Page 36 of Read To Me, Lyon

He pulled her close. “Will you do me a favor?”

“Anything, my love.”

“Come upstairs with me. I slept like rot without you by my side. I’m exhausted.”

“Me too,” Kitty said as they untangled from each other and stood. Oliver grasped her hand, not wanting to let her go. “We will sleep, and then tomorrow morning you will explain your specialized publications to me.”

Kitty beamed. “I would like that. We will go to the bookshop and printing press warehouse.”

Chapter Fourteen

Kitty took Oliver’s hand as she stepped down from the carriage, so excited that she would be showing Oliver around her family’s business today. He’d only been to Larson Bookshop and Printing Press once, and that was before they married. Kitty, until now, had tried to keep him away because of her secrets.

She knew now she’d been foolish to withhold something she cared so much about from him. Oliver took her arm, and they continued to the warehouse. Jack and Shannon would be there. They always prepared the next week’s printing schedule on Sunday, allowing the warehouse employees to start right away on Monday.

The underground events for illicit books were held in the warehouse, away from prying eyes. The door opened just as they reached it. Jack peered at them, clearly surprised to find Oliver with her. He turned red and bowed. “My lord…”

Oliver waved it away. “No need for any of that. I’m here to learn about books.”

Jack’s gaze flitted to her, and she said, “Including the illegal ones.”

Shannon peeked out from behind her husband. “You told him then?”

“I did.”

Oliver glanced at Kitty. She blushed. “Please meet Shannon and Jack Green. They have worked at the bookshop and warehouse longer than any other employees. You should know that they also urged me to tell you about the books right away.”

Her husband beamed at the Greens. “I like you both already so much.”

Jack chuckled and stepped aside to allow Oliver and Kitty entry.

Excited, she showed him their production process. Kitty pointed to the paper stacked along one wall and then explained that pasteboards and adhesives were used to bind the books. Then she brought him to the center of the room, where multiple stations held the forms for metal letters that could be placed in frames and pressed to make pages. It smelled of ink and metal, a familiar scent and one of Kitty’s favorites in the world. She loved this place and what they did here. They were not the largest printing press in London, but also not the smallest.

Kitty showed Oliver how they printed the pages and then, because he seemed fascinated, demonstrated how they bound the books by sewing pages together and using extremely sticky glue on their edges to adhere them to the spine and the covers. She handed him the sample book she’d created, a slim, blank volume when she was done. Oliver took it almost reverently and beamed at her. “You love this place.”

She nodded. “It is all I’ve ever known. Hazel, Anna, and I grew up in this warehouse.”

“Are they as passionate about it as you are?”

“They care about it,” she said.

“Lady Everly is being modest, my lord. She has been key in growing the Larson Bookshop and Printing Press. She even has us testing out some steam engine presses,” Jack said, piping up from a workstation along the wall. Kitty smiled kindly at his words of praise.

“You amaze me,” Oliver said to Kitty.

She felt heat racing to her cheeks. “Enough of that. We all put in time, and to answer your question, yes, Hazel and Anna care about this place.”

“They don’t love it like you,” Jack said insistently.

“It is all I have left of my mum and dad.”

Oliver turned in a circle, studying the space. “Keeping this going is a marvelous way to honor your parents.”

Warmth shot through Kitty. She was glad he felt that way. It was important that Oliver understood how much all of this mattered to her. Next, she wanted to show him what the underground market looked like. She’d sent a missive requesting that Shannon and Jack set up the room they used for the illicit book events, so he could see it firsthand. And, perhaps, spend some time alone together.

She turned to her friends and employees. “I think we can manage from here. Why don’t you both enjoy the rest of the day off?”

Shannon frowned. “Are you sure? We can stay.”