Page 78 of The Grand Duel
“You’ll never meet anyone.”
“Thank you.”
“I’m just saying. How do you expect to find a life partner if you don’t date?”
“I don’t want a life partner. Or kids.”
I stare at him, my heart pounding. Did he just… “You don’t want kids?”
“No. Next rule.”
His hand smooths down his chest, over his tie, and I sit back, feeling as if the dent I made in the wall has just been patched over with a brush of his hand. “Um—” I scratch at my cheek with my finger, my mind blank.He doesn’t want kids?“I guess that’s it.”
He watches me over the table as if he wants to say something more but can’t, as if the patchwork he’s hiding behind isn’t going to hold much longer. “Alright then.”
Alright then. Just like that.
I force a smile, pushing what he’s said, and the fact there’s a lot more to the man than I first gave him credit for, aside.
“You’ll give it a shot?” I ask.
“I’ll humour you and Edna, yes.”
A light buzz flutters under my skin. “It’ll be a joy to watch.”
“Why?” He narrows his eyes. “You think I’m going to fail?”
“I never said that.”
He shakes his head and takes a mouthful of my ice cream. “You didn’t have to.” He nods towards my bowl. “What do you think?”
I look down at what’s left of the mint chocolate dessert. “It’s okay. Different.” I frown. “You really don’t date?” I can’t help but ask the question, taking another bite to test the flavour again.
I think I might actually like it more than mine.
Charles’s gaze is lost in the contents of his bowl. “No. Not for a long time.”
“Is there a reason?”
His eyes lift, searching, conflicted maybe, but I don’t know why.
“I get the feeling you don’t want to talk about it.”
His face grows guilty, and I hate it.
I brush it aside. “So, you were burned or something,” I say, bringing it back a little. “I won’t mention it again.”
“It’s not that I don’t want to talk about it, Lissie?—”
I wave my spoon back and forth. “It’s all good.”
He drops his spoon into the bowl and rubs a hand over his mouth. “Do you date?”
His effort with this conversation makes a smile threaten to tease. I try to smother it. “I’ve dated in the past, but nothing that’s worth documenting. It was more along the lines of Friday night drinks with work colleagues that would sometimes turn into someone walking me home. And there was never any romance with any of those men. It’s why my sister pushed me into starting a dating profile.”
“To find romance.”
“To be romanced, yes. Something planned and thought out and sweet. Something with substance.”