Page 187 of The Grand Duel
She hands it to me and starts picking up as many logs as she can hold in her arms. “I’ll go find some paper for the fire.”
I chop sticks and then carry them inside, the rain getting worse and soaking me through. I find Lissie by the fire screwing up newspaper, stuffing it into the base.
“Can I suggest some central heating along with the lovely fire, Charles?”
I bump her out of the way and take over, layering the sticks on top.
Within minutes the fire is roaring, and Lissie has made us cups of tea and coffee. I take them as she nears, and then she sits down on the floor beside me.
The dogs instantly worm their way into the space in front of us.
“Oh my goodness, it’s perfect,” she says with a sigh.
I look at her, her eyes closed and her smile so wholesome it makes my chest pinch. I revel in the heat of the fire.
And her.
“It is,” I agree. “Thank you, Lissie.”
She opens her eyes and looks across at me, her face glowing orange from the flames. “For the house?”
“More the reasoning.”
She takes a sip of her tea, her hands hugging the mug. “Does it surprise you that I want to see you happy?”
Confirmation of the reason shouldn’t make my stomach do whatever it is it’s doing. “It doesn’t surprise me. I guess it is what Edna hired you to do.”
“True, she employed me to help find you a balance. But I didn’t do it for that reason. I mean, any sane businessman would see it very differently and probably fire me.”
I smile. “There’s still time.”
She smiles back, nudging her elbow into my side. “I mean it, though. I know you pay me a wage every month, but I’m not here because of that.” She flicks her eyes up to mine and then down to my lips. “I feel like you do all these things for everyone else but never for yourself.”
“I don’t need things,” I tell her, trying to ignore the way she looks at me.
“Well, I don’t believe you. And whilst you tolerate my presence in your life, I plan to do them for you regardless.” She shrugs. “Just on a smaller budget.”
“Don’t spend money on me.”
She rolls her eyes and looks away. “Shh.”
I smile at the side of her face, wishing she’d bring her eyes back to mine.
“Have you heard anything from your sister since last night?” I ask after a while, knowing it had upset her this week.
“No,” she murmurs. “I thought I’d give them the weekend and then call. I can imagine Mum and Dad will need to get back after a week or so.”
“Do you know what you plan to say to her?”
I watch as she smooths her index finger over Daisy’s snout. “I’m just going to be there like always. It’s going to be a lot for them both. Willow won’t really get it, but it’s still new. And I get the feeling Jove will want me to do what she’s doing and plan something—she’s very impulsive.” She pauses, staring at the dog. “But that’s not what I want right now.”
“That’s fair enough.”
She looks up at me. “Thank you for telling me about your sister the other night. I can’t imagine it was easy. A little perspective is really helpful sometimes, but I can’t help wishing you didn’t have any to share.”
I give her half a smile. “Me too. But I’m glad I told you. That you stuck around after everything that happened.”
“You can’t get rid of me now, Aldridge.”