Page 52 of The Duke's Second Bride
“Fine,” she replied.
“Fine.” He looked lost after this.
It was like he wanted to keep the conversation going, but didn’t know how. Ava didn’t feel particularly inclined to try to help him.
“Good day,” he said finally, and then left.
Ava sat there, staring at her book, fuming and bewildered. She had sworn to live with this man until death do they part.
So how was it that the more she got to know him, the less it seemed she understood him?
CHAPTER 19
The carriage ride back to the city was their quietest yet. After a while of Luke fidgeting, Ava had told him a story that had lulled him to sleep, which had led to utter silence between Ava and Christian.
Christian supposed it was better than bickering. Yet he felt the air was still thick with all the things unsaid.
He should apologize to her, he knew. He just … didn’t know how. And now it seemed the moment had surely passed.
Arriving at the Richmond townhouse, he marked how heads on the street turned to look at the arrival of their ornate carriage. Ava gently nudged Luke awake and helped the sleepy boy out of the carriage.
Christian followed at a distance. No need to increase the odds of a spat any more than necessary, especially on their first day in a new home.
Around them, servants brought in their possessions from the car.
The townhouse was a lavishly outfitted home. It was smaller than the country house, of course, but still consisted of several floors. Plenty of space for Luke to run around in.
And Pudding, for that matter. As soon as he was let free to roam, he bolted up the stairs.
Christian bit back a groan. No doubt he would find the damn thing curled up on his desk in this home, too.
Ava looked up at the place with awe. She had already been married and affluent, but she still seemed blown away by the grandiosity of the place.
Christian remembered how he had felt upon seeing the place for the first time after he had inherited it. He wondered if Ava was feeling overwhelmed by the size.
He felt an urge to ask her—and then pushed it back.
Of course, Christian thought that was another benefit of having such a large estate. The size of the place meant they would still have plenty of room for the unhappily married couple to continue to avoid each other, even more so with the palatial dimensions of the country house.
Luke, now fully awake, ran up the stairs to his room with his nursemaid, leaving Ava and Christian alone in the foyer.
He looked at her. God, she looked beautiful. It had been torture to sit in the carriage and not be able to speak to her.
He had to say something, surely. He cleared his throat.
Ava turned to look at him. Her travel dress of deep green perfectly set off the golden hues of her hair and the warm, flushed undertones beneath her skin.
“Yes?” she asked. Her voice carried a melodious tone. He could not help but wonder what that voice would sound like, gasping his name.
But he knew he would never find out.
“I just—” he stopped short. It took a great effort not to trace the contours of her body with his eyes. “I want you to know that I am most pleased to welcome you as the new lady of the house.”
She gave him an odd look, brow furrowed. The air grew heated between them as their eye contact lingered. She opened that plush pink mouth, and he eagerly awaited her response.
But before she could say anything, a small ginger streak came tearing down the stairs, followed by Luke, who was giggling in delight.
The spell was immediately broken. Ava shook her head, as though trying to rid herself of some unwelcome thoughts.
