by Martha Keyes
Anne glanced up ahead at the large, gray stone church, and he noted how she swallowed and stiffened slightly. Was she thinking of her last wedding? Or rethinking this one?
Turning her head to him, she nodded with a smile.
He directed a significant look at her. "This is your last chance to withdraw, you know; to save yourself from a lifetime of me following you around like a puppy."
Raising her brows at him, she said, "Do you wish to withdraw?" Her expression was challenging, but there was a teasing gleam in her eyes that Tobias found himself staring at. Perhaps there was more fun in Anne than he had thought.
He smiled down at her, her eyes gazing back at him like pools of coffee without cream. "Not a chance," he said, putting out his arm to her. "Let us put the vicar to work."
4
Anne walked down the village lane near Hazelhurst at a slow gait, her eyes so focused on the homes that lined the street that only providence kept her from tripping and falling on the ruts of the road before her. The final home at the far end of the lane was overgrown with ivy, which covered the door almost entirely so that it was plain no one had entered in months. Broken shingles dotted the rooftop, and the remnants of some lay scattered in front of the house where they had shattered upon impact with the hard ground.
She stepped toward the house and tried to peek through the window where there was a small gap in the ivy. It was too dark within to make out the state of things, but what Anne could see made her grimace. It seemed to be in every bit the state of disrepair that the exterior was.
She frowned. Why there should not have been any attempt to clean up the place and install a tenant there was a question for Hazelhurst's steward Mr. Wallace, and yet Anne thought she could guess at the likely cause: Mr. Cosgrove seemed to be tight-fisted indeed, and if he saw the expense of righting things in one of the village homes as limiting the amount of resources he had for his personal comforts, he might well forgo it altogether.
But Mr. Cosgrove was no longer the master of Hazelhurst. Tobias was. Was Tobias aware of the needs on the estate? She did not want to overstep her bounds, but so far as she was aware, Tobias had yet to sit down and meet with Mr. Wallace.
Of course, he had yet to sit down to dinner with his wife, either, in the week since they had arrived at their new home.
Anne, who had never in all memory dined alone, had done so every single evening for the past seven days. And yet, somehow, she found herself smiling a bit when she entered the dining room each evening—no need to go to the drawing room first to await the other members of the party. She might miss looking up to her mother's sweet face, but the truth was that dinner by herself was a very relaxing affair, rather than the tense one she had been experiencing at Ingleburn in her father's unpredictable presence.
At Hazelhurst, the threat of yelling and displeasure—vocal or otherwise—was entirely absent, and it was liberating. With Tobias absent as much as he was, Anne hadn't the luxury of vacillating or hesitating about stepping into the mistress's shoes at Hazelhurst. She was the only one to direct things, and Tobias seemed not to care when she made adjustments to the processes there. The servants, too, who had initially looked upon her with wary stiffness, had relaxed in Anne's presence and were more than ready to be put to work for the good of the estate.
She stepped into the courtyard of Hazelhurst, raking her eyes over the exterior with a critical eye. It was beginning to feel like home. For her at least. Tobias spent enough time at his friend's nearby estate that, for him, the epithet might better apply there.
Carriage wheels rumbled down the lane toward her, and she turned, her eyebrows raising when she realized it was Tobias, driving his phaeton toward her with a jovial grin.
"Anne!" he said, leaving the horses and equipage with the groom, "out for a walk, are you?"
She nodded, thinking of the house in the village. It was the perfect moment to bring up the matter. "Yes," she said. "I thought I would take a turn about the village and was able to meet a few of the tenants there—the Corbyns and the Thompsons, I believe?"
He removed his gloves. "Ah, old Corbyn is still there, is he?" He shook his head and chuckled. "He shall outlive us all, I daresay."
Anne forced a laugh but couldn't suppress her confusion. Tobias didn't even know what families lived in the village? "I had noticed," she said, clearing her throat, "that one house is uninhabited—and in great need of attention. Do you know what the reason is for the vacancy?" She stepped in line with Tobias, who was walking to the front door.
