Too trusting, her eyes added. Whatever she’d learned about him, it was enough to make her anxious for her friend’s well-being.
Her husband seemed unprepared for this turn of conversation, watching Lyman cautiously.
“Don’t worry,” Lyman said with a nod. “I understand you perfectly.”
There was no point in argument or regret. Mrs. Williams had only echoed the fears in his own mind. This outing had given him a glimpse of what it would mean for Della if he tried to go out with her in public—pointed questions about his wife’s absence, flimsy excuses to paper over his past, fear and suspicion from anyone who truly cared about her. These were the troubles he would offer as a poor exchange for her company.
Della and Miss Williams returned at that moment, and everyone else looked away quickly, as if they’d been caught at some mischief.
“Oh good. We haven’t missed it,” Della said brightly, reclaiming her seat.
Lyman forced a smile that didn’t reach his heart.
“You didn’t miss a thing.”
***
If Lord Ashton seemed a bit more distant than usual at their meeting the next morning, Della could only attribute it to the worry he mustfeel at the prospect of having his personal affairs dragged before Parliament soon. The only good thing was that Della could speak to him freely now. True to her word, Annabelle had relinquished her role as chaperone in exchange for the successful engagement of Peter to her ruined lover.
“How are you? Has there been any news?”
“Nothing yet,” he replied. “I doubt I’ll have anything to tell you until after the court date.”
“When it is, exactly?” She’d known the date, but she hadn’t written it down before it flitted from her memory. She only recalled that it was soon. Next week or the one after.
“Next Friday,” he reminded her.
How had the time gone so quickly? They might only have one more meeting together, if he insisted on ending their connection if the story should make the papers.
Della pushed the unwelcome thought away. She wasn’t ready to say her goodbyes yet.
Ashton must be thinking the same thing, for he wore a solemn expression as he took some papers from his leather satchel. “I reviewed your chapter on the shops and wrote some notes for you in the margins. You’ll see there’s nothing too significant I would change; it’s quite good. Do you have anything else for me to look over?” He paused, then added, “We might want to work quickly.”
She had nothing, of course. Nothing at all. She’d gotten home from the play too late last night to start writing the chapter on theaters. Besides which, she hadn’t visited any place but the Lyceum recently. It was difficult to attend performances when she could only get away from Bishop’s on Sundays and Mondays, and every place was closed on Sunday so it hardly even counted. She’d already shown Ashton the only chapter she’d managed to finish, and their time together was nearly done!
Why didn’t I start on this sooner?Della lamented inwardly. She might have accomplished so much more if only she hadn’t put it off.
“I, uh…need a touch more time to finish up the next few chapters before I can share them with you. I’ll have them ready at our next meeting.”
They spent the rest of their half hour discussing how long she expected the book to be, given that she kept adding new subjects. Della assured Ashton that she still intended the volume to be shorter than his original, owing to the omission of several establishments that only admitted men (though she was less certain of this plan than she might have been if she’d only managed to locate her missing outline, which still eluded her). Sooner than she would have liked, it was time for him to go, and there was nothing left in her drawing room but a faint sense of longing.
Della wanted to start directly on her next chapter, but before that, she was determined to pay a quick call on the musicians she’d been thinking of engaging to perform at the club, a quartet Reva had recommended. As it turned out, they would be traveling for another obligation soon but they were free to attend tonight. Though she hadn’t planned on arranging the details on the spot, she didn’t want to lose the opportunity.
And so went most of her afternoon.
When she arrived in her office at Bishop’s—notebook in hand, lest she find a way to steal some time to write during a lull—she found Eli already waiting for her with a fair-haired man she’d never seen before.
“May I present Mr. Silas Corbyn?” They rose to their feet as she entered the room. “This is Miss Danby, the other co-owner of Bishop’s.”
Oh yes, she still had the new dealer to interview! So much for her writing.
“I’m so sorry, am I late?” She looked to Eli, who gave a sheepish sort of a look that indicated yes, she was. “I was held up meeting with some musicians to play here like we talked about. They’re coming tonight, so we need to decide where we should put them.”
Della wasn’t about to confess that she’d completely forgotten that their meeting with the new dealer was today, despite the fact that Eli and Jane had reminded her twiceandshe’d written herself a note. (No doubt it was with her missing outline.)
Why can’t I do anything right?
Della finally turned to assess him.
