The weight of that responsibility should have daunted him. Instead, his vow to bring prosperity back to the good, hard-working people of the farms and shops was a fire in his belly. He would bring it all back. No matter how long it took.
And perhaps, he thought, glancing at the woman walking beside him, he wouldn’t have to shoulder that burden alone.
Chapter Four
Georgiana
In the weekssince she’d first arrived at the manor, Georgiana had one thing to say about James Ashford. He didn’t waste any time. Clearly, he was a man of action. He knew what he wanted and was determined to make it all happen, sooner rather than later. Although he made her nervous, what with the intense way he looked at her and his clear desire for speed and efficiency, she could see already that they made a good team. She, too, was decisive by nature. If she was correct in assuming so, she thought James had come to respect her after seeing her extensive project plan and all the components laid out in a precise manner. She’d been surprised to see him working physically as hard as any of the men and boys they hired.
Today, when she and Cecily had arrived, he was dressed in a rough cotton work shirt and a pair of wool trousers. He had the shirtsleeves rolled up to his elbow and his neck was bare of a cravat. The sight of his muscular arms and strong neck had made her stomach feel strange and her legs wobbly.
This was most certainly not good.
She’d not allowed herself to be attracted to any man while she was married. It was silly, given that her husband hadn’t felt the need to keep his desires at bay. Still, there was a part of her that respected her marriage vows, even if they were never to be man and wife in the usual ways. After his death, she’d been too busy trying to figure outhow they were going to stay off the streets to worry much about womanly yearnings. Thus, she had been quite unprepared for the storm of desire that raged within her at the mere glimpse of James Ashford.
Despite all that, it was only late January and already the project was underway. Ben Thatcher had come straightaway after she’d written asking if he was available to help her with such a large project.
Georgiana had worked with Ben on many of Robert’s jobs. She knew him to be competent and trustworthy, although slightly intimidating. He was a large man, broad through the chest and shoulders, with a thatch of dark blond hair that never quite laid flat and low, booming voice that had scared more than one of his workers over the years.
James had offered his father’s former study for their temporary office space. When they arrived that morning, they found that James had cleared and scrubbed the desk and had a chimney sweep out to clear debris out of the fireplace so they could have heat while they worked.
She and Cecily were leaning over her blueprint of the manor when Ben arrived. He and his men had spent most of the day in what would be James’s bedchambers.
“Mrs. Fairfax, I have good news and bad news. Which would you like first?” Ben grinned, stopping in front of the desk.
“Bad please,” Georgiana said.
“I found a family of mice living in the old wardrobe. They have been relocated.”
“By relocated, do you mean you’ve killed them?” Cecily asked, lower lip trembling.
Her sister never met an animal she didn’t love.
“No, Miss Cecily. I managed to get them into a crate and took them out to the stables where they will be safe and dry,” Ben said.
Georgiana wasn’t sure he was telling the truth but Cecily seemed placated.
“And the good news?” Georgiana asked.
“We are ready for his lordship to pick new wallpaper and paint. My woodworker has sanded down some of the furniture and will begin staining tomorrow. If we keep going at this rate, Lord Ashford will have a bedchamber in less than a week’s time.”
“I’ll meet with him straightaway,” Georgiana said. “We have samples and ideas for him.”
“Excellent. The boys and I are going to call it a day. Looks like it’s going to rain and I want to get back into the village before it grows dark.”
“That’s fine.”
“We’ll be back bright and early tomorrow,” Ben said.
He and his workers headed out just as a bolt of lightning lit up the sky. Georgiana hoped the rain would hold long enough for her to meet with James about his bedchamber choices before she and Cecily headed back to the inn but at this rate it seemed unlikely. James had provided them the use of his horses and carriage, hiring a young man from the village to drive them back and forth, but carriages were no match for muddy roads this time of year.
“I’m going down to speak with Lord Ashford before we head back to the inn,” Georgiana said to Cecily. “I’d like him to choose paint and wallpaper tonight so that I can order them in the morning.”
Cecily glanced up from their master ledger, nodding distractedly. Her little sister loved numbers and accounting. Thank goodness, because Georgiana didn’t care for that type of task. Nor was she good at it.
Georgiana ventured down the worn stone steps to the manor’s kitchen, portfolio clutched against her chest and a nervous flutter in her stomach. She hoped Lord Ashford would like at least one of the choices she planned to propose for his bedchambers. His quarters must be just right for the lord of the manor and she didn’t feel as if she had his aesthetic fully figured out as of yet.
What she found at the bottom of the stairs stopped her momentarily. They’d drastically improved the kitchen since this morning. In fact, she believed it would be ready for the cook when she arrived tomorrow.
