‘Punish me however you want. I deserve it. But after you’re done being angry—which you have every right to be—then I hope we can talk. I hope you will give me advice.’
She didn’t even speak. She looked at him, her dark eyes liquid with thoughts he couldn’t fathom. But in the end, she nodded.
‘We can talk?’ he asked.
‘Yes.’
Relief poured through him. He hadn’t completely destroyed what was between them. She didn’t completely hate him yet.
‘What do you want me to do first? Tell me and I shall do it.’
Her feet kicked out a bit, thumping the barrel as she sat in silence. It might have been a childish motion if it didn’t draw attention to her shapely calves and ankles. It also told him thatshe was relaxing around him. Then she said the most wonderful thing.
‘Tell me what you have been doing.’ Then she threw him an arch look. ‘Tell me what you have promised the Prince.’
They began to talk. Or rather, he talked and she listened. He loved that she understood what he was trying to build. Not just understood but helped with his dreams. She rarely interrupted him, but when she did, she asked something important. She made quiet suggestions, and he quickly learned to think about her words before he spoke again.
It was a kind of rhythm of discourse that he didn’t have with anyone else. It helped him settle his racing thoughts and taught him to think with something more than just his passion and excited dreams.
And every time he chewed on her words or worked with her ideas, she flushed with pleasure. Bit by bit, he watched her blossom. It was such a simple thing to listen to her words, but she became more animated every time he did it. And how beautiful she was when he engaged with her thoughts.
That made for a good discussion. And when the captain finally came up top, they were both arguing without heat in a way he had never experienced before. Imagine having a disagreement without anger or insult! It didn’t solve the question about which cargo went where, but it also didn’t require embarrassment or groveling.
‘It’s time for the lady to head home,’ Captain Banakos said when the two of them paused long enough for him to get a word in edgewise.
‘But there are things we still need to decide,’ Lucy said as she looked up at the late afternoon sky.
‘True,’ Cedric said, ‘but they are not our decisions to figure out. They are yours to ponder.’ He took a deep breath, startled torealise how easy it was to swallow his pride when it came to her. ‘I have stated my case. You get the final decision.’
She looked at the captain as he nodded. ‘Aye, miss. That’s what the Duke said.’
Then he watched with pleasure as a slow smile spread across Lucy’s face. ‘Then I will make the decision,’ she said. ‘Tomorrow. At teatime.’ She looked to Cedric. ‘Would you care to join me?’
Such a demure invitation, just like a true society lady. ‘I would,’ he said, his heart beating a little faster. ‘With pleasure.’
And so they set another rhythm between them. Teatime. The most polite time of the day where rules of behaviour were strictly observed. He could not importune her. She could not act anything but proper. Especially since there was always a chaperone in the room with them.
And yet, he could think of no better way to spend his time.