Page 40 of A Wicked Duke's Redemption
Violet smiled. “Not at all.”
He donned his coat, while Violet dressed in her cloak. She had never noticed before how broad Leo’s shoulders were, and a lump rose in her throat as she remembered the kiss and how she had clung to him. Violet still had not managed to sort through all the strange sensations which stirred in her that night. They lingered like phantoms at the edge of her awareness, never far from her thoughts.
Leo offered his arm, and Violet accepted, tucking her hand into the crook of his arm. He was pleasantly warm, and Violet liked the quiet strength he had. Together, they walked down the marble stairs and into the gardens. Beyond them, another set of stairs had been crafted into the grassy hill.
Those stairs led to a wide, open plain with a beautiful lake, surrounded by weeping willows, whose fronds were so long that they swept over the surface of the water. Violet had visited the lake several times already. It was the sort of place which she imagined the Lady of the Lake rising from to offer King Arthur the sword Excalibur. At present, Essex was still awash with the colors of autumn, but Violet knew those would soon fade for winter’s white.
“It occurs to me that Oxeburgh has no winter festivals,” Leo said.
“No,” Violet said. “Is that strange?”
They continued down the set of steps and followed the path towards the lake. “I am uncertain, actually,” Leo said. “I suppose I was just thinking about the London Frost Fairs. Those are quite enjoyable.”
“What are they?”
“The Thames freezes, and there is always much excitement about it,” Leo replied. “People skate and enjoy themselves. There are a whole host of shops and sellers that come out and sell their wares. I attended a couple when I was a boy.”
“I have never had the opportunity to skate,” Violet said. “I know that some of the boys in the village have, though. There is a pond just east of Oxeburgh.”
Leo nodded. “I know of it.”
“It seems like a delightful diversion,” Violet said. “However, I do not imagine I would be very graceful if I attempted to skate.”
Leo chuckled. “No one is, especially if they are not well-practiced. I imagine that I would be far from graceful on skates myself, but that is the one benefit of being the Duke of Farnham. Few people would dare mock my attempts.”
“Mrs. Gunderson would be the exception, of course.”
“She would be, but she is too gracious to behave that way.”
“She loves you very much,” Violet said. “It is apparent in the way that she speaks about you.”
“Mrs. Gunderson was…” Leo trailed off. “My mother died when I was young, and my father buried himself in his work. He did little besides manage the dukedom after she died. I believe it was his way of trying to bury his own pain. Mrs. Gunderson raised me and saw that I was never lacking for anything.”
Leo paused, looking as though he had just realized something. Violet wondered if Leo saw something of his father in himself. After all, his wife had also died, and until Violet’s arrival, he also had abandoned most pleasures in favor of working. Leo worked more than any man she had ever met, and Violet simply did not understand how he managed to work so much without looking like her poor, ragged father.
Perhaps not so ragged anymore. With Leo’s support, Violet’s father still worked because being a clerk gave him a sense of purpose, but he no longer had to work such long hours for fear of being unable to survive. Her mother’s health had also improved under the careful watch of Mr. Johnson, an elderly physician whose sharp eyes betrayed his biting wit and cleverness.
“I never thanked you,” Violet said suddenly.
“For what?”
“For your proposal,” Violet explained. “For marrying me and agreeing to look after my parents.”
“Ah. Well,” he said, “in truth, I knew that you would not marry me if I did not have something worthwhile to offer you. I would like to claim that it was an act of generosity, but it really was a wholly selfish action on my part.”
“Does it matter if the act was selfishly motivated?” Violet asked. “My parents are happy.”
“And you?”
Violet furrowed her brow, thinking.
“Answer me honestly,” Leo said, his voice softening. “I truly wish to know, and I will not be angry with you, regardless of what the answer may be.”
Violet hummed. They walked for a heartbeat in silence. “I am,” she said at last. “Truly. I am happy here, but sometimes, you confuse me. Distress me, even.”
“Distress you?”
Violet bit her lip. “I feel as though you have grown kinder to me during my stay at Groveswood. However, I do not believe you extend that same courtesy to your own servants. They work very hard, and you only ever reward them with a few curt words. Surely, it would be better if you were to express more gratitude for what they do for you?”
