Chapter 410: To let go [6]

"I don’t know how you do it. After everything she did to you, I wouldn’t have pushed for Iris to speak to her now. I did a bit of asking around," Olivia explained, revealing how she knew.

"It’s expected since it is now known what my uncle did to my father. I won’t ever come to like Agatha, but I won’t stop Iris from speaking to her mother. She needs that interaction, and despite how awful Agatha was to me, she was good to Iris," said Eloise.

"You two truly are close. I suppose I will have to prepare myself to one day sit with her mother again. I only hope that she will take my advice not to cause trouble for Iris. She is coming," Olivia said, trying to get a good look at Iris’s expression.

Iris entered the shop and forced a smile. "It all went well. You don’t have to worry about her approaching us so soon. I should go and have the dress adjusted. It’s falling from my shoulders."

"Iris," Eloise said, standing up. "Are you truly well?"

"I am," Iris said, relaxing her shoulders as some of the tension eased from her body. "It went better than I thought it would. Our relationship isn’t fixed, but it is on the right track. I’ve told her to return to our old home to fix it. Once she has completed it, I will return to sit with her."

"Iris, it was meant to be a surprise, as Damien told me, but Zayne has been fixing your home. Your sit-down might be sooner than you think," said Eloise.

Iris’s eyes widened in surprise. "He has? I only knew of the debts."

Iris had more questions, but she felt embarrassed speaking of what Zayne had done before Olivia when she hadn’t done anything in return.

"We should leave this talk to another time. I don’t want to spoil the day with it. It is not sitting well, but what do you think of the dress?" Iris said, trying to lighten the mood.

Eloise sat back down and answered, "It is lovely, but it will need to be altered so it doesn’t fall off your shoulders so easily."

"I agree. We can keep this one for the dinner I am planning. Have them note where it feels loose and have them put in a pin. I will have it back to you within a day," said Olivia.

"Thank you," Iris responded and turned to leave, but she didn’t make it far. She faced Olivia. "I want to apologise for my mother troubling you. She can be a bit much at times."

"Your mother didn’t trouble me since I welcomed her inside the carriage for us to speak. I could have avoided her if I wanted to. She might not be my cup of tea, but I don’t hold any hatred towards her. I don’t know her that well," Olivia answered.

"I see. Still, I apologise," Iris said, the words feeling necessary despite Olivia’s reassurance.

"Don’t apologise for the actions of others, Iris. It is a habit that I dislike. As you said, we shouldn’t spoil the day speaking of this, so you should go try on dresses. I will forget that this all happened," Olivia promised.

Iris took a deep breath, feeling a little lighter. "Thank you."

Olivia watched as Iris walked away. "I wonder when she will stop worrying about upsetting me. I have been trying my best to help her and be close so she wouldn’t feel that way."

"It cannot be helped since you are Zayne’s mother, and every wife wants to be good in their in-laws’ eyes. Eventually, it will stop. Rather than worry, you should enjoy that she wants to impress you. She will want to be at your side," Eloise said.

"That is a good way to see it. Zayne doesn’t come to me often and share my interests. My only answer is to spend more time with her so she relaxes. You are very helpful," Olivia said, reaching over to tap Eloise’s hand. "Now, go try your dress."

Eloise smiled and stood up to do as she was told. "I hope you will be getting a dress as well."

"I did not close the shop and travel all this way not to get one. There is a dress which I have been eyeing, but I am waiting for you and Iris to get what you need, so hurry along," Olivia urged Eloise.

Eloise didn’t linger much longer and left to find herself a dress.

Olivia was left watching Eloise and sat thinking over her suspicions as to why there were so many guards and why Eloise couldn’t go out.

Olivia smiled as she looked down at her lap, warmth settling in her chest. "The children are growing up."

The outing continued to be a quiet one, with no one approaching to disturb the trio.

There were looks and chatter, but they learned to ignore them.

Hours after the tiring outing, Eloise returned to the estate with Iris. She went in search of Damien to inform him of her return.

Eloise went up to Damien’s study after Hannah informed her of his whereabouts.

"See, it wasn’t so bad to have an outing today," Eloise said as she approached Damien’s table.

Damien stood up to offer his chair to Eloise. "You look tired."

"Trying on many dresses is always tiring, and then we went for a little walk. It was a long-overdue outing since my last one did not go so well. I had a lot of fun with Olivia and Iris," Eloise said as she walked to the chair to sit down. "Iris has gone to rest."

"Were there any disturbances?" Damien inquired, sitting down on the edge of the table.

Eloise smiled and knew that Damien saw right through her, so she couldn’t lie. "Agatha did show herself, but she only spoke to Iris. She had approached Olivia before, which Iris didn’t know. They are in a good place."

"I knew that as soon as you stepped outside the estate, someone would approach you."

"But she didn’t approach me. She wanted to speak to Iris, and they spoke outside while I remained inside the shop. They are going to slowly work on their relationship and, no, I will not be near Agatha," Eloise promised.

"I know that you won’t," Damien said, lifting Eloise’s hand to kiss it. "She would be a fool to turn to you. I hope you know that I trust you. I am concerned about the people around us."

"Just as I am concerned about the people around you. That is why, when you leave the estate, you should take four guards with you," Eloise proposed as a joke.

"Very well," Damien agreed without hesitation.