There was much talking and laughing as they all spilled through the door in an effort to get out of the storm as quickly as possible. Anne Marie couldn’t help laughing, looking at her companions with dripping hair and drooping hats. She caught James staring at her with a look of admiration. She hoped it was admiration. He was shaking his hands, splattering tiny drops of water all around him.
“James!” His sister, Katrina, cried out, moving away from him. “Stop that! You are getting water everywhere!”
James chuckled and stopped flinging his hands from left to right. “Sorry about that, little sister. But it doesn’t make too much difference. You are just as soaked through as I am.”
“More, I would say.” Katrina huffed and put her nose up in the air, grabbing her skirts and lifting them to take the stairs up to her room two at a time.
“Be careful, Katrina!” Her mother called after her. “You might trip.”
“I’m not going to trip, mother!” Katrina called over her shoulder without turning back or slowing down.
Judith chuckled and shook her head. “That girl. She can be very reckless at times.” She looked at Anne Marie and Clara. “Go ahead and get dry, girls. Come back down when you are ready and we will spend the evening in the drawing room. We have cards and I will prepare sweet cakes and drinks.”
“Thank you, Mrs Ellingham. It is appreciated.”
Judith nodded. “Something warm in your tum will get you right, won’t it?”
“Most definitely.” Anne Marie replied. She and Clara went to the stairs. They went up in a much more ladylike fashion than Katrina before them. Halfway up the stairs, Anne Marie stopped.
“Oh! I will be right back, Clara. Go on up and I’ll be right there.”
Clara stopped and stared at her for a moment with curious eyes. “Yes, my lady.” She turned away slowly and went up while Anne Marie went back down.
The lobby was empty of people. Each had gone to change into dry clothes. Anne Marie could already smell the tea brewing in the kitchen. The corners of her lips lifted in admiration as she realized Judith had put the tea on before she’d gone to change her own clothes.
She went to the front desk counter, placed her purse on top and opened it, hoping the letter inside had not gotten wet through the soft fabric. She breathed a sigh of relief when she saw that it had remained dry. She took it out and placed it on the desk. She leaned over the counter and looked for the wax letter sealer. She spotted it and leaned all the way over the counter to grab it.
“May I help you?”
Anne Marie gasped in surprise and turned quickly to see a still dripping wet James standing behind her. Her heart pounded in her chest.
“I am so sorry, my lady. I did not mean to startle you. I saw that you had come right back down the stairs and thought I might be able to get something for you.”
Anne Marie stared at him for longer than she intended, feeling as though her heart might just jump right out of her chest. She was sure he could hear it beating. She certainly could. She regained her composure and turned to snatch the letter and hold it against her chest. “I… I was only looking for the wax sealer. I want to seal this letter and send it with the post tomorrow.”
The smile on James’ lips made Anne Marie feel like he could read the letter whether it was folded closed or not. Surely he couldn’t. It wasn’t possible. He slid his eyes to the letter and she clutched it closer to her chest.
“Lady Wiltshire, I will help you seal it. Here…” He went around the counter, picked up the sealer and held his hand out for the letter.
She was still staring at him, feeling like a fool. She realized he was waiting for the letter. His eyes were patient and he didn’t take his hand back until she finally – hesitantly – handed the letter over to him. She watched closely to see if he was trying to read the writing on the inside but he didn’t take his eyes off her until he looked down to stamp the wax onto the folded paper. He held it up, shaking it back and forth a few times, gazing at her.
“My hands are dry, my lady. You needn’t worry. It will go right here.” He turned and slid the letter into a box behind him that said “OUT”. He turned back to her. “Now it will go out tomorrow. Is that all you needed?”
Anne Marie nodded. Her tongue felt thick in her mouth. She wanted to act casual but he was so close to her letter, all she could think of was that he needed to move away from it. She waited for him to come back around the corner before she found her words.
“Thank you for your help, sir. I do appreciate it.”
“You are very welcome. If there is anything you need… anything at all, please let me know.”
“I am going to get into something dry. I suggest you do the same.” She managed a weak smile. “You are very wet, sir.”
He looked down at himself and laughed. “I am, aren’t I? I will see you when you come back down then?”
“Yes. Yes.” She felt foolish, repeating herself that way. She had to get away from him before she made herself look even sillier. She dropped her head and nearly ran to the stairs.
Behind her, James watched her, admiring the way she moved. He wanted to talk to her more, get to know her more. Shaking his head, he went to his room to change into dry clothes. In his room, he used a towel to dry his body before he put on a clean white shirt and a fresh pair of trousers. His house shoes were next to the door. Before he went back out to the lobby, he stopped to brush his blond hair and stare at himself in the mirror for a few seconds. His blue eyes were darker today than usual.
He turned away, deciding he needed a glass of wine as soon as possible. He felt cold inside, having been soaked through from the rainstorm. He went to the kitchen to help his mother, passing through the lobby and nodding to Earl Kipling, who was already there. The older man was sitting on a chair, reading a book. He looked up as James passed through and lifted his head in response to the nod.
“Have you a cup of tea, my lord?” James asked.
