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‘I’ll find them some jobs to keep them out of trouble.’ Nancy looked thoughtful. ‘Maybe we could offer complimentary shoe-shining with every bag of biscuits?’
‘I’m not sure how Mr Redbourne would feel about that, considering he has a shoe-shiner outside his store.’
‘Does he? I hadn’t noticed.’ Nancy’s tone was altogether too uninterested. ‘Speaking of Mr Redbourne, I wonder if Mr Fortini has left yet. Did he say what time his stagecoach was leaving?’
‘Does it matter?’
‘Not to me, no.’
Henrietta kept her eyes on her dough. She’d been trying, unsuccessfully, not to think about Mr Fortini for most of the night and since she’d woken up that morning, still mortified by her near tears the previous evening. He’d been so sympathetic and understanding that she’d been strongly tempted to rest her head on his shoulder and start sobbing. Strangely enough, she had a feeling that he would have let her, too, despite the way she’d behaved on their walk. What would he have thought of her then? What would he have reported to Anna? That she was an emotional mess, most likely...which she was starting to think wasn’t so far from the truth.
‘If he hasn’t left by now then I’m sure he’ll be on his way soon.’ She tipped her head to one side as if she expected to hear a stagecoach rolling past at any moment. ‘I don’t suppose we’ll be seeing him again.’
* * *
‘Breakfast is served.’ James set two plates of sausages and egg on the table with a flourish.
‘You know, I could get used to this.’ Sebastian lifted his feet off a neighbouring chair and picked up his fork with a grin. ‘Don’t you have a maid to cook for you?’
‘No. I can’t see the point when I can manage perfectly well by myself.’
‘Spoken like a true bachelor. It’s funny, but I would have thought you of all men would be married by now.’
‘Why me of all men?’
‘You always seemed like the marrying type, that’s all.’
‘Maybe I just haven’t met the right woman.’
‘Really?’ Sebastian paused in the act of spearing a sausage. There was something distinctly evasive about his friend’s tone. ‘Why don’t I believe you?’
‘Because you never could mind your own business.’ James gave him a swift kick under the table. ‘As it happens, I thought I had met the right one once, only it turned out the feeling wasn’t reciprocated.’
‘Well, plenty more fish in the sea.’ Sebastian stopped and put his utensils down again. ‘What a ridiculous phrase that is. I wonder who came up with it?’
‘A sailor?’
‘Probably, but it’s not true, is it? I mean, there are fish and then there are fish.’
‘Succinctly put.’
‘What I mean is that it makes women sound interchangeable when they’re clearly not.’
‘True. I suppose some of them are mackerel and some are sharks.’
‘You’re not bitter, then?’
‘Maybe a little, but I can’t blame her for what happened. She never gave me any encouragement, I just hoped, that’s all.’ He laughed ruefully. ‘So the stagecoach leaves at nine. It goes to Bristol first, I presume?’
‘I think so, but the truth is, I was wondering whether you’d mind me staying for a few more days?’
‘Not at all.’ James gave him a searching look. ‘I’d like to think it was for the pleasure of my company, but something tells me it has more to do with Miss Gardiner. Is the ice thawing a little?’
Sebastian didn’t answer, vaguely surprised by his own request. He really ought to be heading north. He wanted to see his mother and Anna again and to start enjoying his newfound freedom, too, yet he couldn’t quite bring himself to leave. Miss Gardiner needed his help and somehow that seemed more important. He wasn’t quite sure what she’d meant when she’d said she’d misjudged him, but they seemed to be friends again and he couldn’t just abandon a woman in trouble, especially one who worked in his family’s s
hop. In the absence of Anna, it was his responsibility to help, surely?
Yes, that was it, he reassured himself. He felt compelled to stay because she was Anna’s employee and Anna would want him to help. It had nothing to do with her specifically. He was attracted to her—it would have been frankly ridiculous to pretend otherwise—he liked her, even, but that had nothing to do with his decision, especially since she’d made it clear that flirtation was out of the question. He would have helped Miss MacQueen in a similar situation, too. Probably.
