Page 21 of The Swan Syndicate
“We’ll see about this.” He stormed out of the room, not bothering to shut the door behind him.
What had the spymaster been thinking? Of all the preposterous notions.
He marched through the manor, sorry for making two housemaids and a footman back away as he passed by. It took several strides before he stopped and glanced back. He thought he’d scared them, but on reflection, had they been smiling? He didn’t see anything funny about the situation.
He burst into his west-wing study where Hensley was writing a letter. He didn’t seem surprised to see him.
“What’s this about giving Stella a role in the mission?”
Hensley held back a grin, but it appeared to require every ounce of his unflappable countenance to do it. He dipped the quill and continued to write. “That wasn’t quite what I said.”
Beckworth calmed. “What exactly did you say?”
“I said a woman might provide alternatives to the mission, but she’d have to abide by Jamie’s decision on who has a role.”
“I should have expected her to shape the words to her benefit.” He paced in front of the windows that looked out to the garden.
“Yes, you should have.” Hensley set down the quill and sprinkled pounce over it.
“Well, I still say she can’t go.”
Hensley chortled. “But that’s up to her and Jamie, isn’t it?”
“Not if I say otherwise.”
Hensley’s brows lifted. “Did the two of you get married that I wasn’t aware of?”
“No. It hasn’t been the right time to consider it.”
“Fair enough. But that leaves it with her to decide.”
“But she’s under my care while we’re here.”
“She might be under your protection, but not your decisions. You’re not her husband, father, uncle, or brother. Therefore, all you can do is guide her. You know that.”
Beckworth sat, then stood, and strode to his liquor cart where he poured a finger of whiskey that he swallowed whole. He lifted the bottle toward Hensley, who nodded, and he poured two fingers for him and replenished his own glass.
“This has become more difficult than I thought. Now Finn’s words before we jumped make sense.”
“And what were those?”
“He said traveling back to this time after living in the future has a way of changing one’s perspective. That I might become overly protective or some nonsense.”
“Finn has the experience in this area.”
“Bloody hell, the woman gets seasick. Why would she want to travel onboard a ship to track down a smuggler? It would be simpler to wait here.”
“Did you consider this might have something to do with you leaving her behind?”
He finished the whiskey. “And when did you become so wise?”
“After many years of marriage.” Hensley folded the letter, then picked up the quill, dipping it in ink to scratch out a name. When he reached for the wax, he offered another suggestion. “You can try bargaining with Jamie. He’s having the carriage hitched up.”
He shook his head, but it was worth a try.
After leaving Hensley, he strode to the stables, though the farther he walked, the less his heart was in it. Once Stella got an idea in her head it was almost impossible to change it. On occasion, he’d been able to adjust her notions to their mutual satisfaction with a well-laid-out countermove. He was hard-pressed to think of one for this situation. Her issues with seasickness had been his only play. Why the devil had she thought to bring medicine to counteract it?
The carriage was hitched and ready, but it didn’t take long to find Jamie, who was with the foal. The colt was becoming comfortable with people, and he pranced around Jamie, still wobbly on his legs.
