she accepted his offer of help. She didn’t want help. Especially from him, but she still felt a little unstable. And turning him down might only anger him further. Better to let him help her and soothe the tension between them. Fortunately, it wasn’t long before they walked back into his house. He took her directly to the kitchen, where he made her sit at the island.
Mrs. Applestock greeted them with her cheery smile, taking the basket and giving him back his hard hat. “Biscuits gone, are they?”
“Gone and greatly enjoyed,” Robin answered. He put the hat on a hook near the door. “But we have a problem.”
“Oh dear.” She knotted her hands in her apron. “Was there not enough jam?”
“Plenty of jam,” he said. “The problem is Theodora hasn’t eaten in days. She fainted on the way back.”
Theo shook her head. “It hasn’t been—”
“Oh my stars. You poor child. I’ll take care of that immediately.” Mrs. Applestock rushed to the wide, double-door refrigerator and started pulling things out, piling food in her arms and on the island behind her.
Robin took the seat next to Theodora. “I wouldn’t mind a sandwich myself.” He looked at Theo. “What do you think? Ham and cheese?”
Mrs. Applestock waved a long, crusty baguette in the air without missing a beat. “I have just the thing for that!”
Theo nodded, amused by all the fuss on her behalf. “I’m not picky. Ham and cheese would be perfect.” Her stomach growled in agreement.
“Excellent,” Mrs. Applestock said. “I’ll make you both a picnic for lunch.”
In what felt like mere minutes, Mrs. Applestock spread an array of food in front of them. Ham-and-cheese sandwiches made with the loaf she’d shown them. Red and green grapes. Deviled eggs. Three kinds of pickles—sour, sweet, and hot. Cucumber salad. Potato salad. Macaroni salad. Smoked salmon and cream cheese pinwheels with little sprigs of dill. Pita chips with fish dip. And lastly, a chopped salad of cold shrimp and vegetables with vinaigrette.
And then came the desserts. A platter of chocolate chip walnut cookies. Little cheesecakes each topped with a cherry. Half-sized iced lemon scones. Chocolate pots. White chocolate raspberry truffles. Rhubarb pie with a visibly flaky crust. All accompanied by a bowl of freshly whipped cream.
Theo had never seen so much food in one place. She was frozen by indecision and, despite her incredible hunger, just stared at it all, trying to decide what to eat first.
Robin didn’t have that problem. And when he saw that she had yet to put anything on her plate, he started helping her. “Here. Have a sandwich. That’s the main thing, right?”
She looked down at the serving he’d put on her plate of crusty baguette with ham and cheese and nodded. She didn’t need to be told twice. She picked it up and tucked in.
She ate the sandwich and kept eating. Everything was so delicious. And there for the taking.
Robin did the same, but she was aware of him watching her, too. Was she eating too much? That couldn’t be it. Every time she slowed down, he pushed her to try something new. Was he just curious about how much she could eat? He was hard to read.
Mrs. Applestock beamed. “Would you like something else? I could make some tuna salad. Or there might be some cold chicken left. Or some salmon mousse, maybe? Oh! Cheese and crackers?”
Theo’s mouth was full, so she just shook her head until she could swallow. “This is more than enough. I am overwhelmed with food. And it’s all so good. Thank you.” She glanced at Robin. “And thank you, Your Lordship.”
“Where is that girl?” Mrs. Baton’s voice rang out from the hall. “She should have been back by now. If she thinks she can—” Mrs. Baton walked in. As soon as she saw Robin, she smiled. Tight-lipped. But a smile all the same.
She glanced at Theo. “There you are, Theodora.” Her gaze flicked to the spread of food on the island, then to His Lordship, then back to Theo. Her smile left her face. “Miss Middlebright. Staff does not eat with His Lordship.”
Theo’s mouth was too full for her to respond, and Mrs. Baton kept on going so that Robin couldn’t even answer.
“I am so sorry, Your Highness.” Mrs. Baton bowed her head. “I promise this impropriety will not happen again.”
Robin seemed amused. “The only impropriety was that no one bothered to offer Miss Middlebright anything to eat upon her arrival at Gallow House. And as it happened, she hadn’t eaten