Page 3 of Lady Edith and the Registry Office
“I think I’ve found a worthy project, Louisa. I will volunteer at the Veteran’s Registry Office.” She grinned, pleased with herself.
“That is an excellent idea, Edith.” Louisa placed her magazine on the table in front of her. “We should leave soon to rest before the rout this evening.”
Charlotte’s mother usually chaperoned the young women, but after her daughter's wedding, she'd left Town for the country. One of Louisa’s four brothers would be their escort tonight as her family would not depart for their country estate for another week.
Louisa studied Edith’s hair again and sighed. “I will arrive at your home a few minutes early as we really must do something with your hair and I should speak with the maid I sent you. So many curls! Mary should know better.”
Chapter Two
“What made me thinkwe could open a registry office?” Nathaniel ran a hand through his hair, ruffling the blondish-brown locks.
“Ashford will return from his wedding trip soon,” Lady Diana, Lord Ashford’s sister, replied soothingly, “and the grand opening will be a great success.”
He let out a breath. “I know you’re right. And you did most of the work setting up the registry.”
The young woman with raven hair and Cerulean blue eyes identical to her brother’s replied, “As much as I would like to take all the credit, you did help. Without your generous donation, the registry wouldn’t be opening.”
Money. Giving money was easy. Volunteering was the hard part. As a peer of the realm, he’d remained in the background, allowing Diana to make most of the decisions regarding furniture and staffing. In Town, as in the countryside, it was more acceptable to see a woman volunteering in the community.
Nathaniel and his friend Ashford purchased the land where several businesses on the street resided to save a nearby lending library from being put out of business by the Rogue’s Alliance, a mysterious London crime organization. Subsequently, Ashford had won the heart of his wife, Lady Charlotte, who had also been trying to save the library. After encountering several of the enlisted men they’d served with searching for work in London, Nathaniel and Ashford decided to open a registry in Berkeley Square to assist war veterans in finding employment.
The room smelled of the beeswax used to polish the wood trim fittings, and the front windows were sparkling clean, as was the scarred oak flooring beneath his feet.
A bell pealed as the door to the shop opened.
“We’re not open yet,” one of the male staff members called out.
“It’s okay, Porter.” Diana chuckled. “It’s just my brother and his wife.”
Nathaniel spun on his heel to see his friend Ashford enter the shop accompanied by Charlotte. They both glowed with good health and smiled softly at each other.
“Marriage looks to agree with you, Ashford,” Diana said by way of welcome.
“It does.” Her brother added dryly, “And time away from the bustle of London did not go amiss.”
Nathaniel greeted the marquess and his wife, and Diana proceeded to introduce the couple to the registry staff: two men, Mr. Porter and Mr. Taylor, and a woman, Mrs. Stafford.
