“Not me.”
“Yes, you are,” she insisted. “It’s like the soup…you might not even realize you’re good at something because it comes to you so naturally that you take it for granted.”
Toby chewed on his lip. Then hesitantly, he said, “It is not a real skill. Or an important one.”
“Tell me,” she urged.
“I like animals.” He hitched his shoulders, looking embarrassed. “And they seem to like me. Or, at least, they like me more than people do.”
“Why, Toby, that is a marvelous talent to have,” Fancy said excitedly.
Doubt warred with flickering hope in his eyes. “You think so?”
“Iknowit. My da is famous for ’is…his ability to handle horses and beasts of burden. Everyone wants a horse trained by him,” Fancy said proudly. “He’s a successful tinker, you know.”
“I wish my father had been like yours,” Toby said wistfully. “Papa didn’t care for animals.”
“My da always said there’s no truer friend than an animal. In fact, as part of my wedding present, he gave me a donkey—”
“Adonkey?” Toby bolted upright. “Donkeys are tip-top! You are solucky, Fancy.”
“Well, Bertrand can be a bit grumpy, and he doesn’t listen to me the way he does to Da. Actually,” Fancy said, on a stroke of inspiration, “I was on my way to the stables. Would you like to come with me and meet him?”
“I would like that more than anything!” Toby cried, bounding to his feet. “May I bring Bertrand some carrots?”
Smiling, Fancy took the small hand he gallantly offered her and rose in a swish of silk.
“That is an excellent idea,” she said. “Since I neglected to visit Bertrand for two days, we may need a bribe to win him over.”
25
Two nights later,Severin found himself in his wife’s bed, and for the second night, he did not make love to her. Not because he didn’t want to. Last night, she had told him with rosy cheeks that her monthly visitor had arrived, and she couldn’t engage in their usual bedtime activities. He’d surprised them both by saying that he would like to stay anyway, if she didn’t mind the company, and her smile, as well as her words, had told him that she didn’t mind at all.
Cuddling Fancy close, Severin savored the tranquil moment. The fire crackling in the hearth, the scent of his wife’s hair. Was this what men referred to as domestic bliss?
“’Ow was your day?” Fancy asked in her charming way.
Severin found himself telling her about his troubles at work.
“’Ave…have you met with Mr. Bodin to discuss the new loom?” she asked.
“No,chérie. There’s no point in talking with men like Bodin.”
She furrowed her brow. “Why not?”
“He is distrustful of anything I have to say. He’ll twist our conversation, use it to rile up the other workers like he’s done in the past. He’s a rabble-rouser,” Severin said dismissively. “I’m not giving him a voice. If he objects, then I’ll toss him out on his arse.”
“But you said Mr. Bodin has made trouble in the past,” she pointed out. “If it were so easy to be rid of ’im…him, why didn’t you just fire him before?”
Behind his wife’s innocent face lay an astute mind.
“Because Bodin has too much sway with other workers,” he admitted. “He could convince them to riot or walk off the job. Either way, it would be a mess of a situation. I don’t want to fire him unless it’s a last resort.”
“Is there a way you could appeal to him? Convince him that you are only doing what’s best for the workers? That, without the new technology, the weavers might be out of jobs altogether?”
“He works for me,” Severin said with a scowl. “I don’t have to convince him of anything. Besides, he’s a hard-headed bugger, incapable of listening to reason.”
“Hmm.”
