Page 39 of The Duke's Second Bride
“Yes. The st-stable master is very kind. He lets me feed the horses and help groom them s-sometimes. My favorite horse isnamed Merry,” he informed her. “She is a bay pony. She was a foal last year, and since then she has grown up to be very strong and lively. She would be a good pony for me to learn to ride on my own, if Father lets me. That’s what the stable master said.”
Though he said this last part slowly and carefully, he made it through the entire thing without stuttering.
So, it only occurs when he is nervous, Ava thought, making a note.
She took care not to react as though she had noticed a change. “Merry is a wonderful name for a horse,” she said. “Did you pick out the name yourself?”
“Yes. The stable master let me, after she was born. We have lots of other animals on the grounds, too. There is a pond with ducks. Me and my governess bring bread to feed them sometimes when we go for walks. You may join us tomorrow, if you like,” he offered.
She smiled. “I would like that very much,” she agreed, making a mental note to ask Miss Grant to put aside some bread.
“There are also lots of games in the woods, deer, squirrels, and rabbits. The rabbits come out more in the springtime. And birds, too. They sing to us. Have you heard them yet?”
“No,” Ava said, “but only because I have yet to explore the grounds so much. You shall have to be my tour guide, you and your governess.”
He nodded solemnly. “We would be honored,” he said, with such seriousness that Ava had to fight not to laugh. He really was such a delightful child.
If I’d borne a son of my own, she thought,I hope he would have been something like Luke.
Just as she had the thought, she became aware of a movement in the door, past Luke’s head. Glancing up, she saw Christian there, watching them. But he only lingered a moment before leaving.
Ava hoped he had stayed long enough to hear Luke and how easily he spoke around her.
That night at dinner was much the same as the night before—the three of them sitting around the table. The food was much heartier this time around, now that the three of them were fully settled from their travels.
There was only one hiccup in the night. “F-father,” Luke had asked, in a nervous, trembling voice, “can P-p-pudding c-come eat with us?”
Christian looked at him with his brow knit, though more from confusion than from annoyance or anger. He supposed that to outsiders, it all looked the same.
“What?” he asked.
“P-pudding. Our cat,” Luke said, then looked nervously at Ava. “Ava’s cat, I m-m-mean.”
Ava smiled gently. “It’s all right to sayourcat, Luke,” she assured him. “Pudding is a member of the household now?—”
“Except for the fact that he walks on four paws and licks himself clean,” Christian interrupted, his tone firm. “Which makes him an animal, unlike every otherhumanmember of this household.”
Luke frowned, but nodded. Ava, also frowning, didn’t seem ready to back down so easily.
“He isn’t asking if he can feed the cat with a fork,” she said, keeping her voice gentle, but with a prodding undertone. “Only if the cat can keep him company. He is fond of animals, as well you know by now.”
Christian bristled, not liking the implications of his unfitness as a father. “And you should well know the way a proper household is run, since you seem so keen to lend a hand in running it. I am not trying to entirely throw the cat off the property—though, quite frankly, I would be well within my rights to?—”
“I know you are surely joking about that, husband,” Ava said sweetly, though through gritted teeth. “If Pudding were to leave, surely so would I.”
Christian sighed. “I am just saying?—”
“I-i-It’s p-perfectly all right, F-f-father,” Luke chimed in, clearly regretting having raised the question at all. “P-p-pudding c-can k-k-keep me c-company outside-outside of the dining r-r-room.”
It was the worst he had stuttered since their arrival back home. Immediately, Ava and Christina both fell silent. Christian caught eyes with her for a moment across the table and wondered if she was feeling the same way as he—the distinct realization and regret for turning such an innocent question into an opportunity to bicker, when they both knew the main thing the boy needed was to avoid stress and nervousness.
Ava cleared her throat. “You know, Luke,” she said, her voice returning to an entirely gentle one. “I saw the most beautiful orchard as part of the grounds when I was looking out the window earlier. Can you tell me about it? What kinds of fruit grow there? I haven’t yet had a real moment to fully explore the grounds.”
Luke nodded—carefully, though the spark of excitement had re-entered his eyes at the changing of topics.
He immediately launched into an enthusiastic description of the apple orchard, and all of the work that went into maintaining it, and how the main worker allowed him to help out with it. He stillstuttered, but less than before, and he seemed calm in a way that Christian realized more and more he seemed to reserve for Ava’s presence. She was patient with him, asking follow-up questions slowly, and not making him feel as though he had to rush at all when he stuttered or forgot a word.
Once again, a wave of inadequacy washed over Christian.