"No," he said, "but then Wallace takes care of all that." He handed his hat and gloves to Spears. "The man must earn his wages, you know!" He winked at her and continued down the corridor.
Anne hesitated, biting her lip for a moment. He was right, of course, but surely Tobias wished to stay abreast of the issues the estate faced? "Yes," she said, following him, "but it seems that he is not taking care of it, and I only wondered if perhaps it might not be wise to sit down with the man sometime soon to go over the expenses and incomes of Hazelhurst and see where there might be any waste or opportunities for improved efficiency."
Tobias chuckled and stopped, looking at her with a tilt of the head. "I should only make things worse by meddling in the affairs of the estate. Wallace knows much better than I how to manage things. But if you are wishful to meet with him, by all means do so."
Anne blinked twice. "Oh. Well, I admit that I am very interested to better understand the state of affairs here, but I shouldn't wish to be too forward..."
Tobias waved a hand. "Not a bit of it."
Anne hardly knew how to respond. Of course, she was familiar with the attitude Tobias demonstrated—it was not so different from her father's approach, in many ways: so long as he lived in comfort, he had little time or energy to spare for the details of estate management. It had not been until William stepped into their father's shoes in managing affairs at Ashworth Place that it became clear just how muddled was the state of things there. William's guiding hand had saved the estate from the brink of ruin and was guiding it back into profitability, but it required that he and the steward confer together on a regular basis, evaluating the changes they were making and adapting them at need.
"Very well," Anne said. "I shall schedule a time to meet with him. If you change your mind and should wish to join us, please don’t hesitate to say something."
Tobias smiled. "Of course. And now," he said, tugging the nearest bell, "where to find a bit of food?"
Anne sighed and left Tobias to the footman who arrived to take orders from him.
5
“Yes, yes, Wallace,” Tobias said hastily, pulling the door open and glancing at the clock on the mantel. “It all sounds very well indeed. I trust you to do as you see fit.”
The steward seemed to sigh as he grimaced and bowed, and Tobias beat his retreat. He was expected at Birford’s in less than half an hour. It wasn’t a formal invitation, of course, but they had developed a routine of sorts, with Tobias arriving for a bit of hunting and then dinner.
He strode quickly down the corridor toward the stairs. He would change quickly while his horse was saddled up, and then he might only be a few minutes late to Birford’s. The freedom he had acquired upon his marriage was every bit as thrilling as Tobias had hoped. His parents had left him utterly to himself since the wedding which almost made him wish he had entered into the married state sooner.
Putting a light hand on the banister, he glanced up the stairs, where his eyes met his wife’s.
His wife. It was still strange to hear that combination of words after just two weeks of marriage. Perhaps that was normal, though. After all, they hardly acted like a married couple.
He smiled at her, and she returned the smile with her own, which somehow lit up her face and increased her beauty instantaneously. She, too, seemed to be reveling in her freedom. Where before the wedding, her clothes had hung away from her body, they had begun to fit more closely, hugging her figure in a way that
made Tobias swallow and guide his gaze back up to her face.
He paused as they met halfway up the staircase. “I am for Birford’s,” he said, glad to have a reason to give his thoughts a more appropriate direction.
Her smile widened, and she inclined her head. “I wish you both a very successful hunt.”
It was one thing he loved about Anne. She didn’t hound him with questions or sermons every time he left the house. She was entirely pleasant and very much the independent wife he had been hoping she would be. She seemed to need nothing at all from him.
He tapped a finger on the banister. “Thank you. I am determined that today shall be the day I overtake Birford. I was just two grouse behind him at the last count.”
“Meaning yesterday?”
He chuckled and nodded, glancing at the book in her hand. “Going for some reading?”
“Yes, and I am determined that today shall be the day I finish. I was just thirty pages shy of the end at the last count.” She smiled playfully.
