Page 25 of Foes, Friends and Lovers
Caitlin laughed, and she and Cynster farewelled Joshua, Old Wallace, and Hendricks. As she and Cynster walked back toward the carpentry barns, she murmured, “By raising the prospect of increasing the herds, you’ve made them very happy.”
A grin split Cynster’s face. “I’m delighted to be of service.”
Surprisingly, that statement carried the ring of truth. After a moment of pondering that, she ventured, “You’ve given several business leaders quite a lot to think about.”
Sliding his hands into his breeches pockets, he shrugged. “That’s part of being a good owner, or so I’ve always been taught.” He glanced back at the pens, then at the glassblowing workshop, the forge, and the carriage works and wryly admitted, “Mind you, I didn’t expect to be working with businesses such as these. Thus far, Joshua’s domain is the nearest to what I had assumed I would find here. Regardless, it seems senseless not to offer whatever insights I have.”
She nodded approvingly. That was exactly the attitude she would most wish the owner of Bellamy Hall to have.
The carpentry barns loomed ahead. As they rounded them, anticipating his questions, she said, “This barn—the first—was built about six years ago, when Percy joined the household. I gather he met Timms in London—how, I’ve never heard—and she invited him to come and see what he thought of living in the country, and he loved it here, so he stayed.”
“Minnie was much the same,” Cynster said. “As far back as I can remember, there were always various people here. It was one of those things that gave the place its eccentric character. To my siblings’ and my childish eyes, the mix of people at the Hall was just as fantastical as the house itself.”
She smiled. “I can see how that might have been. Timms told me she acted as she did—inviting people to come and stay—because she knew that was what Minnie would have wanted her to do.”
“I won’t argue that. From what I’ve seen thus far, this is exactly the sort of eclectic yet somehow coherent household Minnie would have delighted in. She was always interested in people and in encouraging them in whatever endeavors most called to them.” He paused, then more quietly added, “I suppose, in a way, to achieve their heart’s desire.”
She looked up as they turned the corner and headed toward the open doors. “That sounds very like Timms as well.”
They walked into the carpentry workshop and were immediately assailed by the sharp scent of shaved wood.
Percy glanced up from the chair he was working on, saw them, downed his tools, and came forward. “Cynster! Glad you could make it.” Beaming, Percy spread his hands wide, indicating a plethora of pieces of fine furniture in varying stages of completion. “Come—let me show you around.”
Gregory went with Percy, while Caitlin remained by the door.
Percy introduced Gregory to the other two craftsmen—Joe and Paul—both of whom were shaping pieces of wood that, ultimately, would fit together as part of a tallboy.
When Gregory asked what specific items they made, Percy replied, “We occasionally make a table or something more practical for someone on the estate—like the bindery worktable we recently made for the Suttons—but as everything that goes out of this workshop is built to last, these days, it’s generally pieces of finer furniture for drawing rooms, dining rooms, bedchambers, and the like.”
Percy led the way to the piece he’d been working on. “These days, I rarely get time to do anything that’s not on order.”
That last was said with considerable pride as Percy ran his hand almost lovingly over the curved piece of wood he’d been working on, and when Gregory laid eyes on what was clearly to be the curved back of a dining chair, he could understand the man’s absorption. Although as yet unfinished, the carving was exquisite. Gregory could easily see such a piece gracing some duchess’s dining room in London… He hesitated, then said, “I made a suggestion to Vernon that I suspect would work just as well for you.”
Percy looked up. “Always happy to entertain suggestions.”
Gregory explained his notion of ton ladies being drawn to pieces with their husbands’ heraldic coat of arms included in the carving. “As that would signal it was an exclusive piece—always a point with ton ladies—and the more I think of it, the more clearly I can see said ladies fighting to place orders. It might well become all the rage, and then you’ll be beating them off.”
Percy looked intrigued. “Coats of arms, you say?”
“And the animals and symbols that are included in such arms.”
Percy’s face lit, and Gregory saw him exchange a boyishly eager look with his crew, who had paused in their work to listen.
Gregory grinned. “I told Vernon I’d make a sketch of a coat of arms I think would be useful for him to start with—and perhaps I should add a few others of the husbands of ladies I know.” He was thinking of his sister and also of several cousins, all of whom had married titled men.
Percy looked enthused. “If you could give me copies as well, perhaps we could work up a few sample pieces?”
Gregory nodded. “I will. There are two specific coats of arms that, assuming the sample is anything like this”—he nodded at the carved chair back—“I would want to commission pieces with.” For Therese and also his uncle Gerrard, both of whom would appreciate such work and could be counted on—if Gregory asked—to spread the word far and wide. “One will be the coat of arms of the Earls of Alverton, and the other will be the Bellamy crest.” Gerrard would be tickled with a piece displaying the latter that came from Bellamy Hall. “I’ll let you have the sketches as soon as I can and also let you know what sort of pieces I’d like them on.”
“Excellent!” Percy clapped his hands and shared an excited look with Joe and Paul. “We’ll get on with what we have before us so we’ll be ready to take on your challenge as soon as we see the sketches.”
With everyone pleased and, indeed, enthused, Gregory farewelled Percy and his men and rejoined Caitlin at the door.
She called to Percy, “Anything you need beyond the usual, Percy?”
“Not this week, m’love, but we will need more of that special glue next week. We’re almost out.”
“I’ll put it on the list,” Caitlin assured him. Smiling, she waved Gregory out and turned to walk with him.
