She should have been angry, but she was only surprised and disappointed. She had almost convinced herself that Aidan would care about Ian’s feelings, but this was exactly the sort of behavior she had predicted to Tom. Perhaps it was for the best. If Forster couldn’t play with a child for an hour or so when he had himself suggested it, then she had little to fear from him as an interfering guardian. But she was unexpectedly sorry to have been right. Ian, however, would be hurt and out of sorts. Though his father’s illness and death had made Ian mature, he was still young. She would need to soothe his disappointment. Perhaps a visit with Nate or a trip to the Royal Menagerie as a treat. Surely Dodsley would know where a boy might like to go in London. She dusted her hands on her gardening apron, cursed under her breath, and went to comfort her son. As she approached the nursery, she heard Ian’s laugh, boisterous and excited. Thank God, she thought, for Luca. But in the nursery she found Forster, sitting on the floor, surrounded by soldiers, and Ian, animated with delight.
