Page 74 of The Pursuit of Mrs. Pennyworth
23
Charlotte had not dared to breathe a sigh of relief at having Mr. Talbot deceased, and the packages no longer arriving. But after a week had gone by with nothing new appearing on her doorstep, she began to believe that the man she’d known as a friend to her husband, who had been a solace to her after his death, had truly been the one harassing her.
She drew on her gloves and viewed herself in the mirror at the entrance hall. Elliot was to arrive shortly to escort her to an Assembly. After the funeral, he’d moved back into his rooms, and she hadn’t seen him since. He sent a note around that he’d been quite busy catching up on work that had been neglected while he’d worked on her case. The next day, he’d sent another note asking her to attend the Assembly with him.
Despite her best intentions, she’d fallen hopelessly in love. She tried ever so hard to avoid it happening, but once he was gone, she knew it to be true. Her concerns about being married to a man with such a dangerous occupation had taken a backseat to her newfound, or perhaps her newly admitted, feelings for him.
She strolled into the drawing room to await his arrival. The fact that he had not mentioned his marriage proposal concerned her. Had he changed his mind? Too restless to sit, she walked the room, trying to settle her restless mind.
A rap at the front door drew her attention. Once she heard Elliot’s voice, she left the drawing room to join him. Her heart pounded and her breath caught as she spotted him speaking with Thomas. His hair had still not dried completely from his bath, and damp curls fell on his broad forehead.
His overcoat accented his broad shoulders, and the muscles on his arms. He turned as she approached and offered her a bright smile. Her knees turned to jelly, and she knew right then if he were to repeat his proposal, she would accept. With pleasure.
“Good evening, Mrs. Pennyworth.” He gave her a slight bow and took her extended hand. “You are looking lovely this evening, as always.”
For goodness sakes, she felt a blush begin in her middle and rise all the way to her face. “Thank you, Mr. Baker. You are looking quite well, yourself. I assume your arm has continued to heal?”
“Yes.” He rotated his arm. “A bit sore, but otherwise, I am as good as new.” He took her coat from Thomas and held it out for her. Feeling like a young miss on her first outing with a man, she stifled a giggle and turned to allow him to assist her into the garment.
Elliot extended his arm. “Shall we be off?”
The ride to the Assembly was quite pleasant, with them chatting about recent events in the newspaper.
“One story that did not make the newspapers, took place in my office.”
Charlotte offered him an encouraging smile. “Oh?”
“A woman made an appointment for this morning. She told my secretary she wished to draw up a Will. When she arrived, it was with a great deal of pomp and circumstance. She brought a maid and footman with her, who held four dogs on their laps. The woman requested tea even before she sat down and had me re-arrange the chairs in my office to suit what she said was a ‘more pleasant arrangement’.”
“Well, that was pretty pretentious of her.”
“The best is yet to come.” He rested his foot on his knee, his grin growing wider. “She apparently had a great deal of money. We went through the usual procedure of who she wanted to leave various items to. When we reached her—considerable—fortune, she handed me a list of names.
“Client confidentiality prohibits me from stating the names, but there were seven first and last names. All the last names were the same as hers, so I assumed they were siblings, or perhaps children.”
The assembly rooms rose out of the mist, the lights from inside the building casting a glow at the carriages that stopped to discharge passengers. “You must finish your story. I can tell by the look in your eyes there is something very funny about this.”
“Indeed. When I questioned her further, it turned out the seven heirs to her fortune were dogs.”
“Dogs?”
“Yes, dogs. The four who had accompanied her to my office, along with three others she told me were at home, not enjoying travel as much.”
Charlotte burst out laughing, thinking how she had missed him, and how entertaining he could be. They both laughed so hard, they could hardly catch their breath.
Once their vehicle came to a stop, a footman hired for the evening to assist the guests opened the door to the carriage. Elliot stepped out first and nudged the man aside so he could help Charlotte out. She smiled to herself at the glare he sent the footman, who backed away, and returned to his post at the door.
It felt good to be out and about once again. She found it amusing that she’d attended numerous events by herself before Elliot had come into her life, yet she had refused two invitations since he’d gone back to his rooms because she had not wanted to attend alone. Of course, before Elliot, Mr. Talbot had escorted her.
Every time she thought of the man, her heart grew heavy. He’d been such a good friend to her before he’d obviously gone a bit out of his mind. She sighed as they entered the assembly room.
“Is everything all right?” Elliot leaned down and spoke quietly into her ear. “You seem somewhat saddened.”
She shook off her malaise. “Yes, everything is fine.” Offering him a bright smile, she walked with him into the room, greeting friends she hadn’t seen since the funeral. A trio of musicians finished tuning up, and the master of ceremonies announced the first set, a cotillion. She and Elliot joined the line of dancers.
Once they returned from the rigors of the dance, Elliot fetched her a lemonade, and Lord Monroe approached her to request a dance. She reached out to take the glass from Elliot, as he bent toward her. “Save at least one waltz for me.”
She grinned and waved her dance card at him. “Just pick one.”
