Niall sighed and went after her. She might not like his presence, but he had vowed to escort her whether she liked it or not. He wasn’t going to take the chance on her being accosted on the street, but he wisely kept quiet for the rest of the walk. It wasn’t until they were at the front door of the warehouse that he spoke again.
“I doona want ye to be part of that protest.”
Annie hesitated on the steps and then shook her head. “Ye are nae my husband. Doona tell me what to do.”
“Ye are still prickly as a thistle.” Niall clenched his jaw and opened the door for her. “We are nae married. Ye are right about that. Somehow, I doona think ye would do as I asked even if I were your husband.”
She gave him a startled look and then her face turned a deep shade of pink as she turned and rushed inside.
Niall closed the door and stared at it. Why in the hell had he said that? He didn’t know, but the woman had the unique ability to make him say the wrong things.
****
Annie was relieved to see no one at the counter when she entered the office. She needed a moment to gather her thoughts, if not her wits.Ye are still prickly as a thistle.She deserved that, she supposed, given their argument. Somehow the words hurt, though, and they hadn’t the last time Niall had told her the same thing.We are nae married. Ye are right about that. His tone had been clipped and she’d seen the muscle in his jaw twitch. He no doubt wanted her to know he was grateful they were not. Her eyes started to sting and she blinked rapidly. She should never have made the remark that he was not her husband. The words had come out before she could stop them. She should have known better than to even mention the word, given her experience with Broderick. She’d set herself up for rejection once again.
Rejection. Annie gave herself a shake. How silly to think that. She couldn’t be rejected from a relationship that didn’t even exist. Niall’s kiss from her dream—herdream—had set her mind wandering in the wrong direction. How silly, too, to let a stupid comment about not being her husband bother her. After Broderick, she had vowed she would never marry. She would never succumb tobelongingto a man like the property English law said she would be. She wanted to be independent. This job, regardless of what men thought, was proof that she could do it.
The door from the warehouse opened, breaking into her thoughts. She looked up to see Kingsley watching her.
“Are you quite recovered, Miss Ferguson?”
Annie nodded. “Aye. I just wish I had nae lost two days of work. I doona want Mr. Haines to think me a slacken.”
“On the contrary. He was quite concerned over what happened.”
Annie breathed a sigh of relief, only then admitting to herself that she had been afraid Mr. Haines would let her go. “I willwork verra hard to make it up to him. Tell me what has transpired here while I have been away.”
Kingsley went around the counter and opened the ledger. “On Tuesday, a hundred bolts of woolens were brought in—”
“A hundred bolts? That many?” Annie broke into a smile. “I was afraid the weavers might boycott the warehouse after Monday night.”
“From what I understand, the weavers walked out before the…unpleasantness began,” Kingsley replied.
“Aye, they did, but they were nae happy with what we had to say.”
“Most men do not like to think women are as smart as they are, which makes them fools, does it not?”
Annie smiled again. “Thank ye for understanding.”
“I underestimate no one’s intelligence,” Kingsley answered. “The weavers may not be happy with you working here, but Haines offers good prices for storage and tarps to keep the moths out of the wool. Profit takes precedence over most everything.”
“Aye. ’Tis a business matter.”
“The shipment of barley to the States also went out on Tuesday. Mr. MacDonald brought seventy bales of kelp yesterday and a shipment of tobacco from Virginia came in as well.” Kingsley turned the ledger around for Annie. “I recorded everything so you will not have to bother.”
“Thank ye,” Annie replied. “Ye are a very competent foreman.”
Kingsley smiled. “I always try my best.”
“Aye. So do I,” Annie said and walked around toward the desk. “I will just work on getting the paperwork filed, then.”
“Let me know if you need me,” Kingsley said. “I will be in the warehouse.”
Annie immersed herself in getting things straightened out. Once she finished the filing, she decided to arrange things in a more orderly fashion. She really wanted to show Mr. Haines that she was competent, especially since he’d put such trust in her.
It was lunchtime by the time she finished. Annie walked over to the ledger on the counter. Mr. Kingsley had entered the inventory delivered in a neat, precise hand. But, since she had a bit of time, she wanted to check the counts herself. After all, Mr. Kingsley had said two sets of eyes were better than one when it came to accounts.
She tucked the ledger under her arm and went into the warehouse. The workers had gone on lunch break, so all was quiet and still. She called for Kingsley, but received no answer, nor did she find him in any of the aisles. He’d probably gone to get something to eat too. Well, she didn’t need him standing beside her just to check the inventory.
