Just then the proprietress spotted them. The young woman smoothed her long braid over one shoulder and hurried through the throng of customers. “Lady Tesh, this is a pleasure.”
Lady Tesh inclined her head. “Good afternoon, Miss Peacham.”
“And you’ve brought your granddaughter and Miss Hartley, who we have not seen in an age. Though I have not had the pleasure of seeing these gentlemen about town.” She eyed Mr. Ashford with a good amount of curiosity and trepidation. And no wonder, for the man looked like the proverbial bull in a china shop, surrounded as he was by small round tables topped with all manner of delicate china and glassware.
And he was glaring at it all in the most ferocious manner. As Lenora watched, he transferred his gaze, which had been fixed in an outraged fashion on the closest stool, to Miss Peacham. The proprietress took a step back.
“Oh, come now,” Lady Tesh said. “You know as well as I that the Beakhead is the epicenter of information on the Isle. You could not have failed to hear of my great-nephew and his friend.”
“Of course!” Miss Peacham exclaimed. “It’s an honor, gentlemen.”
Mr. Ashford merely grunted. Mr. Nesbitt gave an elegant bow. “The pleasure is ours, ma’am. Can’t wait to taste the fine wares you sell here. The smell is divine.”
As Miss Peacham flushed with pleasure, Lady Tesh cleared her throat loudly. “I trust you have my table ready.”
“Of course, my lady,” Miss Peacham said with a warm smile. She led the way to a table larger than the rest, surrounded by sturdy chairs instead of the cushion-covered stools the rest of the patrons sat on. Pressed up to one of the front windows as it was, the table gave a commanding view of the street and the beach beyond.
“You know what I like,” she said to Miss Peacham. “Bring a selection of sweets, and your lemonade as well,” she added. As the woman moved away, Lady Tesh turned to Mr. Nesbitt. “You shall not find finer pastries on the Isle. Isn’t that right, Margery?”
As the three of them fell into easy conversation, Lenora took a quick glance at Mr. Ashford. He was staring out the window, seemingly lost in thought. Thinking he had no wish for conversation, she adjusted her skirts. The stiff material never did lie right. She thought briefly of the lovely burnt orange silk ball gown she had agreed to having made up while at the modiste’s. As well as the pale green muslin, and the printed calico.
It seemed Mr. Ashford’s gentle urgings had done what years of demands on Lady Tesh’s part had been unable to do. And to her utter shock, she had enjoyed it.
Would wonders never cease?
Mr. Ashford’s voice broke into her meandering thoughts. “You never drink tea.”
She looked his way and blinked. “No. No, I don’t.”
“Why?”
Her lips quirked, for he looked utterly confused. “Is it a crime to dislike tea?”
“No, it’s just…” His words trailed off, and he flushed.
Really, it should not be so adorable for a man to color so. On him, it was like a chink in the armor he constantly showed to the world, the soft underbelly.
It showed he was too human. Something that should not fascinate her as much as it did.
“You were going to say that most women like tea, weren’t you?”
His lips twitched. “I admit, I was. And I’m generalizing again, aren’t I?”
She didn’t know it was possible to be made dizzy by the mere ghost of a smile. But that small quirk at the corner of his lips, the way his eyes crinkled at the corners, threw her completely off balance. For a breathless moment, she didn’t know which way was up. Taking herself firmly in hand, she said with mock seriousness, “Yes, you are.”
“I apologize.”
She inclined her head in what she hoped was a regal fashion. “At least you’re learning from your mistakes.”
His eyes warmed with approval. “But why don’t you like tea?”
She shrugged. “I haven’t a clue, only that I can’t stand the taste of it. But it seems it’s quite unpatriotic of me, if the responses I receive are anything to go by. There are times I force myself to drink the stuff just to stave off comments.”
“You should never force yourself to do other than what pleases you.”
“Says the man who is staying with Lady Tesh against his will.”
She had begun to grow so comfortable with him that the words tumbled out without her meaning to. She gasped, her hand flying to her mouth. “Oh, I’m so sorry. That was incredibly rude of me.”
