comes, you will offer me even half thehelpI’m giving you.”

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