said and Idalie laughed, a sound that made Edward think about doing things other than cooking.
"Then it's settled. Make yourself useful, Edward and light the oven, while Penny and I clean off this counter.
"It's gas," Edward said, and he lit the stove with a long safety match.
"Oh, my," Idalie said, wiping half the flour on the counter into the trash bin with a damp kitchen towel. "I've heard about them but never cooked on one." She finished wiping things down, bustling back and forth and within minutes the counter was clean, the flour and sugar put away, and she handed him a knife and told him to cut the pineapple.
He held the knife in the air and stared down at the fruit.
Penny giggled. "Cut off the top."
So Edward followed his four-year old niece's instructions, step by step, until there were precise pineapple slices, on a platter next to sweet orange segments, that Penny kept sneaking. What kind of an uncle was he. He forgot to feed the child. He could smell the ham and so Ed asked Baxter to set the table in the breakfast room, a smaller, less formal arrangement where he would eat his meals with Penny most days.
Soon dinner was over and Edward thanked, Idalie, then poured her another glass of Bordeaux and they went into the large family parlor, where a fire roared in the huge marble fireplace and a box of puzzles and games was laid out on a table near the fire. This was his life now, he thought, feeling a peace, a comfort he hadn't felt in years. Ed had dated women, had almost married once, but in recent years, there was no connection to anyone he'd met, not until now. And this was much more than a connection. He watched at her as she walked over to the grand piano that took up one corner of the room, sipped her wine and ran her hand along the keys.
He was in love with Idalie Everdeane.
"What a lovely instrument," she said.
"Do you play?"
"My old piano instructor from would say no," she said laughing.
"Here." Edward pulled out the bench. "Sit. Play."
In only a few minutes the sounds coming from the piano were heavenly. She moved from one piece of music to another, seemingly lost as she played.
"Your piano instructor was an idiot," Ed said. Penny was slowing down and he picked her up and moved over to the piano. "Play some Christmas music." And she did, and they sang, their voices as well matched as his feelings for her. Penny was sound asleep on his shoulder as the last notes of Silent Night rang through the room.
Idalie looked up at him from the piano and he knew as sure as he breathed that this was the woman he wanted to marry. It all happened so quickly he would have denied it was possible a couple of months ago, before he had met Idalie Everdeane. Before fate had brought them together more than once, as if angels overhead were directing their lives.
He heard the front door and turned. Baxter and Miss Clement stood in the entry. "I'll take her up," Miss Clement said.
"I should go," Idalie said and she stood.
"Baxter, have the carriage bought around, please. I'll take you home," Ed told her.
"I--"
"No argument. I'm taking you home."
They packed up her ham and she insisted he keep the leftover pineapple and oranges. He made a mental note to send her a fruit basket tomorrow. He would pick it out himself. And maybe some carnations, if he could find carnations. But this was New York. And chocolate. He wanted to give her everything. He wanted to give her his heart, his life, everything he had.
At her house he helped her down from the carriage, walked with her up the stairs and took the key from her hand and unlocked the door. She walked in the entry and turned on the light. He turned it off and closed the door.
"Edward..."
He took her in arms and kissed her softly, tasted her pink lips, the Bordeaux and a little of the oranges. While he was kissing her he took off their gloves, tossed them on the floor, removed her hat and threaded his hands with hers, backing her against the wall and exploring the sweetness of her mouth with his tongue. His hands roamed her body, soft in all the places he wanted, to touch, to taste. "Idalie," he whispered and her coat fell away.
She said his name on a