Viktor
My mother’s hands shook as we all gathered around the long table in the Barneses’ dining room. She’d been to the house for parties many times before but never as a guest at the table of Lord Barnes and his wife. The ladies were all dressed in finery, including my mother, who wore her new frock made from fine blue silk. I couldn’t remember her ever looking as pretty as she did that evening.
Thankfully, Mother had been seated next to Mrs. Cassidy, whom she knew well and would be comfortable with. On the other side of her was my father, who also seemed nervous even though he and Cymbeline’s father were good friends. Lord Barnes had been one of his best customers for years.
Covered with a white cloth and decorated with candles that ran down the middle, the table had been elongated to accommodate all the guests. Copious forks, including a small one placed at the top of the plate, confused me, but I would follow Cym’s lead.
Mrs. Barnes said the prayer, thanking the Lord for the food, for one another, and for the good health of all around the table. After a chorus of amens, Lord Barnes stood. He’d asked Jasper to bring up bottles of champagne from the cellar so that he might toast my engagement to Cym as well as Isak and Nora’s. Once everyone had a glass, he raised his.
“Might I propose a toast to the happy couples and congratulate them on their engagements. It seems the Olofsson, Cassidy, and Barnes families will be more united than ever. If I may be so bold, I’d like to think of us all as one big, extended family for which I’m very thankful. Welcome, all, to our home. May God bless us all.”
I clinked my glass with Cym’s and my mother’s and then leaned across the table to toast Fiona and Addie, who were seated directly across from us. The dinner was delicious, and conversations flowed. Before I knew it, the meal was over and we went on to the next part of the evening. I’d rather have stayed with Cymbeline, but the party divided into men and women. The ladies went back to the formal parlor whereas the men retired to the library.
Lord Barnes gave all the men cigars and whiskeys. My father looked uncomfortable as Flynn leaned over to light his. I wasn’t sure my father had ever had a cigar. Sitting close to him on the couch, I leaned over and advised him not to inhale. Isak had told me this the first time I’d had a cigar with him and the twins, which had saved me from coughing and embarrassing myself.
There were seven us altogether gathered in the library. My father and Lord Barnes sat together by the fire. The twins and Isak were in a corner talking about old times. I’d wandered over to the window seat and sat with Phillip. Soon, we would be brothers-in-law, and I wanted to get to know him better.
He clinked my glass. “To you and me. I have to say, it’s nice to have another man around who isn’t a blood-born Barnes. Welcome to the family.”
“Thank you. I appreciate it.” I lowered my voice. “Any advice for me?”
He chuckled and played with the cuff link on his left wrist. “Don’t underestimate a Barnes woman. They might be pretty on the outside, but inside they’re made of iron.”
“Even Josephine? I mean, I know all about Cym, but your wife always seems gentle and cerebral.”
“She is for the most part. But when it comes to our kids, no one better mess with them, or expect the wrath of Jo.”
What would Cym be like as a mother? If the Lord blessed us, I reminded myself. There were no assurances that would happen. Theo and Louisa hadn’t had any yet. Maybe we wouldn’t either.
“But you can’t be in a better family than this one,” Phillip said. “They look out for one another and when you marry in, they consider you one of them. They’re the family I always wished for.”
“Dreams come true, don’t they?”
He smiled and nodded. “We weren’t sure you’d ever break her down. She’s a tough one.”
“Yes, she is. But worth all the trouble.”
“Cymbeline’s special to me. When I first came here, she was only fifteen. Full of sass and vinegar, but she made me feel very welcome.”
“I remember.” I smiled thinking about Cym at fifteen. She’d still challenged me to races back then.
“Her nemesis,” Phillip said.
“I didn’t know it was possible to be someone’s nemesis without knowing you were,” I said, chuckling.
“She’s always loved you, even if she didn’t recognize it. I’m happy for you two. More than I could possibly express with words. You’re both lucky.”
“I’d say the same for you and Josephine,” I said.
He reached over to clap me on the shoulder. “I’ll never be able to repay you for saving my Josephine. I hope I’ve thanked you enough over the years.”
“You have.” Every time he saw me, he thanked me in one way or the other. “No need to thank me again. It was my honor.”
Isak and Flynn had started reminiscing about the war. Theo had left them to sit with Lord Barnes and my father. He was an old soul, our Theo, who seemed to belong more to the previous generation than the one he’d been born into.
“I’ve never heard you talk about the war,” I said to Phillip. He’d served at the same time as Isak and the twins, but they’d not known one another until Phillip came to Emerson Pass.
“I’d rather leave it in the past where it belongs.” He sipped from his glass before continuing. “I’ve no interest in visiting those memories. Not when I have all this.” He swept his hand through the air to indicate the room and all it symbolized.
“I was only a kid when they all left. They were too, for that matter. But I remember hearing my mother cry at night. I hope we never have a war like that again.”
“Agreed.” He looked down at his lap, seeming to drift away.
“How’s business?” I asked, hoping to distract him with whatever dark thoughts had come to him.
His gaze drifted toward Flynn. A muscle in his cheek flexed. “Business is fine. Good.”
“Phillip? Is there something worrying you?” I kept my voice low.
He kept his eyes on Flynn and spoke so quietly I had to lean closer to hear. “He flies too close to the sun.”
“What does that mean?”
He turned back to me, speaking at the same low volume as before. “There are aspects of the business I don’t know about. He keeps it that way so that I don’t have to lie about anything to Jo.”
“What’s he doing?”