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She threw Jeb a winning smile that made him drop his glass back onto the table with more force than was necessary. In doing so he spilled wine on the table cloth and had to have it refilled. Mentally cursing himself for being so clumsy in her presence, Jeb attempted to turn her attention away from his mishap and onto more mundane matters. However, when he looked up, there was a glint of mischief in her eyes that made him wonder if she was going to tease him. Thankfully she didn’t.
“Brentley,” Jeb murmured. “I have heard of it.”
He made a mental note to ask Barnaby if he knew anybody in the area but then hauled that thought to an abrupt halt. He had absolutely no reason to enquire about Sophia’s life in Brentley because Algernon had already said that the thefts had been happening over the course of the last several weeks. Sophia Carney couldn’t possibly be guilty and for that, he could only be grateful.
“It is a small village outside Tippersnell,” Sophia expanded.
Although she would never admit it to another human soul, she quite liked the man seated opposite. At first, Sophia had found him to be dark and somewhat sinister. Now that she had spent the past hour or so seated opposite him she had noted his hand tremble, heard his bored sigh, and seen that he was more clumsy than she was. It endeared him to her, mainly because it made him more human and less of a threat. There was something mysterious lurking in that dark gaze that made her shiver, partly in awareness, but partly because she sensed he had secrets. She had to wonder what they were. He was undoubtedly a worldly man, confident in his life and the world about him, so what could he be hiding?
Intrigued, she turned her attention to the food on her plate while she thought about that.
Usually, when she conversed with a man, she felt nothing but a mild engagement that quickly turned into a need to be somewhere else. With Jebediah Hutchinson, she wanted to listen to the husky tones of his voice for considerably longer than she ought. Indeed, she was hooked on his every word and found it incredibly difficult to tear her gaze away from his when he looked at her with those smouldering eyes.
“I haven’t been there before,” Jeb replied huskily. “But I think I have passed through it.”
Sophia smiled. “Most people pass through it. Only those who live there stay for a while.”
Algernon fought a delighted grin as he watched the young people stare avidly at each other over the width of the table. Aware of his son’s reluctance to even mention the word ‘matrimony,' he was careful to keep his joy to himself though and turned his attention back to his food.
As a result, an awkward silence settled over the table for a few moments while several meaningful looks were exchanged. When nobody could think of anything to say, and neither Jeb nor Sophia spoke, the Harvells came to the rescue.
“Well, I have heard the most delightful news,” Mabel declared softly in a voice that was full of effusive excitement. She tittered, leaned over the table, and spoke in a manner that was more in keeping with confiding in a close friend than a group of diners around a table.
“I hear there is to be a new member of the village. Yes, yes, that’s right,” she nodded to everyone who looked askance at her. “I heard it from Mrs Turner this very morning that there is also to be a marriage in the village, but I mustn’t gossip. It is simply not wise to spread such scandalous rumours in case the marriage doesn’t actually come to fruition.”
“Oh, but I think it is safe to say the news has originated from a very reliable source,” Pearl declared knowingly. “I believe it is safe to say that the people involved, whom shall not be mentioned,” she tittered again, “shall be making an announcement sometime very soon. Isn’t that exciting? Eh? Eh? A wedding in the village of Framley Meadow.”
She looked at each of the other guests in turn expecting them to be as enthused as she was. Her smile didn’t dim, even when she received no more meaningful response than a few careful nods and grunts and an uncomfortable cough or two.
“You must stay in the village until then,” Pearl practically ordered Sophia. “Why, a wedding in the village is an occasion we can all enjoy, is it not? The whole village shall be bedecked with ribbons and lace, and it will be so beautiful. You must stay and see it for yourself. It will be lovely.”
Sophia opened her mouth to remind the elderly lady that she was due to return home but, before she could speak, Delilah broke the silence with loud laugh.
“Oh, but that is surely conjecture?” She glanced about the table, but threw Sophia a darker look that warned her not to agree to stay.
Jeb watched the interplay and saw all trace of Sophia’s earlier joy vanish in an instant. It led him to wonder whether there was ill feeling between aunt and niece, and considered Delilah a little more carefully. There was something a little frantic about the woman; as though she had yet to relax completely. She certainly wasn’t enjoying herself. That being the case, why had she agreed to attend this evening? Was it Sophia who was making Delilah ill at ease? If so, why?
Jealousy, no doubt, Jeb mused wr
yly as he turned his attention back to the delectable Sophia.
She was indeed the most beautiful woman at the table. He suspected she was also spirited. Not only that but she had youth on her side; something that had long since eluded Delilah, who appeared to have sour grapes. As far as he could see, the woman seated opposite was nothing but charming. So why didn’t Delilah like her?
Making a mental note to ask his father about it later, Jeb turned his attention back to Sophia.
“Well, I am afraid -“ Sophia began.
“Sophia is here for only a short while, aren’t you, my dear?” Delilah interjected before Sophia could finish. “She has to help her father at home so cannot possibly remain here all summer.” There was a dismissive tone in her voice that halted any further protest Pearl, or Mabel might make.
Both elderly ladies looked a little downcast for a moment, and maintained a slightly offended silence while the remainder of the guests resumed their conversations.
Sophia watched Mabel positively deflate at Delilah’s dismissal, and was annoyed with her aunt for her callousness. She felt a little sorry for the elderly lady, whose earlier enthusiasm for an affair that wasn’t even hers had been stolen by those few careless words. Sympathetically offering the woman a gentle smile of understanding, Sophia turned her attention back to her meal, painfully aware of one particularly avid gaze studying her carefully.
Before she could stop it, one tentative hand reached up to self-consciously tuck a stray curl back into place before she even realised what she was doing. When she was aware of her actions, she quickly dropped her hand again and felt heat steal into her cheeks.
“Let us hope we shall see you again before you go,” Jeb murmured gently.
“Here, here,” Algernon said loudly, and lifted his goblet in a silent toast.
