Page 64 of The Lady Glass
“I suppose if you don’t want me to tell you, you’ll have to discover the answer for yourself.”
“Now that I’ve thought on it, I think I shall ask your parents.”
Her quick wit was a challenge he relished. “Start with my father. He will definitely have an opinion.”
“And will he also remind you that he’s promised you to another?”
His smile dropped. Wretched promise. Rolland had been playing with fire, practically begging to be burned. There would be many difficulties to pass through should they continue on the path they’d started in the tower, and in the end someone would be hurt. He just didn’t want it to be Theresia.
“I thought you might have forgotten,” she said softly, the easy mood between them replaced with an uncomfortable undercurrent.
“Not completely, but it isn’t something I can tiptoe around.” He leaned back in his seat. “But what can I do? Your singing enticed me.” His words didn’t draw back the strain like he had hoped.
“I won’t hold you accountable, Rolland. I knew your plans when I kissed you back. Perhaps we can pretend it never happened.”
She was much too gracious. That would be the ideal strategy, but his gut knew when a plan was destined to fail. “I was never very good at pretending.”
It was her turn not to answer. She had no better solution for him than he did, but there was only one path he desired to follow now. He would have to refuse his father, wouldn’t he? He was in unfamiliar territory. Every second with Theresia served todeepen his desire to be by her side.
But how could he risk the future of England?
Heaven help him, but he wanted to.
Chapter 30
After the events at theruins, the ladies retired earlier than normal to their chambers to dress for dinner. Theresia made her way to Lady Barrack’s room, clutching the book Mr. Stewart had brought her. She had been pleasantly surprised to find it was a book of poetry.
Reaching out, she knocked on Rolland’s parents’ bedchamber door. She did not think Lord Barrack was with his wife, but the possibility made her nervous. But no matter how unapproachable the man was, Theresia still intended to check on Lady Barrack. Maybe it was because of the way she had tended to Theresia’s hair and made her feel valued, or maybe it was a desire to be kind—a feeling Theresia could never suppress long, even with her persistent prejudices against the English. Regardless of the reason, Lady Barrack was suffering, and Theresia wanted to reassure herself that she was well.
“Come in, dear,” Lady Barrack said upon opening the door. She waved Theresia inside.
With the door shut behind them, they both settled on the edge of the bed. Just as Theresia feared, Lady Barrack’s color had not improved. And how could it? A death threat hung over her husband’s head, and today must have emphasized the reality of their situation.
Theresia handed her the book. “In case you cannot sleep, this might help distract you.”
“How thoughtful.”
“I took the liberty of asking a maid to bring up some lavender tea. I am sorry you had such an awful scare today.”
They visited for a few minutes, but Theresia refused to stay long. Lady Barrack needed to rest. When she opened the door to leave, Lord Barrack was speaking to Rolland in the corridor. “If anything, the situation is more dire than before, son. It’simperative you do your part to help unify England. The Western world, and maybe the whole of it, depends on this conference. We must do our part.”
Theresia couldn’t stay hidden and eavesdropping in the doorframe, so she swung the door wide, calling loudly to Lady Barrack behind her. “Rest well.”
Lord Barrack started, and both he and Rolland turned to face her. Lord Barrack spoke first. “Is something amiss with my wife?”
She forced a friendly smile. “I only wanted to see if there was anything I could do for her after her trying morning.”
Lord Barrack’s brow raised. Was he so wholly surprised she could be nice? It seemed she gave that impression to many. The ladies at the seminary had reacted similarly to her.
Theresia would never admit it out loud, but Lord Barrack was nearly as intimidating as his son had been the night Rolland had pinned her to the ground thinking she was an intruder. The only difference was she knew now that Rolland liked her, whereas with a few exceptions, Lord Barrack had made it a point to ignore her.
“Very good.” His voice was as dismissive as his demeanor, so she stepped forward to move around the men.
“Lady Glass?”
She paused, meeting Rolland’s eyes. “Yes?”
“Thank you for your kindness.” There was warmth there that was absent from his father’s gaze.
