Dora swore under her breath and hurried to take the bag.
‘Ruby, darling, however did you find me?’
‘The innkeeper at the Salutation.’ Ruby relinquished her burden with a sigh. ‘Thank you. That has been weighing a ton for the last two miles.’
‘You’ve walked from Ambleside?’
‘They said it was as close as I was going to get by carriage, and I couldn’t afford to hire a cart.’
‘They told you correctly.’ Deciding the whys and wherefores could wait until Ruby was seated with refreshments, Dora led her into the cottage kitchen.
‘Your man here?’ asked Ruby, looking around with trepidation.
‘No. He was called away. His father died.’
‘Sorry to hear that. But, phew, that makes things easier.’ Ruby’s smile lacked its usual amusement at life. She sank into the chair with a groan.
Dora rummaged through the pantry. ‘He’s not the sort to run off a friend of mine.’
‘Even a pregnant one?’
True, she hadn’t tested him in that way, but Jacob had adapted surprisingly well to their three most recent recruits, all out-of-work actors, who provided them with extra eyes and ears to the agency in London. Jacob wasn’t a stuffed shirt like other nobles.
‘Even so.’
‘That’s one fecking bright spot in a whole rash of bad ones.’
‘Let me make you breakfast, and you can tell me all about it.’
Ruby played with the salt cellars, shifting them around like chess pieces. ‘You haven’t asked about the father.’
‘Do you want me to?’
‘It doesn’t matter. I can’t be sure. Must have been back in York. There was the son of the local MP and, ooh, that delicious ostler. I think it must be his. I hope it is. The things he could do…!’ Ruby gave a happy sigh. She enjoyed sex and wasn’t ashamed to admit it. This was the first time to Dora’s knowledge that birth control methods had failed her. It was bound to happen eventually to a woman who had lovers, because nothing– French letters, sponges, purgative pills– offered complete protection.
A shiver ran down Dora’s spine. She really should consider that for her own case. Jacob and she were enjoying that side of their relationship frequently and not always with the best preventatives in place. How would she react if she found herself in the same predicament?
Taking the milk jug from the shelf, she poured a cup for Ruby.
‘You’re six months along? You’re barely showing.’
‘Well, I’ve been doing my best to ignore it, haven’t I?’
‘You must’ve known before I separated from the troupe.’
‘Suspected only– I wasn’t sure. I was getting ready to tell you when you upped and left.’
Dora put a loaf and butter dish next to Ruby. ‘I’m sorry I wasn’t there for you.’
‘I understand. You saw your chance and you left. Good for you, duckie. Though you should get him to provide a better life than this.’ Ruby waved a knife around at the rustic kitchen. ‘At least get you some servants for heaven’s sake. There I was, considering you my hero, and you’ve settled for this?’
‘That’s not quite the whole story.’ How to explain to her friend? Ruby would not understand her scruples about supporting herself. ‘Forget about me. Tell me why you came. I would’ve thought Mr Thomas could keep you on until the last moment, let you lie in for a few weeks, then bring you back when you were recovered. That’s what he did for Lilly Banbury, wasn’t it?’
Ruby stopped buttering her bread. ‘But then I would have to give up the child.’
‘Oh. Oh,’ Dora added in a tone of understanding. She pressed Ruby’s hand. ‘I thought you’d perhaps give it to your parents to raise? That’s what Lilly did.’
Ruby snorted. ‘I ran away from home– I’d hardly send my child, especially not a daughter, back to that.’ Ruby had never said but Dora remembered now that she had hinted that someone in her family had shown unnatural interest in her.
