Page 16 of Meet A Rogue At Midnight
He breached the upper floor’s light to the startled Halsey women. Mrs. Halsey stood as tall as Livvy, her brown eyes flaring wide, the mildly exotic tilt of her eyes a gift from mother to daughter. Lines etched their outer corners, and a faint pallor marked her features. Dressed in deep purple, her graying auburn hair swept high off her forehead. She was rustic elegance, though not of English stock. Rumor had it she hailed from the Commonwealth of Lithuania, the daughter of an antiquarian.
Livvy smiled at him, her thick copper-colored braid curving over her shoulder, the tip dangling where black lacing nipped her waist. A very pleasant, very male bolt shot through him, beginning at his heart and landing in the placket of his breeches.
“Good morning, Jonas. You are looking hale and hearty,” Mrs. Halsey said, one brow arching. “And with a gold earring no less.”
He removed his tricorne and sketched a bow. “A necessary evil when I took to the seas.”
“Then, you weren’t a pirate.” She smiled, folding both hands before her.
He flashed a chaste grin at Livvy and removed his coat. “No, ma’am.”
“The people of Plumtree entertained themselves with tales of your plunders on the high seas. At least until the Captain disabused them.” Head canting to one side, she studied him. “This renown matters not to you, I think.”
“It does not, ma’am.”
Livvy tucked both hands behind her back, smiling boldly at him. “I think Mr. Braithwaite looks like a gentleman of fortune.”
Her voice did things to him, made him want to listen to her for the pure joy of hearing her voice. How had he missed that yesterday? Livvy Halsey trod a different path than London’s frothy misses. Would any of those well-bred young women don breeches and climb trees to give their father a token of comfort in his last days? Livvy Halsey was all heart, a woman who wore her keen mind and adventurous spirit well.
Clamping both hands behind his back, he stood ramrod straight. “I was third mate on theCarlottafor Sanford Shipping Company. Simple as that. I’m sure you’ve heard of theCarlotta? It was the Earl of Greenwich’s ship for his naturalist voyage.”
“Indeed.” Mrs. Halsey eyed the gold earring. “I’ve read his pamphlets on the healing properties of African plants.”
Her refined manners wouldn’t allow probing questions about the gold on his ear. He decided to save her the trouble of stewing over the odd gold piece.
“If you’re wondering about the earring…the lot of us had our ears pierced at a port in the West Indies.” He grinned, his chin dipping a fraction. “You could say there was much whiskey involved…that and the fear of God that should our bodies wash ashore from a shipwreck, the gold would pay for a proper Christian burial.”
Mrs. Halsey smiled back. “The same reasoning pirates give.”
“Very true, ma’am. Your knowledge of the seas shouldn’t surprise me given your experience with other topics.”
“I was a young woman once,” she said archly. “The appeal of a dashing man is not lost on me.”
“Age has no bearing with you, ma’am. Little slips past your notice.”
Mrs. Halsey’s laughter tinkled like a bell. “Jonas Braithwaite, you have come into your own. What a fine gentleman you are.” She looked askance between Livvy and Jonas, her tone knowing. “It is a good thing you are not long for Plumtree, or I would have to play chaperone.”
“Your daughter’s honor is safe with me.”
A kind glow lit her eyes. “As I believe it always has been.”
“I am standing beside you, Mother,” Livvy piped up.
Mrs. Halsey kissed her daughter’s cheek. “I know, dear, but I will always be your mother.” Looking to Jonas, she gave a regal nod to the curule chair sitting on a table. “Do you think you can bring life into the chair? Olivia says she informed you of its tremendous historic value.” She paused as if choosing her words with care. “You understand. We need a good…outcomein the sale of this artifact.”
He patted the satchel he’d dropped beside his coat and strode the long way around the table. “Yes, ma’am. I am up to the challenge—” He set the leather bag down “—and I am aware of the chair’s importance.”
Livvy met him at the table and opened book set near the chair. “I found these diagrams of other curule chairs. I thought they’d help.”
Her ink-stained fingers smoothed a faded forest green gown, this one free of lacey elbows.
“Olivia tells me you graciously returned Mr. Halsey’s old watch,” Mrs. Halsey said, her eyes glossy and bright. “For that, I am most grateful.”
“I’m pleased to bring some comfort to your family.” Jonas felt his ears warm from the admiration in her eyes. He swallowed the knot in his throat and untied the satchel. The Halsey family had always been kind to him. “I shall get to work, then.”
“I brought food.” She motioned to a basket covered with a red and white checked cloth. “Should you need anything else, please come to the house. Otherwise, I’ll take my leave and let the two of you get to work.”
“Thank you, ma’am.” Jonas unrolled the cloth full of chisels and set them on the table in order from smallest to largest.
