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‘Do you know her at all?’
‘Miss MacQueen?’
‘Miss Gardiner.’
‘Oh.’ If he wasn’t mistaken, his old friend’s cheeks flushed slightly. ‘No, not very well. She was quite friendly when we first moved in, but she’s been a lot more reserved since she took over Belles. One of my men tried flirting with her once and she almost bit his head off. Now they call her the ice queen, but no one really knows what to make of her any more.’
‘I’m glad I’m not the only one.’
‘Anna trusts her anyway.’
‘What makes you say that?’ Sebastian paused with his glass halfway to his lips.
‘Nothing.’
‘Nothing means something. I know you, James. What is it?’
His friend swallowed another mouthful of whisky and sighed. ‘There were some rumours a while ago. Something to do with her previous place of employment. A milliner, I think.’
‘A dressmaker. What kind of rumours?’
‘I don’t like gossip, Seb.’
‘Neither do I, but if she’s running my family business then I have a right to know.’
He winced inwardly, feeling a twinge of guilt at the words. They sounded pompous, not to mention faintly hypocritical given that he hadn’t been involved in the business for so many years. In retrospect, Miss Gardiner had seemed somewhat defensive when he’d asked about her previous employment earlier, although she’d also told him that Anna knew her reasons for leaving. All of which meant that it was none of his business. In this case, however, curiosity appeared to outweigh conscience.
‘All right, but it doesn’t go outside this room.’ James stood up and closed the door. ‘They say there was some kind of scandal involving her and the owner’s son.’
‘They say?’
‘One of my staff heard a story. Something about the mother accusing her of being a fortune hunter, of trying to seduce and trap him into marriage, but as to whether it’s true...’ He lifted his shoulders. ‘In any case, she was sacked without references. That part’s definitely true because I remember she came to the old shop looking for work. Unfortunately, my father wasn’t sympathetic.’
Sebastian frowned into his glass, swirling the liquid around as he mentally negotiated his way through a confusing blend of emotions—indignation, surprise and something else he couldn’t quite put his finger on... He didn’t want to pay any heed to gossip and it was frankly hard to believe that the guarded and prickly woman he’d spent the morning with could ever have done something so scandalous, but it put her words about loose morals into some kind of perspective, especially if she’d been accused of them before...
If that were the case, however, then she’d either been unjustly accused or she was a reformed character, but surely something must have happened for her to be sacked without references...and damn it if the other emotion wasn’t jealousy!
Jealousy? How could he be jealous over a woman he hadn’t even met this time yesterday? The very idea was outlandish. Laughable, really. And yet something about it rang true.
‘So, are you back on dry land for good?’ James seemed eager to steer the conversation into a different channel. ‘Or are you still restless?’
‘Not as much as I used to be. To be honest, I’d reconciled myself to the idea of coming back to help Anna with Belles, but it appears I’m surplus to requirements. It’s been taken over by two attractive, but extremely violent females.’ He made a wry face. ‘It could have been worse, I suppose. As for the navy, I’m pretty sure my chances of finding another post were scuppered alongside Napoleon’s fleet.’ He frowned. ‘Although I’m not entirely sure I’d want to go back anyway.’
‘So, what next?’
‘Next I’ll go north to visit Anna and my mother. After that...who knows? The world’s my oyster apparently, although I thought I might loiter in Bath for today.’
‘I was hoping you’d say that.’ James grinned. ‘In that case, you should stay with me tonight. I have rooms upstairs.’
‘You’re inviting me to stay in a building that’s just received a fresh delivery of brandy?’
‘Actually, when you put it like that...’
‘Too late. I accept.’ Sebastian laughed, resolving to put all thoughts of Miss Gardiner, fortune-hunting seductress or not, out of his mind. Aside from her obvious lack of interest in him, her past was none of his business and he had other things to think about. What to do with his future for a start. His sister was happily married, his mother ensconced with her family in the north and Belles appeared to be running smoothly. The world really was his oyster...and the last thing he needed was to be distracted by a woman, especially an ice queen.
He lifted his glass and tossed back the last of his whisky. He’d go and pick up his bag from Belles later, but after that...well, he doubted he’d be sharing anything more than pleasantries with Miss Gardiner again.
Chapter Five
