Thomas glared at the man, and the rest of his words died. Harston flushed and pulled a handkerchief from a pocket, dabbing at his forehead. Martin stood. “Please consider it, Mr. Easton.”
Harston joined him. Thomas shook his head. “I have to decline respectfully. I would never ask my wife to resign from her club.”
Harston’s mouth became pinched. Mr. Martin didn’t seem as concerned but said, “I would love to meet you for a drink.”
Thomas could like Martin. Not Harston, he was an ass. He nodded, “Send me a missive. Good day, gentleman.”
He sat and snorted. Harston was the wrong person to convince him to join the men-only club. He wouldn’t participate because of their comments about Lisbeth. Still, he shuddered because even if there were no Lisbeth, Rose would be furious if he joined.
Thomas wondered why Martin didn’t visit his daughter’s club. It seemed strange. He imagined all families had their problems. Deciding not to work with the London Society of Antiquaries was no issue for Thomas. He was content with that decision. Still, he needed to find something to do with his time.
Jeremy burst through the doorway. “Thomas, will you go out in the garden with us? We are free from our studies. The governess said we can spend the rest of the afternoon outside.”
Alice stood behind her brother, not nearly as excited, but she was there. It was a start. He smiled. “I would like nothing more. Did you know that most of this area sits on top of Roman ruins?”
The young boy jumped excitedly. “I didn’t. Did you, Alice?”
The girl shook her head. Thomas leaned close to both of them. “Maybe we can find signs of the Romans.”
Jeremy’s eyes grew round, and Alice scoffed. He headed toward the door. “Let’s explore.”
Chapter Twenty-Four
Lisbeth stepped throughthe doors onto the terrace and discovered Thomas, Alice, and Jeremy on their knees studying the stone wall and a few pieces of rock. Jeremy’s eyes went wide. “Did we just make a discovery?”
Alice snorted. “It is make-believe.”
“But it could be real. Thomas said that the whole neighborhood of Mayfair was built on Roman ruins.”
Lisbeth smiled. “It is true.”
All three of them turned to look at her, still on their knees. Jeremy looked at Alice triumphantly. “See.”
Thomas chuckled. “We won’t ever know, but how exciting is it to speculate?”
Alice smiled at him, and Lisbeth’s heart equally ached and overflowed with love. She walked towards them. Both Alice’s and Jeremy’s faces were flushed. She giggled. “How long have you been exploring?”
Thomas shrugged, “Probably a couple of hours.
“He told us all about how you and he used to explore Mayfair searching for artifacts. Thomas said your first find was an ancient spear.”
“Don’t you have a spear on your vanity? Is it that one?” Alice asked.
Her eyes flew to Thomas, and she flushed. It was true, Lisbeth did keep the keepsake in her room. While she’d partedwith some of the treasures she and Thomas found as children, she’d never been able to give that one up. It was special.
A brief memory flashed in her mind.
*
Eight-year-old Lisbeth heldthe book open while Thomas brushed at the item. “Rinse it with water.”
Thomas shook his head. “The artifact preservation book explains how to brush off the dirt gently. Hand me the brush.”
Lisbeth rolled her eyes. “Here you go, Serious Thomas.”
He scowled, jutting his ten-year-old chin out. They both grew quiet as he gently removed the debris. Dirt fell off to reveal a pointy object. Lisbeth quickly flipped to the pages at the back of the book, which contained pictures of artifacts. There was a whole section on weapons. They both looked on as she flicked one page at a time until they both gasped.
It was right there, a Roman spear. Their eyes grew round, and they jumped up from their spot on the ground before spinning each other in circles. Lisbeth smiled widely. “Our first find.”
