“Please forgive me, Your Grace. I did not mean to react this way,” Mrs. Silverstone said between sniffles as they both pulled away, “But I cannot help but feel that His Grace will never forgive any of us for that.”
Nancy frowned, “I am certain His Grace knows that you could not intervene. Please do not burden yourself with guilt, Mrs. Silverstone.”
“You are so kind, Your Grace. Thank you. I hope you are right,” the housekeeper said and blew into her handkerchief.
“I am. Despite his misgivings, His Grace has shown kindness too, when it matters,” she responded, remembering how swiftly he had taken care of her family after she’d told him about their issues.
Yes, he was curt with her most of the time, but for a man that was tortured by his own father… The Duke was not so bad.
“We are very lucky to have you, Your Grace. Under other circumstances, he’d have never tolerated Dash’s presence,” Mrs. Silverstone said and lovingly looked at the puppy, “I think you might be able to soften his pain.”
“I hope so, Mrs. Silverstone. And thank you for telling me the truth. It has certainly cleared the picture,” Nancy responded.
She sighed next.
Easing her husband’s pain? That was a feat indeed. At least now that she knew more about him, perhaps she could approach him in a more appropriate way.
The question was, how?
* * *
“I think I will go for a ride today,” Richard informed Ernest over breakfast.
“An excellent idea, Your Grace. The weather today is certainly lovely enough,” the butler responded. “I will inform the stable boy to prepare the horse right away.”
Richard barely heard the second half of Ernest’s response, the mention ofweatherreminding him of the conversation he had with Nancy at the breakfast hall.
She had been on his mind a lot lately, plaguing his waking hours and stealing his sleep.
It was quite alarming, how even though he had been fortunate enough to have met several women over the course of his life, and he had been able to have intimate relationships with them, the mere sight of his wife in her nightdress had filled him with suchburningdesire.
He wanted her so much he ached at the thought of her.
And with how their relationship was, where things stood between them, the odds of him getting what he wanted were slim. Additionally, he knew it would be a bad idea to involve himself with her in that way.
There was something about the way she got under his skin easily, how she left imprints in his mind without even touching him, that proved just how terrible it would be if he dared to go further.
Right after breakfast, he went on his ride, thankful that he could relish in the flow of wind against his skin. It felt… freeing to be doing this again. He had not ridden as much after William’s passing, unable to even face the paths they had ridden together, the stark reminders of what he had lost like salt on an open wound.
Richard was not sure how long he had ridden, but, eventually, he had felt as though he had taken in enough of the scenery to last him the next few months and returned to his estate.
On his way back to the stables, he spotted Nancy, sitting under a tent that shielded her from the sun while she clapped and cheered for Dash as he ran around with a man he assumed was the trainer.
Richard frowned at the sight, caught off guard by how relaxed and at ease his wife looked.
He had never seen her appear so at ease, the flush on her cheeks visible from where he stood.
With the frown still etched on his face, he handed the reins of his horse back to the stable boy, nearly marching up to where Nancy was seated.
But what would he say? What would be his reason for approaching her?
Not to mention, her beast was running wild, seemingly having the time of his life.
As though he had sensed that Richard was thinking about him, Dash turned in his direction, immediately running towards him.
Although the dog was so much smaller than the hounds his father used to have—Richard knew that, was aware of it deep down in his mind—his legs ceased to function, keeping him rooted in place as the little ball of fur bounded over to him.
“Dash! Stop!” Nancy called out.