Was that what she did all day and all evening? Read? It seemed terribly boring. But who was he to question her activities? They had agreed to leave each other be.
The ride to Birford’s was refreshing, undertaken as it was at a quick pace to keep a nice breeze on Tobias’s face. The hot summer air would soon begin to chill, and the thought sent a shiver of anticipation through him. He liked hunting grouse and ducks well enough, but the prospect of pheasants, woodcocks, and foxes was much more exciting. Birford had offered to take Tobias to his father’s estate in Leicestershire in October, and Tobias hadn’t hesitated to accept such an invitation. There was much better game to be found there than in Dorset.
His brow furrowed as he dismounted and handed the reins to Birford’s servant. Would Anne stay at Hazelhurst? Or would she wish to join them? Tobias hadn’t the faintest idea how to go on as a husband.
Contrary to Tobias’s expectations, Birford was not waiting for him in the entry hall but was rather enjoying a plate of cold cuts and a glass of ale in the drawing room.
“Ah, Cosgrove!” said Birford, washing down some cheese with some ale. “Hope you don’t mind. I didn’t wake until noon today and was feeling a bit peckish. I never like to hunt on an empty stomach; it affects my aim.”
Tobias chuckled, settling himself into his favorite chair and stretching his legs out in front of him. “You never like to do anything on an empty stomach, including dining.”
Birford made a noncommittal sound amidst his chewing. He picked up the plate and extended it toward Tobias, who shook his head.
Anne wasn’t the only one whose clothes were fitting more snugly. Spending so much time with Birford meant consuming much more food than was strictly necessary, and Tobias’s pride balked at the thought of becoming a portly husband.
“It’s silly,” Birford said.
“I agree,” said Tobias, shifting in his coat and noting how tightly it fit across his chest. “If one never has an empty stomach, one can never truly appreciate a full one.”
Birford shook his head, piercing a piece of cheese with a fork and then stabbing it through a slice of ham. “Not that. I mean you riding here every single day. Might as well leave some clothes here and stay the night. Give that horse of yours a break.”
Tobias watched Birford considering and said nothing. It was silly to be back and forth as much as he was.
Birford glanced at him. “You hesitate.”
“No,” Tobias said in a voice even he found sounded defensive. “It is just…” He pursed his lips and rubbed at his cheek. How would Anne feel about such a thing?
Birford rested his arms on his knees and narrowed his eyes. “Falling in love with your wife, are you?”
Tobias scoffed. “Don’t be ridiculous, Birford.”
Birford shrugged and applied himself to the last pieces of ham and cheese on his platter. “I don’t see at all that it’s ridiculous. I’ve only met her once, but she seems easy enough to fall in love with—easy manners, kind, and there’s no denying she’s a real beauty.”
Tobias stood abruptly. “Shall we go, then?”
Birford looked at Tobias and pursed his lips before nodding.
Tobias didn’t wait for Birford to make his way outside. He came to hunt, not to discuss his wife or her charms. He certainly didn’t need Birford spreading word that Tobias had fallen in love with his wife. If the man required proof that Tobias was the same man he had always been, Tobias would gladly provide it, even if it meant sleeping at Birford’s in his shirt and pantaloons.
Anne sat on a small blanket beside a row of flowers and weeds, tugging at the latter as the rising sun warmed her back in the chill morning air. The gardens of Hazelhurst were in disarray.
"My father won't spend a penny if it doesn't add to his comfort," Tobias had said upon their arrival when they had seen the state of things.
Mr. Cosgrove had apparently decided that a full-time gardener was an unnecessary expense and had instead hired the temporary services of a gardener for Hazelhurst only when he planned to spend an appreciable amount of time there or to host guests. Additionally. his recent successful investment scheme had put him in a position to purchase an estate nearer to London, and so Anne and Tobias had been given the reins to manage Hazelhurst as they saw fit. There was much to be attended to.
Anne looked up from the pile of weeds beside her, shading her eyes as she watched the approach of Tobias. He was dressed for riding.
