Page 62 of Doing No Harm
“That is all?”
“For now.” He could be cagey too. He had started this trip north to find a place to settle, not anticipating so many complications to a simple quest. He felt the warmth begin somewhere around his pectoral muscles and spread north to his forehead. He saw the growing amusement on Lady Telford’s broad and plain face, and he felt like Dougie again.
But that was silly; this was a business proposal and nothing more. He smiled at her, thinking he would do almost anything to convince Lady Telford that his scheme was a good one, for whatever reason. No, for the reason that Flora MacLeod’s kind lady deserved someone to watch over her.
He looked at Lady Telford; she stared back at him, the warmth in her eyes touching his heart. “It’s a legacy worthy of the wife of a baronet,” he told her. “This corporation will change lives for the better. What say you, Lady Telford?”
She did not hesitate. She put out her hand and he shook it.
His hand still in hers, he said, “You are certainlycapable of drawing up terms. Do that. In a day or two I will go back to Plymouth and find us a shipwright. When I return, we will sit down with your solicitor and go over this contract between you and me.”
The pressure on his hand was firm. “Will you find such a man?”
“I will. This I do not doubt.” He looked at his timepiece. “I leave you to think about the matter. I have a patient who needs my attention.”
She showed him out herself, her hand on his shoulder, which he found oddly comforting, even if she was an old rip who had frightened him as a child. He was no child now.
Chapter 26
Mrs. Aintree’s hand showed nosigns of infection, to Douglas’s relief. Mrs. Tavish’s solicitous care of the lady impressed him. Tommy’s sutures came out easily. Mrs. Aintree had insisted that Douglas perform that bit of business right there in her room so she could watch, which told him worlds about the widow’s growing interest in the Tavishes.
Tommy was stoic and steadfast as Douglas cut and tugged, probably because his mother and Mrs. Aintree watched him so anxiously. Douglas gave him a wink the women couldn’t see and told the boy to keep breathing, which made him laugh.
“That is it,” he said as he applied another bandage, encasing Tommy’s leg from knee to ankle as before, and attaching the splints again. “You will continue to exercise some caution,” he admonished, knowing full well that Tommy had no such plans.
“Aye, sir,” the rascal said.
It was time to lower the boom, probably past time, but Tommy Tavish was an engaging rascal, and Douglas admitted to other distractions. He stood up, givinghimself at least the advantage of height. He had no trouble remembering his Royal Navy days, because it hadn’t been that long ago. He tapped the boy’s chest to gain his full attention, looked down his nose, and frowned.
“Listen, Thomas. If, in my professional opinion, I see you disregarding all caution, I will reapply that splint that ran from your ankle to your armpit. Don’t even try me.”
Tommy gasped. “You wou …” He stopped and saw no sympathy in anyone’s eyes. “You probably would,” he admitted.
“I can guarantee it. Do we understand each other?”
“Aye, sir,” Tommy said most reluctantly. He sighed, very much a small boy again, and left the room with considerable dignity, muttering to himself.
Douglas turned his attention to the women in Tommy’s life. “Ladies, if you see any infractions, just let me know. I will do as I promised.”
He sat down again and turned Mrs. Aintree’s hand over gently, pleased with what he saw. He tried a different tactic with the widow and kissed her cheek, which made her blush like a maiden.
“And you, dear lady, stay in bed another day. Tomorrow is soon enough to try out the sling and move about.” He smiled. “I trust you considerably more than I trust Tommy.”
Mrs. Tavish walked him down the stairs. He spent a quiet moment with her in the kitchen, inquiring after Joe Tavish.
He watched her eyes for wariness or disgust and saw none. “Thank you for tidying up that man of yours, Rhona,” he said, unsure how to proceed because he had never been married, and certainly never gone through anything resembling the Tavishes’ experience. “I prefer that he remain in the shed, but if you have other ideas …”
“Not at the moment, although he is my husband and I care a great deal for the man, as difficult as he may be,” shesaid honestly. “I’ll see that he has food from Miss Grant’s Tearoom, unless Mrs. Aintree feels charitable enough to include him in her kind stewardship.”
He gave her a bow, grateful for the ladies. He doubted that he would have been so forgiving.
Flora MacLeod grabbed him in a monstrous hug as he entered Miss Grant’s Tearoom. She held out a little drawstring bag that she said Brighid Dougall had presented to her. Flora made him heft it, delighting him that his first modest enterprise in Edgar was bearing good fruit, if the weight of the pouch was any indication.
“Mrs. Dougall put up a bigger sign in her window too,” Flora said. “Both MacGregor sisters are helping me now.”
He handed back the pouch. “Keep it safe, Flora. Maybe give it to Miss Grant. No, give it to Mrs. Dougall for safekeeping.”
Flora nodded. “I think she likes me.”
