The Last Waltz

Chapter 14

When Poppy returned to the castle later that day, the atmosphere was somber. The caterers greeted her with smiles but didn't say a word as they busily chopped and stirred. Poppy dropped her supplies off in her studio and moved quickly through the quiet house to her room. She felt like she was walking through a minefield.

When she reached her room, she closed her door behind her softly and let out the breath she didn't know she was holding. Mary and Peter should be back from school, and she wondered where they were hiding.

Isaac hadn't told her what time dinner was, so she would have to wing it. They usually ate about seven in the evenings, but she wasn't sure since they were eating in the dining room. She walked over to her wardrobe and pawed through it, looking for something demure and sophisticated. Eventually, she chose a dark green wrap dress and black ballet flats and laid them on the bed as she moved to the bathroom and started the shower. She wouldn't have time to wash and dry her hair, so she decided it would be better in an updo.

Poppy had to admit that she was nervous about the evening, and inevitably, when she got nervous, she said or did something she shouldn't. She wished she had some of her family around her for support.

When she finished her shower, she toweled off, wrapped herself in her pretty black silk robe, and started on her hair. She piled it on her head, leaving some curling tendrils framing her face. When she was satisfied with her appearance, she left the bathroom and almost screamed when she saw Isaac sitting in one of the chairs in front of the fireplace.

"Jeez! You scared me!" She placed her hand on her chest and leaned against the bathroom door jamb.

"I knocked, but there was no answer, so I thought I would come in and wait for you rather than hover outside the door. We are married, after all."

"Yes," Poppy agreed, "hovering would look odd. You're lucky I wasn't walking around naked."

Isaac took in her black silk-covered body and grunted, which could have meant anything.

"What did you need?" she asked as she sat at her dressing table, squeezed some lotion into her hands, and started to rub it on her arms.

"I'll have to sleep in here this evening. You were right," he admitted.

Poppy stopped what she was doing and looked at him. "Say that again. I have a feeling that it is something that I will rarely hear." Poppy meant it as a joke, but he took her seriously as he frowned.

"I don't have a problem admitting when I'm wrong," he sounded defensive.

"I doubt it happens very often, that's all," Poppy soothed his hurt pride as she squeezed more of her favorite lotion onto her hands and started to slather it into her legs without thinking. She looked up at Isaac's continued silence and caught him watching her movements. She couldn't help the blush that stole across her cheeks as she realized how much skin she was showing. Although he didn't seem bothered it at all, he seemed to be zoned out.

Poppy rubbed the excess lotion onto her hand, reached for her rings, and put them back on her finger.

"Those are my rings," he said almost to himself.

"Yes, I'm taking good care of them," she reassured him with a frown, thinking it was an odd thing to say. "What changed your mind about sleeping in here this evening?"

"This is the best room in the house, and it used to be mine. It would be noticed if I slept somewhere else, and we will have to share a room sooner or later, so we might as well get it out of the way and come up with a system."

"You can come up with whatever system you like, but I'm sleeping in the bed," Poppy informed him drily.

He smiled as he lay his head back on the chair and watched her reach for her cosmetics. Poppy saw it and felt a little thrill that she had finally made him smile.