Page 57 of The Moonstone Governess
“One for the better, it seems. I will have to stop by and visit you in Moonstone Landing. You have accomplished quite a bit in the few weeks since you arrived there. Secured a house, now having it refurbished inside and out, and you seem quite confident in this governess you have hired. Teaching girls at the Rainard Academy is not at all the same as trying to manage your nephew. He’s a damaged lad…scared, angry, trusting of no one.”
He may as well have been describing Daire at that age. “If anyone can do it, it is Brenna.”
Jax arched an eyebrow. “Brenna, is it? I did not realize the two of you are on a first-name basis.”
Daire settled in one of the cozy tufted leather chairs beside the hearth. “Do not make anything of it. The villagers are all welcoming, and there is a refreshing innocence about them… Most of them, anyway. Sometimes I feel as though I have stepped through the mists of time and come upon a strange new world where people are helpful and friendly.”
Jax settled in the chair beside his and chuckled. “Now I definitely must pay you a visit. In fact, let me ride back with you once you’ve finished your business in Plymouth. I have nothing pressing at the moment and could do with a few days away from here.”
Daire shrugged. “Suit yourself. You will find it quite dull, just as Hollingsworth and Danson did.”
Jax shook his head. “I think I will enjoy the change of pace. I really need to get away from the sophisticated women and discontented men who come here looking for a nightly thrill. People only come to my gaming hells because they are dissatisfied with their lives. Some are more desperate than others, but by and large they are unhappy people.”
“And you, Jax?”
“Oh, I am quite happy making a profit off them. But this is not what I want for myself. Unfortunately, one does not meet the right sort of woman here, and until I recently became Earl of Bradford, who would ever allow their sweet daughters near me? No, it is time for me to look seriously for someone worthy to marry. I’m ready for it,” he said, his manner quite earnest. “The ache grows inside me with each passing day. Do you think I will find what I am looking for in Moonstone Landing?”
“I have no idea.” Daire had not meant to bring along a companion, but Jax was a good friend. Probably as close a friend as Daire ever had, although he never allowed anyone to get truly close to him. But he was determined to try harder, because Jax had always been generous, never asking him for anything in return, not even in those hard days when Jax was obviously struggling to set up his gaming hells.
*
The next morning,Daire strode out of the gaming club on his way to Dumbley & Hayworth and heard Jax call after him. “Wait for me. I’m coming with you.”
Daire tried not to appear impatient. “Why? All I am doing is selecting curtains, for pity’s sake.”
His friend grinned. “Precisely. I need to see this for myself. The fierce Daire Claymore ordering decorative fabrics. I promise not to laugh, at least not while we are in their shop. However, I reserve the right to tease you mercilessly afterward.”
Daire groaned. “All right, come along. But I shall kick your arse to London and back if you give me a hard time about it.”
“I’ll be quiet as a mouse in the shop, I promise.”
“Ha!” Daire shook his head. “Come on, then.”
They walked in to find the place already bustling. Mr. Dumbley fussed over Daire to the point of irritation, but he could not complain, since everything was moving more swiftly than he ever expected. The seamstresses were following Brenna’s designs to the letter. The fabrics were all in stock. The delivery dates were all going to be met.
Daire was waiting for the hammer to drop, because things never went this smoothly. But Brenna and Felicity had been quite thorough and precise, so Mr. Dumbley had no trouble finding all the right patterns, while Mr. Hayworth supervised his staff of seamstresses to make certain they kept to the precise measurements. “The styles drawn by your decorator are quite elegant and will always remain popular,” Mr. Dumbley assured him.
Daire and Jax walked out by late morning, all arrangements in place, including delivery of the first completed items to commence next week. Since everything was moving along with military precision, Daire thought about packing up and leaving Plymouth immediately. It was early enough that he could be back in Moonstone Landing by nightfall, which fell late at this time of the year.
Jax must have sensed what he was thinking. “Stay the night and I’ll ride back with you tomorrow morning.”
Daire agreed, for no reason other than he considered it wise to keep that distance between him and Brenna. There wasn’t much for him to do in Plymouth, but he joined Jax in a ride around the countryside in order to exercise Scipio and Jax’s stallion. Whenever they were not riding along the seacoast, they rode beside streams and rivers that led into the sea. Afterward, they stopped at a quaint pub, where they had their fill of crab stew, roasted rabbit, pasties, and ale.
The distraction did not prove much of a distraction at all, because Daire could not get his mind off Brenna and how disappointed she had looked when he announced he was coming here on his own. Well, perhaps he would take her to Plymouth along with his family later in the summer. She would enjoy the excursion.
He grinned at the thought of her frowning at him because he had no intention of allowing her to pay for anything along the way, not even any purchases she made while browsing the Plymouth shops.
Perhaps he would buy her something now, something pretty to match her eyes.
Bollocks.
Was he that besotted with the girl?
Daire looked in at Dumbley & Hayworth later that afternoon, saw all was still in perfect order, then spent a quiet evening at the card tables in Jax’s gaming hell. He later shared a bottle of gin with his friend. “Be ready at first light,” he told Jax.
“I’ll be ready,” his friend assured him.
*
