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The children didn’t need telling twice. They raced away, as though the biscuits were in danger of disappearing. Teddy was telling the girls that they named the boat Clara.

Clara held the picture in her hands, staring at it with a pensive look on her face.

“Is something wrong?” Gerald asked when she hadn’t moved for some time.

“No… It’s just… I never pictured myself at the center of a family before.”

“Why not?”

“There has always been too much more for me to do.”

Gerald nodded without truly understanding. He assumed there was a deeper reason, but didn’t think that Clara would be inclined to share if he asked.

“It seems as though the children have no problem imagining it,” Gerald said.

“I suppose so, although there is something wrong with the picture, of course,” she said. She didn’t need to state it outright. He knew she meant his presence. Clara moved away and followed the children to the kitchen, where they were eagerly gathered around the biscuit tin. Clara opened it and handed out the biscuits, and then offered Gerald one. He slipped his hand into the tin and plucked one out, snapping it between his teeth.

The children were devoted to Clara, and she was so wonderful with them. She might not have thought she was part of a family, but it was clear to Gerald that she had one, albeit a makeshift one. Yet Sophie added him to the picture as well, and he feared they were getting the wrong impression. It was one thing to fool the ton, but to mislead these children?

Perhaps he and Clara would have to have a word with them to prevent any misconceptions from occurring.

Teddy looked up at Gerald.

“Will you come by tomorrow?” he asked.

“Teddy, I’m sure His Grace has many engagements that he must keep,” Clara said. Disappointment shadowed Teddy’s face, and the sight touched Gerald’s heart.

“I promise I will,” he said.

Teddy beamed and left to be with the other children. Clara sidled up to Gerald and spoke in a quiet voice.

“You should be careful about the promises you make. These children are more sensitive than most. There have been too many disappointments in their lives already.”

It was not a chastisement, but a warning. Gerald did not take any offence to her words.

“I always keep my promises, Miss Sterling. I am a man of my word.”

“I hope so,” she said. He tilted his head down and stared into her soulful eyes, and in that moment the last thing he ever wanted to do was disappoint her. He also saw something else in her eyes, something that looked very much like the future.

Chapter Ten

Clara stood in front of the mirror, arranging her hair neatly and smoothing down her dress. She liked to appear presentable, but was never vain.

However, today she was inspired to make a little more effort, even if she didn’t like the reason why. Clara turned to her dresser, looking at the drawings Emily and Sophie had made the previous day. Her gaze flitted to Sophie’s drawing.

The scene was one of domestic bliss, with Clara and Gerald surrounded by children. They looked happy, each and every one of them. Difficult emotions blew around inside her, like leaves scattered by an autumn wind. A lump appeared in her throat, one that would not disappear when she swallowed.

For someone who had been surrounded by a large family, Clara had never believed she would have one herself. All her life she had been appreciated for the things she could do for people, never intrinsically for herself. People asked much of her, and perhaps this was her own fault for having been precocious at a young age

When at balls, suitors had always spoken of being able to play cards with her uncle, speak about writing with her aunt, as though Clara was only good as a conduit to more interesting people. No man had ever looked at her as a person of her own worth, but only ever in the context of the wider family.

And now there was Gerald, a man who-

A soft knock on the door interrupted her thoughts.

“Are you ready, Clara? The children are getting agitated,” Agatha said.

“Coming, Grandmother,” Clara called back. She smoothed down her dress one more time and then cleared her throat, still unsure why she was even putting so much attention into her appearance.