‘This week? I could come to your home?’
Mitchell opened his mouth...and closed it.
Lyman, who’d been sitting quietly chewing his food, spluttered over his wine.
‘I think my sister has the same enthusiasm for wool as do you, Mitchell,’ Elizabeth interjected. ‘But, since I, too, am interested, I wonder if I could come along?’
Alice glanced across at her sister, who pointedly didn’t look at her. Her sister had many telling looks, and the not-looking-at-you one was the look her and Mary feared.
It meant she’d done something wrong...
Ah. A lady should wait for an invitation. But she was no mere lady; she was attempting to be a spy and there was very little time. Clearly she’d have to learn to balance these things.
She turned to Mitchell to apologise, but it seemed he had regained his composure and his confidence because a look of wonder lit his face.
‘I’d be delighted,’ he said, ‘to have you and your sister to my home. I will make arrangements.’
‘Well,’ Elizabeth said, too brightly, ‘that’s a day settled then.’
* * *
‘What were youthinking?’ Elizabeth whispered, after she’d bade goodnight to the Bensons and the Alistairs.
Gelsey Alistair had needed help from not one but two servants to get her into her waiting carriage. Baldrick, her husband, hardly better, had at least been gracious enough to leave early.
Unlike Hugh and Eldric who, along with Mitchell and Lyman, remained in the dining room.
Alice fervently wished they had left ahead of the Alistairs.
‘Inviting yourself to his house when he hadn’t invited you!’ Elizabeth continued. ‘I thought Lyman would have a heart attack—or, worse, call out your virtue!’
Hugh had questioned her virtue—hadheheard the way she’d invited herself to Mitchell’s home?
‘It’s winter.’ Alice clasped her hands, preparing for her sister’s verbal storm. ‘His father is poorly. You know they haven’t many resources. I thought it easier on him.’
Elizabeth gave an exasperated sound. ‘You’ve been with children too long. You can dictate tothemyour goings and comings, but not to your own peers. And you certainly can’t go to a gentleman’s house by yourself.’
‘What can’t she do by herself?’ Eldric beamed at her and her sister.
Hugh stood behind him. His eyes focused solely on Elizabeth.
Alice didn’t want to talk of this in front of anyone, let alone Hugh, but her sister simply waved her hand and said, ‘Alice intends to discuss textiles with Mitchell.’
Alice didn’t know if Hugh was purposely not looking at her, or simply didn’t care enough to do so. At what point would she stop caring?
‘Seems harmless enough,’ Eldric said.
‘But you know her.’ Elizabeth laughed daintily, heedless of Alice’s warning look. ‘She never doesanythingharmless.’
Eldric laughed. ‘Ah, yes. The back of my leg still hasn’t recovered from that spirited mount of hers the other day.’
‘I thought you had only recently returned?’ Hugh interjected.
Eldric raised his brow at Hugh. ‘As you know, you don’t need to be in Alice’s company for long before suffering some sort of injury.’
Alice clenched her hands at Eldric’s seemingly friendly but cutting words. If she had a sensible bone in her body, like Elizabeth, she’d leave well enough alone. But she didn’t—and she wouldn’t. If he thought her a whore, she’d play that part, too.
Smiling broadly, she playfully tapped Eldric’s arm. ‘Your being behind my mount was entirely your own fault, and you know it.’
