The Duke Hadn’t Laughed Since the War

listened—she had observed it—not as a performance of patience, but as a genuine mode of thought, taking in each element and placing it against what he already held. His hands were flat on the desk on either side of the ledger.

When she finished, he was quiet for what she estimated at 20 seconds. “Pell,” he said. “Pell at the center.”

“She agreed.”

“There continue reading …