"Did we not decide we would hire a gardener to do that in the spring?" he said, frowning at her dirt-covered hands.
Anne scanned the flowerbed, which was half-weeded. "Yes, but I thought I would do a bit myself, just until breakfast. The less weeds there are, the easier it will be for the gardener when he comes."
Tobias looked on, a doubtful expression on his face.
She brushed her hands together over the ground next to her blanket, and bits of dirt fell between the blades of grass. "It is very satisfying, you know, even if it means I must scrub under my nails until they're raw when I have finished."
Tobias tilted his head, looking at the unweeded half of the flowerbed where some stalks as thick as two of Anne's fingers had shot up over the summer. He reached down and tugged at one. It remained stubbornly in the dirt, and he added his second hand for good measure.
"You'll not...best...me," Tobias grunted with each tug. The sound of small roots pulling away from the soil one by one was heard, and Tobias suddenly stumbled backward as it came free, catching himself from tumbling to the ground. He grasped the large weed tightly in his hand, with the dirt clods crumbling to the ground from the roots. "Ha! Victory!" he said, raising it in the air.
Anne covered her laugh with a hand.
Tobias tossed the weed on top of Anne's pile and brushed his gloved hands off, his chin jutting out as he considered the flowerbed again. "You're right. It is satisfying."
She smiled and tugged on another weed that was threatening to smother the flowers beside it. "By all means, then, join me." She set it atop the pile and shifted so that there was room for Tobias on the blanket beside her.
Tobias made an apologetic expression. "I'm already promised to Birford, I'm afraid. Perhaps another time."
Anne smiled and nodded, leaning over again and wiping her forehead with the back of her arm. Of course he wouldn't wish to pull weeds with her. It had been a silly suggestion.
"I shall likely not be back for dinner," Tobias said. "Birford has arranged for us to dine there after the hunt."
"Very well," Anne said. "Perhaps Mr. Birford could join us for dinner here sometime?"
Tobias was silent, and she looked up at him. "Or do you prefer dining away from home?” she asked. “You have only dined here a few times since we arrived, it seems."
He glanced at the house and frowned. "I suppose you're right. Does it bother you?"
Anne wet her lips. It shouldn't bother her, of course. They were living the very married life they had agreed to. Anne had basked in t
he tranquility of Hazelhurst, in the sea breeze which whipped up at her whenever she took her solitary walks along the coastal path nearby, and in arranging everything as she pleased. She had even gone into Weymouth and found some painting supplies, allowing her to indulge in a pastime she hadn't revisited in years.
And yet, the peace she had felt during her weeks alone had begun shifting toward loneliness. Tobias's frequent absence did bother her a bit. Was it strange that she wished he wanted to spend more time at Hazelhurst? It hardly seemed like he lived there.
She forced a smile and shook her head. "I only wanted to be sure that the time you've been spending away was not the result of something I've changed about Hazelhurst. I wouldn't wish for you to feel that I am overzealous in a place you've known and loved for years."
Tobias reared back slightly and shook his head. "No, no. It's not that at all." He looked toward the house, his jaw working from side to side. "In fact, if I am being completely honest, my memories here are hardly what I would call pleasant. I am not attached to the place at all, frankly. The opposite would be truer. I was mainly here between school terms, and I think just being here puts me a bit on edge." He smiled apologetically. "I can hardly step into the dining room without anticipating some type of lecture from my father."
Anne had never considered that Tobias's absence was more than simple indifference or—as she had thought in her more sensitive moments—a wish to be away from her. Of course, he had years of history at Hazelhurst before she had ever stepped foot here as mistress. But what could she do if he didn't regard it as home? She wanted him to view it as his sanctuary, not some sort of prison.
"I understand," she said. "I have felt very similarly about Ingleburn." It was why she had found so much comfort at Hazelhurst. It was a clean slate; a place where she couldn't hear the echoes of her father's displeasure in every single room.
