“Shower, bath, who the hell cares. I need to shower every morning. It wakes me up, gets me going, especially if I don’t have coffee.” She glared at him. “You know, start the day off right and not offend your coworkers with your stench.”
He discreetly sniffed his person. He did not stink.
“We should go. No stopping until nightfall.”
“You have got to be kidding me.”
The shrillness of her tone made him flinch.
“At least tell me what time it is so I know how much damage Mitch has done. It’s bad enough I missed the party. Maybe I can still salvage this disaster.”
The fire out, he cleared away any sign of their presence. Who knew what ruffians might be lurking about.
“As I said, mistress, ’tis morning.”
The booted foot she stamped had him wishing to examine the craftsmanship. He wanted to touch the leather, but if he did, she might well kick him.
“Be more specific. You must have a watch even if you don’t have a phone. Exactly when in the morning?”
Had his brothers faced such ill treatment when they first mettheir wives? Were they all so unpleasant at first, these future girls? The men in their time must cover their ears all day long.
“Why does the time matter? We will get where we are going when we arrive.”
Her mouth fell open and she shut it with a snap. “Look, you might be homeless or living out some kind of crazy fantasy out here in the woods, I don’t know, but normal people care about the time. We have schedules, appointments, things to do.”
She stepped forward and poked him in the chest, her head coming to his shoulder. When she had to lean back to frown up at him, he knew it made her angry to do so, from the way her nostrils flared and her cheeks turned red.
“Let me tell you something: the world runs on time. Down to the minute, no, down to the second. Every single day, I have a crazy busy schedule with no room for nonsense.”
She seemed to realize she was standing close enough for him to smell her. The scent of roses filled his nose. With a gulp, she took two steps back, breathing heavily.
“We have to hurry. I’m going to lose my job.”
“Let us begin with your name and from where you hail.” He wanted to see what she would say.
“Oh, right. Sorry, I’m only rude when I’m hungry or really late. I’m Ashley, Ashley Bennett. From New York City.” Seeing the look on his face, she rolled her eyes. “You know, in America?”
Aye, he knew this America. ’Twas where his brothers’ wives hailed from. Christian looked to the skies, wondering if the bloody fates were laughing at him along with the rest of England.
“Christian. At your service, mistress. What, pray tell, is this important job you must make haste to arrive at a particular time of day?”
While she talked, she sidled up to the horse, eyeing the animal dubiously.
“I’m in finance. My company is merging with a firm based in London, and my job’s at stake. It’s between me and one other guy,who’s a slimy jerk who’ll do anything to steal this job out from under me. One wins and the other is out.” She snapped her fingers.
While he didn’t understand most of what she’d said, he did understand how important it was to her to go to London. He could aid her. London was four days’ ride from Winterforth. Once he took her where she wished to go, then he would tell her how to get back to her own time. Or at least what he knew—it wasn’t as if there was a door she could walk through and find herself back home.
“When must you be at this job in London?” He cocked his head. “We are a long ways from there.”
As he watched, she sniffed the horse, wrinkled her nose, and stepped back. “I know we’re a long ways away. I’ve been driving around this country forever. It’s a long story. There was a storm, so the plane detoured to Wales. Then I got lost and ended up here. Wherever here is.”
She seemed to be looking for someone.
“Are you traveling alone?”
“We’re not in some backward country. I’m a grown woman, perfectly capable of traveling alone without a big, strong man by my side.”
She thought he was strong. He was pleasing to her.
