Page 19 of Her Lion of a Duke
“You handled that very well.”
“You have never seen the ladies at the modiste during a fabric shortage,” she quipped. “A small bump is nothing in comparison.”
“Truly, you never cease to surprise me.”
“Good, for it seems I have the rest of our lives to do so.”
They continued on, looking at the wares. Cecilia bought five ribbons, all in different colors, and placed them in her reticule.
“You can buy more, if you wish.”
“At some point, I will. However, these ones are special. One for each of my friends, and then my cousin. I would like them to have a small token from my new home.”
“Your Grace!” came a small voice.
They both turned to see the same young boy from earlier, his hoop in one hand and a bouquet of flowers in the other. His cheeks were red, no doubt from running, but he was smiling.
“These are for you,” he panted. “I wanted to apologize.”
“Oh my,” Cecilia said wistfully. “These are so beautiful, but you did not have to buy me a gift. It was an honest mistake.”
“I know, but my mother says that we should right our wrongs.”
Leonard felt conflicted by it all. He knew that the villagers lived quite prosperous lives, but the flowers seemed costly. It was as though the boy had run to the first florist he saw and told them that he had upset the Duchess, and the florist had acted accordingly.
It was a terribly kind gesture, but not one that Leonard thought was completely reasonable.
Given the strain in Cecilia’s smile, he knew she felt the same way.
“I have an idea,” he declared, bending down to the boy’s eye level. “What if you take these flowers to your mother and make her day brighter?”
“But I wanted to do something nice for Her Grace.”
“Then… why not take one of the flowers and give it to her? Then, you may take the rest home to your mother to thank her for caring for you.”
That seemed to satisfy the boy; he plucked a hydrangea off the bouquet and gave it to Cecilia happily. She took it, thanking him profusely, and he disappeared again.
“He certainly knows what he wants,” Leonard commented.
“A very good trait to possess,” she agreed. “Thank you. I could not have accepted something so costly, not when we already have so many flowers at home.”
“I shall arrange for his mother to be found and repaid. He seems like a sweet child, and I see no need for them to be out of pocket for an honest mistake.”
He liked the way his wife was looking at him, as though she admired him. Almost.
“Are you hungry?” he asked. “I hardly ate at lunch.”
“Nor did I. I was hoping to wait until we were here.”
“Wonderful. I believe there is a small shop here that we can go to.”
He led her to a very small but well-decorated shop that served tea and cakes. They took their seats outside and chose their treats. Cecilia was still smiling, but the edge of worry had disappeared. It was genuine now, and Leonard could not stop staring at her.
“I believe this visit has been a success,” she stated. “I was hoping it would be the case, but I was not so certain.”
“I know, and I hope that in the future, you have more faith. You are very good at all of this, Cecilia.”
“I do not know how. It is not as though I am trying to do anything differently.”
