Now, they had other things to worry about. "We should decide on a timeframe, outline the steps we need to take to grow our angel's trumpet. Starting, of course, with building a greenhouse."
Lord Winters nodded. "Right, I agree."
"It will need to be big enough to house the plants, but not so enormous that we can't fill the space. I'd like to draw up the plans today."
And so, on they went, and the afternoon sped by surprisingly fast.
Chapter 15
Elmore Winters
The moment that Mr. Washam left, Elmore felt the change in temperature of the room. It was as if it had dropped several degrees all at once, leaving him chilled.
It wasn't real, of course; it was the way Aurora looked at him that was so cold. Eyes narrowed, lips pursed, it was clear that she wasn't happy with the arrangement.
Elmore felt a burst of indignation; it wasn'thisfault that Mr. Washam had left, nor was it his fault that Aurora didn't like him. He had been nothing but nice since the day they met.
Yet when Aurora turned her attentions to the greenhouse, Elmore made an effort to cast his thoughts aside. All this meant was that he had to try harder to get Aurora to like him, and he wasn't the kind of man to turn away from a challenge.
She had been sketching up images of the greenhouse for an hour or so now, head bent over the notebook in an amateur way. Like that, Aurora would get a stiff neck and aching hands, but Elmore knew better than to correct a woman who was concentrating.
Mother had been the same, before she passed. She could have been doing something entirely wrong, but wouldn't take criticism until she was already finished.Never interrupt a busy woman,she would always say,even if you don't approve of what she's doing.
Elmore was no master artist himself, anyway. It was another hobby that Father had detested, and so he only practiced when he was alone. He hid his notebooks under his bed, in a little box that he pretended was for letters. Not that he ever received any as a little boy, but Father had never paid much attention to that anyway.
He wondered what Aurora's childhood was like, as he looked out across the Washam’s beautiful garden. She and Mr. Washam were close, even if he was always busy. She didn't dislike all men, then, because she loved her father deeply.
Which brought one nagging question to mind.
"Why don't you like me?"
Aurora blinked at him from across the study. She had paused mid-way through dipping into the ink pot, her hand now hovering above the desk.
"I'm sorry?" Disbelief tinted her tone.
Under her steady gaze —glareeven — Elmore shivered. It needed to be asked, though, and he refused to back down.
"Since we've met, you've been cold to me. Earlier, you caused a fuss about being alone with me; and don't say that's because it'simproper.We're colleagues, working together on something important." He was trying to stay calm, truly, but Elmore heard his voice hitch in frustration.
Why didn’t she try to see his side?
Aurora's lip curled, but for a long moment she said nothing. Slowly, she set down her quill and clasped her hands together, regarding him silently.
Was she simply thinking, or was his question truly so ridiculous that she didn't want to honor him with a reply? Of course, had it been Elmore, he might have been offended at such an accusation...had it not been so obviously true.
Finally, Aurora sighed. "You underestimated me, that day in the garden," she confessed, eyes averted. "And youkeepon doing it, despite the fact that I've lived with a botanist all my life and learned from the best. I know a lot more than you think, Lord Winters. More than that, it isn't useless knowledge because I know how to apply it. Yet because I'm a woman, you assumed that I knew nothing about my own garden." Even though Aurora didn’t raise her voice, her eye twitched with annoyance.
Elmore winced as if he'd been hit. Truly, it felt like he had been, pulse quickening in his veins. The urge to defend himself rose, as did a brief flicker of anger that turned his face pink.
"I did no such thing," he argued, "when we met, I was only excited to see such a wonderful garden. Not many people have such an array of unusual plants, nor do they know the medicinal uses."
Aurora's lips pursed even tighter, and for all the world she looked like a woman ready to snap. Yet she didn't lose her temper or even raise her voice. When she spoke, she was deadly calm.
"You spoke to me as if I were a child needing educated, instead of as a fellow adult."
"How was I to know that you were Mr. Washam's daughter?"
She stiffened, and Elmore immediately knew that he had said something wrong.Extremelywrong.