“I chose a glass of wine, thank you.” The Earl responded. “It warms my inner parts much better than tea or coffee, even though it is not hot.”
“My thoughts exactly, my lord. That is where I am headed as well.”
The Earl turned his eyes to the bar on the other side of the room. “The bar is over there. You are going in the wrong direction.”
James laughed. “I intend to help my mother with the tea and sweet cakes, if she needs me. If not, I will be back to help myself to a drink.”
The Earl lifted his drink in salute. James continued into the kitchen.
Judith was standing in front of a stone fireplace, bent over at the waist. She seemed to be warming her hands in front of the blazing flames.
“Do you need help, mother?” he asked.
Judith stood up abruptly, turning to look at him with wide eyes, one hand on her heaving chest.
“Oh! You frightened me, James. You walk so quietly.”
James shook his head, snorting softly. “That’s the second time I’ve scared a woman just coming in the room. I will need to put a bell around my neck from now on.”
His mother laughed and walked to him to put her hands on his cheeks. He looked down into her eyes, which were so much like his and felt his love for her warming his heart.
“I’m sorry, Mother,” he said.
She shook her head. “Don’t worry about it, my son. If anyone is going to scare me, I am glad it is you. If you would like to take this tray of sweet cakes out to the table in the drawing room, I would be grateful.”
“I will do that for you.” He nodded. He bent to pick up the tray and turned back to the door. “I hope you are coming to join us, Mother. We will play chess. You can beat us all.”
Judith laughed. “I haven’t played chess in some time, son.”
“No one will ever win against you, mother. You have a mind like no one I’ve ever seen.” He could tell his compliments meant a lot to her. Her smile was warm and loving.
“You are a sweet boy.” She rea
ched up and patted him on the cheek. “Thank you, James.”
He leaned over and gave her a kiss on the cheek before leaving the kitchen to take the sweet cakes to the drawing room. When he got there, most of the people in the house were already there. Melanie Saville was pushing logs around in the fireplace, causing the fire to leap up.
Anne Marie and Clara were sitting on a chaise lounge, chatting quietly to each other. The Earl had come in from the lobby. James watched him as he set the sweet cakes down on the table. He was seated in one of the cushioned chairs, still holding the book in one hand propped on his legs, and his half-filled wine glass clutched between the fingers of his other hand.
Without saying anything, James walked to the tall, mahogany armoire behind the Earl. He unlatched the doors and opened it, looking up to the set of board games sitting on the very top shelf. He would have to get the chess board down because his mother was too short to reach it. He took down the playing cards at the same time.
“Do you think the Cornwall sons will come to visit, my lord?” Clara asked after he turned around and headed back to them. He gave her an amused look before answering.
“Would you like to see one of them, Miss Clara?”
Clara flushed a bit. James noticed Anne Marie was looking a bit miserable. He wanted to walk right over to her, take her up in his arms and hold her until her misery went away. She wasn’t looking up at him. Her head was down as though she was ashamed.
“No, my lord. I was simply inquiring for my lady.”
James managed to keep himself from gasping in frustration. That was not what he wanted to hear. The ball must have created a bond between the Viscountess and one of the Cornwall's. He wondered which one. The thoughts whirred through his mind as he went through each of his friends at whirlwind speed. Tyler – surely the eldest Cornwall was too old for Anne Marie. Nicholas, still older but by five years less and much closer to Anne Marie’s age. Perhaps it was him. Handsome, he conceded privately. Steven – James dismissed the third Cornwall son. Steven had a love interest already, the daughter of an Earl, Lady Willhemena Drummond. James hadn’t seen Steven dancing with Anne Marie. It couldn’t be the youngest. He was too young for the woman.
James focused on Nicholas. His jealousy would likely show but he would live with it. If any of the Lords in Bainbridge won the heart of the lovely Anne Marie, he would rather it be Nicholas than anyone else. Other than himself.
“I believe it will depend on the weather. If it clears at least a little, they may come over. I am not sure. Sundays are a day when families spend more time together, don’t you agree?”
“I do.” Anne Marie said, lifting her head. He tried to catch her eyes, to see if she would look at him like she had before. However, she only glanced at him and then looked down.
He turned to look at the Earl, jealous that she might be looking at him instead. However, the Earl was looking down at his book again, paying no attention to any of them. Melanie had sat down on the matching chair next to the Earl’s. She was leaning forward, taking sweet cakes and piling them in the middle of her hand.
He realized with amusement that must have been what caught Anne Marie’s eye. He looked back at the Viscountess and noticed the corners of her lips lifting in a desperately hidden grin. Noticing it made it extremely difficult for James not to grin himself. He pressed his lips together and bit on them lightly to keep it away.
“Cakes!” The sound of Katrina’s excited voice behind him made James jump in the air.
Anne Marie laughed, much to his delight. He looked at her and laughed too. Not only at the private joke between the two of them but also at the look of confusion on Clara’s and Katrina’s faces.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
THE FLOWER SHOPPE SITUATION
THE FLOWER SHOPPE SITUATION
After Judith had thoroughly trounced the Earl, her son, and Clara in the game of Chess, they all sat around drinking wine and tea, wondering if the rain would ever stop. The drawing room was set off from the lobby and they all looked up when they heard the front door slam open.
