Missing Lily (Tales of Dalthia) by Annette K. Larsen Read Free Book Online Page A

clasped at his back and his head down.

Chapter 4
    I THOUGHT R HYS would meet me in the dining room. Instead, he was outside my door, offering his arm. I took it and we started off in silence. We were halfway down the stairs when I could no longer keep myself from asking, “What other worries do you have?” I watched his face, wondering if he would consider the question rude or invasive.  
    He looked at me, blinking, as though startled by my question. “I’m sorry?”
    “You said you had a great many worries. What are they?”
    He opened his mouth to answer, but ended up smiling and looking away.  
    “What?” I asked.
    “I just haven’t gotten used to your very direct approach.” He put his hand over mine where it rested on his arm. “It still catches me off guard.” We entered the dining room, and I was surprised that he let go of my arm instead of guiding me to my chair. I was even more surprised when he picked up the place setting that would have been mine and moved it to the other end of the table so that is was right beside his. The footman standing at the door moved the rest of the setting for him. “Thank you,” he said as he came to take my arm again and led me to my place. He had done it so casually, as if it were the most natural thing in the world to move my seat closer to his. “And as for my worries,” he continued as the footman pushed my chair in. “They are of varying magnitude and import. Some are easier to explain than others.”
    “Tell me about the ones that are hard to explain.”
    He once again opened his mouth to speak and ended up at a loss, staring at me with a great deal of curiosity romping across his face.  
    He didn’t even look away when Rosamond and Juliann entered, just continued to stare as they set our meal before us. “Thank you, Rosamond, Juliann.”  
    The women curtsied out of the room.  
    Even after they were gone, his silent scrutiny continued.  
    “What?” I asked.  
    “Anybody else would have asked me about the ones that were easy to explain.”
    “But those aren’t the ones that worry you the most.”
    His eyebrows shot up. “How do you know that?”
    I shrugged lightly. “I would imagine that if something is hard to explain, it would be even more difficult to remedy.”
    He chuckled softly. “How true that is,” he agreed while silently regarding his plate.
    “What is your biggest worry?”  
    Anxiety crossed his face, but he controlled it in an instant, saying lightly, “At the moment, my biggest worry is getting a certain maiden home to her family.”
    I smiled through my disappointment. I had been hoping that he would confide in me. But either he didn’t trust me enough or he simply didn’t wish to speak of it. So I focused on my food, wondering why I felt so much disappointment over his not confiding in me more.  
    The silence was not uncomfortable, and I was startled when Rhys picked up the conversation. “I worry I am failing.”
    I looked up, realizing he was answering my question. It took me a moment to respond. “Failing at what?”
    “My duty.”
    “What makes you think you could fail?”
    He leaned back in his chair, caught up in his thoughts. “Ever since my parents died, I’ve just felt...young. Too young. Certainly too young to have the authority that comes with my title.” He looked out the window, talking more to himself than to me. “I don’t know enough, or have enough experience.” He paused, but I kept quiet, hoping he would continue. “Rosamond is so determined to have people address me with respect, but I don’t know that I deserve it.” He turned to look at me with a self-deprecating smile.
    “Might I make an observation?”
    “Please do.”
    “I have spent a great deal of time observing the way nobility act and interact. The way someone is addressed usually has little correlation to the respect given them.” He silently absorbed this and I went on. “I’ve seen the way you interact with your staff as