Page 37 of Wedded to the Cruel Duke

“You,” he managed gruffly. “What doyouwant to talk about?”

Phoebe looked quite surprised by his reply, but then her smile deepened, and Charles nearly drooped in his chair in relief when she set the silverware aside.

“Well, I was thinking about my family earlier this afternoon…”

As he allowed Phoebe to express how much she missed her family, he could not help but glance at O’Malley. The footman had been shoving the food into his mouth so quickly that his cheeks puffed out like a squirrel preparing for the winter.

At this rate, even if the food has not been compromised, he is going to be sick…

“…so, I was thinking about maybe paying them a visit sometime soon. You would agree to that, wouldn’t you?”

Fortunately, he was spared having to reply to that when O’Malley concluded his inspection of the food. He then stepped back and with a nod at Huxley, both of them withdrew from the dining room with an uncharacteristic swiftness.

“I… shall think about it.”

A tense silence fell over the both of them, punctuated only by the faint clinking of silverware upon expensive porcelain. Once or twice, he caught Phoebe looking at him from over the table, her mouth opening as if she meant to say something, but then, she would duck her head and turn her gaze back to her plate.

When the servants came in to clear their plates, the silence had gone past the point of merely being uncomfortable, becoming almost unbearable. By the time they brought out the pudding, Charles was barely hanging onto his control.

It would seem that Phoebe was not only willing to test his patience, but the limits of his restraint as well.

By the end of dinner, Phoebe was close to desperation and tears. Twice, she had attempted to breach their silence with some harmless topic to at least draw Charles into a conversation, but his complete lack of interest somehow caused her to lose all courage.

Maybe even hope.

She had fluttered her eyes at him like Amelia had taught her to. She had even leaned down to allow him to glimpse at her bosommore than five times, and he turned away from her each and every time.

She might have even felt embarrassed, if she was not so bent on getting his attention.

Finally, it was sheer desperation that made her grasp his hand as he turned to leave the dining room. She could not let this evening go to waste—not when she had gone to such great lengths to dress up and make herself attractive to him.

“Charles!” She dragged her eyes pleadingly to him, throwing all dignity to the wind. “Please, I do not want to be alone. I-I think I will go mad from all this—”

He looked mildly surprised, even as he grasped her hand gently with his own. “In that case, Phoebe, what do you have in mind?”

“I-I—” she stammered.

Whatdidshe want?

She had been so starved for companionship in the past few days that when she was finally faced with the question, she found that she could not come up with any suitable answers.

“W-we could do something entertaining,” she managed weakly. “Like cards.”

“Cards?” he repeated blankly with an arched eyebrow.

She nodded emphatically. “I am a decent player at cards. Or chess!” She was babbling now, but she did not care. “I am not very good at chess, but I could try to learn it, if that is what you want. We can also talk about books…”

The truth of the matter was that she had no particular idea what a husband and wife did when they were alone together. She had seen both of her parents enjoy each other’s company by the fireplace, playing chess or reading books together. Many times, she caught them having deep conversations between themselves.

And there was that deep yearning within her that she could not name…

She could not ask that of Charles yet, but she had hoped that they could foster a friendship, at least.

“We are both tired, Phoebe,” he told her gently. “Perhaps we should just both get some rest tonight.”

He turned and walked away, leaving her standing there alone in the dining room staring at his back as it disappeared into the hallway.

When she turned back around, the entire dining hall was empty. If the servants found it uncomfortable to find them both in some sort of discord, they did not linger to witness more of it. For that, Phoebe was at least grateful.