Each one stood up and rushed toward the door, which was then thrown open by the youngest of the Duke’s sons, Cameron Cornwall. “James!” He was excited about something.
“James, you’ve… got to come see this. You have… to come now.”
“What is it, Cameron?”
Cameron’s breath was coming and going quickly. He leaned over and put his hands on his knees to gulp in a few deep breaths before he answered. He was completely out of breath and when he answered, it was obvious he was still trying to catch it.
“I… I was sent to fetch you. There’s… there’s been a situation. A situation at the… the flower shop… Lady… Huntington is devastated. You have to… you have to come and see.”
“What happened? What’s wrong with the flower shop?”
Even as he was speaking, James was moving past Cameron to go to his room and change back into clothes and shoes that were more fitting for the rainy day outside. He was dreading getting soaked through again so he made sure to wear the water-resistant jacket and hat and brought along a large umbrella.
Cameron had followed him to his room. His breathing was coming easier as the moments passed.
“It looks like someone put a crazed bull in there. It’s been destroyed.”
James looked at him in confusion. “The flower shop has been vandalized? That does not make sense. Who would want to do that? Why?”
Cameron shrugged. “Lady Huntington sent a messenger to my father after church. She’d just gone to check on the shop for a moment. She found it that way. Tyler is asking you to come.”
“Why would Tyler want me there?”
“He says you are observant, perhaps you will see something that no one else sees.”
James raised his eyebrows. “Really? How… odd. Are you not sure he just wants me there to help clean up the mess?”
Cameron laughed. “Well, you can think that if you like, James, but that’s not what he told me.”
James smiled. “All right. Let’s go.”
“We’re going with you.” Anne Marie and Clara had followed the men and were waiting in the hallway when James came out of his room.
“Why would you want to become involved in such a thing?” Cameron asked. “You should stay here and remain dry as long as you can. I do not think the rain is going to stop anytime soon.”
Anne Marie shook her head, throwing a heavy shawl around her shoulders and pulling a large green umbrella from a holder in the corner next to the front door. “We are coming, Master Cornwall. I want to help Lady Huntington clean her shop. I am certain she will want to get it back to the way it was before as quickly as possible.”
“Before we clean, we will need to look around for any clues, any reasons why this has happened.” James looked angry and confused. “Why would anyone want to destroy a flower shop?”
“That is the question, James,” Cameron nodded. “Definitely the question of the day.”
James opened the door and looked out at the pouring rain. He stepped out onto the porch, looking to the left and to the right. “How did you get here, Cameron?”
The young man stepped out behind him. “I ran.”
“You ran in the rain? Why did you not bring a coach or carriage?”
“I didn’t have time.”
James gave him a direct look. “You didn’t have time? Is it that important that I come to the flower shop?”
Cameron shrugged again. “I guess Tyler thinks so. Personally, I would have never even thought of you.” He gave James a wide smile.
“The situation is too dire to be joking, my lord.” Anne Marie was behind them, opening her umbrella. “We can either walk or we can get a coach. Will you men please make up your minds so we can go?”
James looked back at her. His eyes lifted and he looked over her shoulder at Earl Kipling when the older man came out. He had also put on his rain jacket and looked ready to go.
“W
e shall go by hackney.” He said. “I will go get it.”
He popped open his umbrella and walked to the side of the street. He lifted his hand and gestured to a coachman, who was standing in front of the hackney, scanning the street for a paying customer. The coachman climbed up into the driver’s seat and pulled on the reins. The hackney pulled up in front of the hotel and the people waiting on the porch filed in. Earl Kipling told the coachman where to go and closed the door.
They were at the flower shop within a few minutes. Anne Marie watched the rain falling, leaning forward to look up at the darkened sky. The raindrops were coming at a rapid pace and were fat with water. She watched them splatter against the ground, causing tiny splashes of smaller drops. The road was filling up fast. It had many potholes and was uneven.
The flower shop was surrounded by people under umbrellas, staring at the smashed glass window in the front. Anne Marie could see through into the building to where Tyler was consoling a distraught Eliza Huntington. He had one hand up on her shoulder and a concerned look on his face.
Earl Kipling stepped down from the hackney and opened his umbrella immediately. He held out his hand to Anne Marie, who took it and stepped down. Before they walked into the store, the Earl flipped a coin up to the coachman.
Clara came out after Anne Marie, opening up her own umbrella. James went out the other side of the hackney and directly into the building. The women and Earl Kipling waited for the hackney to move forward before crossing to the porch and going in the store.
Anne Marie went directly to Eliza and put her arms around her. “Oh, Lady Huntington, I’m so sorry this happened to your beautiful little shop. I want to help you clean. We want to help you. What can we do for you, my dear?”
Eliza lifted her face from her hands. Her eyes were swollen from the tears she’d been crying. Her hair was a disheveled mess from having fingers run through it over and over. “Oh, my lady. Thank you for coming. You did not have to. I would never ask you to clean up my mess. It would not be right.”
The Trouble With These Gentlemen (The BainBridge - Love & Challenges) (The Regency Romance Story) Page 9
