This wasn't Basil. It was Adolph in his youth.
"By the goddess," she gasped.
She wasn't sure if she could say that he was more handsome in the portrait than he was now. In place of his mature charm, there was a youthful recklessness and mischief.
His eyes were alight with wonder and his expression was much softer than it was now.
It reminded her a bit of when he would smile at her, but this was an Adolph that she would never meet, a young man who had no children or a wife.
She guessed it was painted before he'd gone off to fight the war. She wondered what Adolf had been like in his youth.
A knock sounded on her door, pulling her from her thoughts. She wasn't sure how long she'd been looking at the portrait, but she opened a drawer and placed it inside with as little noise as possible before telling the person to enter.
A maid came in with her head bowed low and a covered silver serving tray in hand. She curtsied.
"Good Morning, Miss. I've brought you breakfast."
