Page 19 of How the Duke Saved Christmas

Meanwhile, Michael happily crossed his arms over his chest and stepped back out of the fray.

Clara frowned. The blasted man was no help at all.

Margaret squeezed her hand. “Cook said we could make biscuits, candied orange peels, peppermints—”

Benjamin interjected, “Gingerbread men!”

Aaron pushed his glasses into place on his nose. “Mrs. Hansen said we could decorate the house, too.”

“And help with the Christmas boxes for all the servants and tenants.”

“And help put together the wood for the bonfire!”

“Do we have to go to church on Christmas Eve?”

“Andon Christmas Day?” Susannah scowled distastefully at the thought. “Mama always makes us go to both.”

Clara cast a pleading look at Michael for help, but he only turned toward the windows and looked out across the snowy expanse stretching to the horizon.

“What do you do with your family for the holidays?”

Clara’s heart skipped at Aaron’s innocent question. The children all stopped talking to actually listen to her answer. But she had none.I do nothing anymore…

Yet four sets of big eyes stared at her expectantly, as if waiting for her to bestow some bit of vital life wisdom upon them.

“I…that is, my brother Anthony and I…would always go to our country house in Scotland for the holidays.”There.That was done. She smiled in relief.

But the children only continued to wait. Good heavens, were they holding their breaths?

“We would decorate the house with evergreen.”

They didn’t move.

“We would make long strings of paper garland and hang them from the chandeliers so—”

They all began to chatter excitedly, all at the same time. All Clara could make out was that they thought it was a grand idea to do the same here.

“You’ll help us make some?” Aaron pressed.

“Oh please do!” Margaret insisted.

Little Susannah asked shyly, “Am I old enough to help?” She pouted. “I’m never old enough for the fun things.”

“Yes, you’re old enough. But—” She sent another look at Michael, who had become fixated with the view and didn’t notice that she was being ganged up upon. Or he noticed and was ignoring it. “But I don’t think I’ll be able to help.”

All four faces became puzzled.

“Why not?” Benjamin blurted out.

The two girls nodded to second that question. So did the doll in Susannah’s arms.

Michael refused to look at her, and she knew then that he’d not asked any footman to take her to her room. Blasted man.

“There’s a big table in the dining room with room for all of us,” Margaret suggested. “Isn’t there, Uncle Michael?”

“Hmm?” He turned away from the window. “Oh—the dining room table. Yes. You can use it.”

“We can all sit at the table,” Margaret explained, “and you can show us how to make the garlands.”