Page 39 of Married By Twelfth Night
He watched her slow swallow. “Why?”
He reluctantly released her. “It’s pretty.”
He might have to marry her sister one day, but this seemed like something important he needed to say.
She stared at him, disbelieving. “If you’re trying to get out of confiding in me, it’s working.”
He grinned. “If you’re trying to cheer me up, it’s working.”
She laughed. “I don’t even know what’s bothering you.”
He looked over her head at Bridget to assure she was still occupied. “But you noticed, and you genuinely cared to ask about it. In truth, it’s nothing new. I had a lovely meeting with my solicitor with more grave news about Belside.”
“Oh, Richard. I’m so sorry. What can I do to help? There has to be something.”
He reached up and touched her elbow. “You are helping. We’ve made progress, haven’t we?”
She sighed. “Have we?”
“Mr. Dobson is out of the picture and,” he lowered his voice, “Ruth actually speaks to me now.”
“But your timeline?”
He sighed. He should have proposed by now and posted the bans. “I know.”
Bridget and Ruth came up behind them. “What are you two talking about?” Bridget asked. “Grace looks like she is going to cry.”
“Who me?” Grace produced a shaky laugh. “I daresay you imagined it. Let’s fetch our cloaks and start our treasure hunt.”
They proceeded from the room, Grace ushering the women through the door. She looked back at him over her shoulder and whispered. “It will all work out. I know it.”
The problem felt too big to fix, but he found himself trusting her once again. He believed Grace capable of anything. And having her on his side this time felt like wind lifting his heavy sails and propelling him toward home.
Chapter 16
Grace had never beenmistletoe hunting before. Ruth had led them directly to an apple tree and pointed out the small cluster of plant growth in the otherwise sleeping limb.
“Mistletoe is such a strange plant, is it not?” Richard asked her.
Grace studied the small, creeping plant. “I admit, I have never been mistletoe hunting before. In my ignorance, I thought it grew like a blueberry shrub.”
“And here I thought you knew everything,” he said.
“I like words and clever turns of phrase, but I am not the bookish sister, remember? The majority of what I have learned in this life is based solely on experience.”
The Grahams’ gardener sent his son scaling the tree to fetch the mistletoe for them. Not more than twelve, the lad moved like a spider. She watched him as she spoke. “I wish I knew more, read more, studied more. Ruth seems to know a little of everything. I envy her diligence.”
“Yes, but Ruth would never have snuck into her neighbor’s house to bring her best friend’s brother food when he had been sent to his room without dinner.”
“You knew about that?” She had forgotten. It had been years ago.
He nodded. “You left the front door open and trailed mud behind you. You were easy enough to follow.”
She laughed and the others looked her way. She waited until everyone was once again enthralled by the actions of the boy in the tree. “You covered for us and lied that you had broken the vase when it was our fault.” Richard had plenty of redeeming moments, but she had forgotten most of them. Now she wondered how she could have forgotten this particular memory.
“What really happened to that vase?”
“You mean, you did not even know why you lied for us? We had let the new puppies into the house, and we were so worried they’d kill one of them if we told the truth.”
