“Oh, certainly,” Deborah agreed with a ready nod.
Though Adeline did not look entirely pleased by this announcement, she made no protest before heading toward the stairs.
“I swear,” Cedric sighed as Deborah and he stood alone in the foyer, “I have heard her talk more in the last hour than I have in the entire year she has been here.”
“She is just curious,” Deborah replied. “This is as new for her as it is for us.”
“I suppose so,” Cedric mused. Then his gaze moved from the stairs that Adeline had just ascended and settled on Deborah.
“Well, shall we have you meet the staff? The housekeeper? She will give you the tour, explain your new duties as lady of the house, go over-”
“No,” Deborah cut him off, shaking her head. “I thank you for all you have done and the deal you have offered me, but I never agreed to be the lady of this house. I have my own business to attend to, and I have already wasted enough time as it is.”
Not waiting for his counterargument, she turned from Cedric and went up the stairs, hoping that she would not get lost like last time.
“Where are you going?” Cedric asked, following her.
“To my room,” Deborah answered, “I believe I remember where it is.”
Behind her, she heard Cedric laugh.
“That is not your room. I just put you in there for that one night. It was my sister’s old room, and since you had no clothes, I assumed you might need to borrow some of what she left behind.”
Deborah paused on the steps, disappointment sweeping through her. She had liked that room. Found it beautiful and warm. She was also disappointed in the new fact that she could not just walk away from Cedric, but was forced to let him show her where she was supposed to stay.
She turned to him with a straight face, and he smirked as he raised a brow.
“May I?” He asked, gesturing toward the stairs.
Gritting her teeth, she stepped aside, allowing him to take the lead.
“You do realize that becoming the Lady of the house is not something you can just decide not to become, don’t you?” Cedric asked as he led her up the stairs, “It is a responsibility you must take on whether it interferes with your plans or not. Even that is beyond my decision, but what society dictates.”
“And what if I do not have time?” Deborah replied.
All that warmth she had started to feel for him at the wedding was draining away, emptying her of any momentary fondness.
“I have to take care of your niece, which will obviously require quite a large amount of my time, and I will not put my plans on hold.”
“Well if you would tell me what those plans were perhaps I could help you with them as you asked me to,” Cedric countered, stopping at a set of white double doors.
“These are your rooms, by the way,” he added, pushing one of the doors open for her.
When she did not enter at first, Cedric bowed dramatically at his waist, sweeping his arm into the room in a grandiose gesture.
Could the man not take anything seriously?
Deborah tsked her tongue as she rolled her eyes, then swept past him. She had meant to grab the doorknob and slam it shut in his face, but as she stepped inside the room, she stopped and let out a small gasp.
“This is your sitting room,” Cedric explained from behind her, “My mother used to host her friends here quite a bit. That is why there is so much seating. Of course if it is too crowded for your taste, I can have some of it removed.”
Deborah shook her head, still in awe over the decor. It reminded her a lot of the first room she had stayed in the other night. The only difference was that instead of just baby blue and teal, there were splashes of other bright colors, all blurring seamlessly into one another. The ceiling was painted the same, but the blue hue bled into not just teal, but lavender purple, grass green, watermelon pink, and a sunny yellow. The columns of the room had been painted a glittering gold, and each piece of the light blue velvet furniture had a gold trim around it.
There were no paintings because the room did not need them. The entire space was a work of art.
“There is a bathing chamber through that door over there,” Cedric explained behind her, “It adjoins the bedroom as well. Through the bedroom, there is one more room that I wager you might like.”
Cedric moved past her, and she heard another door open. She looked and saw that he was waiting by it. Still in awe, she left the sitting room and entered the bedroom. It was nearly a replica of the room she’d slept in before, all save for the windows. There were no windows. It kept the room dark, but a kind maid had come in and lit several of the glass bulb oil lamps and the fire in the hearth.