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“No reason.”
I stared at him. He pretended not to notice. “Harry, why are you being so mysterious today? First you won’t tell me what information you passed on to Mrs. Hessing this morning, and now you want to know who I’m having lunch with. What’s going on?”
“Nothing.”
I arched my brows.
“Nothing, Cleo.”
I settled my skirts around me and didn’t speak to him the rest of the way. It wasn’t until we reached the hotel that he realized he didn’t have enough money to pay the driver.
“I’ll pay,” I said, opening my bag. I removed the book of poems by Walt Whitman and fished out my purse. I paid the driver through the roof slot and went to climb out.
Harry blocked the way. He indicated the book. “I didn’t know you read Whitman.”
“I don’t. At least, I haven’t yet. It looks like I have no excuse not to, now.”
His gaze narrowed. “Where did you get the book?”
“Mr. Miller, the American guest, gave it to me.” I made a shooing motion. “Even if you’re continuing on, you have to move so I can get out.”
He stepped down to the pavement and offered me his hand. Once I was alongside him, he told the driver he had no further need of him. The driver urged the horse forward and the hansom rolled away.
All the while, Harry continued to hold my hand. And we were right outside the hotel.
I squeezed his fingers. “Is something the matter?”
As if he suddenly realized he still clutched my hand, he let go. “Cleo…I need to tell you something. I didn’t pass on information to Mrs. Hessing this morning; I wanted informationfromher.”
“What kind of information?” I asked carefully. There couldn’t be many reasons why he’d be so hesitant to mention that he’d gone to Mrs. Hessing for help, not the other way around. Indeed, I could think of only one.
“I asked her what she knew about Miller.”
“I see. Why mention it to me now and not earlier?”
“Because I wasn’t sure what his intentions were towards you. Now I know.” He indicated my bag, containing the book. “He gave you a gift. Not just any gift, but something you would appreciate.”
“I appreciate jewelry, too.” My joke fell flat. The spiked tone saw to that, as well as Harry’s obvious discomfort. “What do his intentions have to do with you telling me this now? What precisely did you learn from Mrs. Hessing?”
“He abandoned his betrothed at the altar on their wedding day. Rumor has it that he found out her father lost his fortune mere days earlier in the economic depression of ’93.”
“I don’t believe all the gossip I hear, Harry, you know that. Anyway, that was seven years ago. He would have been young.”
“Mrs. Hessing also told me he has no money. He works for his uncle, but he won’t inherit anything. His uncle has young sons who’ll one day take over the company.”
“Oh dear, he has gainful employment. What a dreadful fellow.”
My sarcasm fell on deaf ears. “Apparently Marshall Miller’s wages are not enough to support his lifestyle. He’s in deep debt.” Harry dipped his head to meet my gaze. “It gives me no joy to tell you this. I want you to be happy, Cleo. But with someone who deserves you, not someone who wants you for your connections.”
The fact that I wasn’t an heiress was moot. The first night I’d met Mr. Miller, I had suspected he assumed I was as wealthy as my Bainbridge cousins. No doubt he thought I’d inherited my grandparents’ fortune through my mother, not knowing she’d been disinherited. I’d not said anything to disabuse him of the opinion. I should have. I could have saved myself this uncomfortable discussion.
Even so, Harry had overstepped. He’d gone to Mrs. Hessing not knowing if Mr. Miller had done anything wrong. He’d extended his fishing net out to sea without knowing if there were fish swimming there. I wasn’t sure if I was angry with him or not. What he’d done he’d done because he cared about me, and if I were being perfectly honest, it made me feel warm all over. But he shouldn’t have done it in secret.
“Say something, Cleo. If you want to tell me that I shouldn’t have asked Mrs. Hessing then go ahead. Get it off your chest.” At least he understood that he’d overstepped. That was something.
“Doesn’t Mr. Miller deserve the chance to explain?”
He blinked in surprise. “Of course. That’s why I’m presenting you with the information, so you can do what you want with it.” He cleared his throat. “So…what are you going to do with it?”
