Page 56 of His Unforgettable Bride
“Making headway. How is your day?” As much as he wanted to discuss Ruby’s early morning visit, specifically the part where Juliet needed to inform the constable, he had to ease into the conversation.
“Fair to middling.” She rose and glanced around the yard scattered with dried and dead leaves. “Have you seen Bells?”
“Who?”
“The stray cat.”
“Not since she sat in your lap this morning.” He glanced at Juliet’s fingers, so small compared to his, and recalled kissing the back of her hand hours earlier. Was he a fool for doing such a thing? If so, he could tolerate the moniker. What he had hoped to do was offer comfort and help her feel less alone.
Thoughts of her tragic childhood still consumed him. How had she not fractured under the strain? And now Ruby lobbed another threat to the life Juliet had painstakingly established. One way or another, he had to protect his friend.
“No doubt Bells is scared and hungry.” Juliet reached for the door handle. “Hopefully by the time I return from the emporium, she’ll have lapped up every drop.”
“What draws you to the shop?”
“I’m fetching a teapot the sisters ordered all the way from China.”
He held open the door and waited for her to proceed before him. “I am on my way to consult with Cy regarding the lack of nails. I understand he converses with Livy in the library.”
Juliet grinned. “I’m starting to think something brews between them.”
“You sound like Icala.” He followed her inside and down the hallway, the sway of her hips a little too mesmerizing. When he reached the library, he almost continued to follow Juliet to the foyer, where she was gathering her coat and hat. But he stepped into the inviting library of bookshelves and green plants, including a row of bluish African violets on a stand before a corner window.
Livy and Cy conversed on the sofa, their backs to him. No sign of Tabitha.
Gray cleared his throat, and they turned in his direction, nearly bumping noses. Livy hopped to her feet, her teacup clattering as she set it on the table. Her cheeks had pinkened. “Tabitha just left to fetch her reading glasses from her room. She’ll be back any minute.”
Had the couple developed tender feelings for one another? Everyone deserved happiness. “Pardon me, but I believe we are out of nails.”
Cy placed his delicate floral teacup on the saucer in his hand, biscuit crumbs on his chin. “Give me a minute or two, and I’ll head out and fetch more from Haney’s Hardware.”
“Stay and enjoy your tea while I collect them myself.” Was it not a perfect excuse to speak privately with Juliet as they traveled in the same direction?
He excused himself, hurried to the foyer, and claimed a bowler from the coat tree, perching it on his head. Tabitha had cited having accounts at businesses downtown, eliminating the need for cash transactions—an ideal scenario since he had no coin to toss in the air.
Outside, he chased after Juliet in a gentlemanly yet hurried clip down the long hill leading to Main Street. A panoramic view sat before him—the city, the river, and primarily trees on the uninhabited other side. Near the wharf a half dozen men unloaded goods from a paddle wheeler. Trees overhung the riverbanks, and fringes of green sedge skimmed the edges. The town’s new sawmill buzzed in the distance, the heavy scent of pulp floating in the air.
Quickly, he closed the gap between Juliet and himself, matched his stride to hers, and tipped his bowler. “Greetings, miss.”
A large maroon hat with a wide brim covered her head, most likely a cast-aside from one of the sisters. Yet it was too plain for Livy’s taste and too large for Tabitha’s.
“A cautious lady would think you followed her.”
“Goodness, no. I am merely on an errand for nails. You are a happy coincidence.” Was she really, though? Of course not.
She laughed, the sound soft and warm.
Lately, he’d been finding one excuse after another to seek her out. There was no sense denying it, at least to himself.
“I’m suspicious of your motives.”
“I cannot imagine why.” He reached for her elbow to guide her around a divot in the road, then released her arm.
“What’s on your mind, Gray? You have that look about you.”
What look? Could she read him that well? “I believe telling the legal authorities about Ruby’s threat is in your best interest. The constable should hear the truth from you before she fills his head with lies.”
Halfway down the hill, she halted, her brows furrowed. “Dealing with constables is tricky. Plus, who has had more run-ins with the law? You or me?”
