Read Online Granny Dan by Danielle Steel - Free Book Online Page B

got up to leave. She looked tired again, and he had to get home. He couldn't avoid it forever. “I'll see you tomorrow,” he promised her when he left, and she listened to his sled disappear into the darkness.
    She was thinking about the things he had said about his wife, and the fact that he hadn't looked happy when he said them. He seemed to be trapped in a difficult situation, and she couldn't help wondering if there was anything he could do to improve it. Perhaps insist that his wife learn Russian, or travel back to England with her from time to time. It shocked her that she didn't seem to want to share his alliance with the Imperial family. It was hard to understand his wife's reactions. And then she found herself wondering if he was being unnecessarily gloomy about it. Maybe he was just tired, she thought to herself, as she lay in bed, thinking about him. The war was depressing everyone these days. Perhaps his comments about his wife were born of that, and other worries he hadn't mentioned.
    It never occurred to her for an instant that he might want more from her, or have an interest in her other than as her doctor. He was married, after all, and he had a family. And even if he had some complaints about his wife, surely it wasn't as bad as it sounded. To Danina, looking at the world through the tiniest of telescopes, from her small world at the ballet, it all seemed very simple to her, and marriage was sacred. She was sure he was happier with Marie than he appeared or admitted.
    For the next two weeks, he never mentioned his wife again when he came to visit her. She was able to dine at the table now, and on a sunny afternoon in January, he took her for a short walk in her garden. The air felt invigorating, and she was laughing with him, and teasing him about the fact that he took life so seriously. He had lent her volumes of poetry by then, and she had already read four of his favorite novels. And that afternoon when Alexei came to tea, Nikolai stayed and joined them. They played cards afterward, and Alexei won, much to his utter delight, and he squealed with glee when Danina accused him of cheating.
    “I did not!” he said staunchly. “You played very badly, Danina.” He said it matter-of-factly and she pretended to look outraged.
    “How dare you! I played brilliantly. I'm convinced that you cheated.” Nikolai was enjoying watching them, and the good spirits between them.
    “I did not cheat, and if you accuse me of it, when I'm Czar, I will remember it and have you beheaded.”
    “I don't think anyone does that anymore.” Danina turned to Nikolai. “Do they?”
    “If I want to, I will,” Alexei announced, looking enchanted by the prospect. “And maybe I'll have your feet chopped off too, so you can't dance anymore, and your hands, so you can't play cards.”
    “I don't think I'll be able to do any of those things if you behead me, anyway. I think that ought to do it.” Danina was smiling as she said it.
    “Well, just in case, I'll chop off the rest.” The prospect, to him, was deliciously gory. And then, out of the blue, he looked at her with interest. “Can I come and watch you dance one day in St. Petersburg? When you go back, I mean. I'd really like that.”
    “So would I,” she said warmly.
    “But I don't want you to go back for a long time. So not too soon,” and then he remembered. “My mother said to ask you if you are well enough to come to dinner.” He turned to Nikolai then. “Is she?”
    “Maybe next week. It's a little soon still.” She had only been there for two weeks, and was still somewhat unsteady on her feet, and tired quickly.
    “I didn't bring anything to wear,” she lamented.
    “You can wear your nightgown,” he said practically. “I'm sure no one will notice.”
    “How embarrassing.” She laughed at the thought, but she really didn't have anything to wear for a dinner with the Imperial family.
    “I'm sure one of the girls could lend you something,” Alexei said