“Unlikely.” He set the pails down. “I still have to make a couple of trips but the water’s heating now.” His dark eyes took her measure from head to foot. “How are you?”
“Sore. A little achy. Nothing that won’t pass.”
“Ellie makes a balm that will put heat under your skin. You rub it in and wait a minute or so. I’ll tell her to give you some. It will work best after you take your bath. Oh, and I’m going to ask for a salve for your wrists. They’re still chafed.”
Phoebe nodded. Of course he would notice what no one else had. She fiddled with the belt of her robe. It was happening again—an odd sensation of shyness was rooting her feet to the floor but making her want to twist in place like a silly schoolgirl. She managed not to do that, but only just. His eyes were not looking anywhere but into hers, and yetPhoebe felt as if his gaze was wandering over her again, touching the soft hollow of her throat, glancing off her shoulder, lingering just a moment past decency on the curve of her breasts. The sensation that his eyes were moving over her had a tangible quality. There was pressure on her waist, at her wrist, on the curve of her hip. Impossibly, she felt his touch at the backs of her knees.
Phoebe did not blink as much as she slowly and deliberately lowered and then raised her lashes. The effect was owl-like, and when her vision cleared, she saw he was regarding her with both amusement and curiosity. The curiosity faded, leaving only amusement, when she swallowed hard and pointed to the pails.
“Right. More water.”
Phoebe swore she heard him chuckling as he exited stage left.
Chapter Twelve
Phoebe found Fiona reading in the parlor. She did not invite herself in but stood in the doorway until Fiona looked up from her book.
“Already finding yourself at sixes and sevens?” asked Fiona. She marked her place with a green grosgrain ribbon before setting the book aside. “Thaddeus has a surprisingly varied selection of books. It cannot compare to the library you frequented in New York, but I believe you will find something to enlighten or entertain, depending on your mood. Shall I show you to his study?”
Phoebe shook her head. She pointed to the fringed shawl that was folded over her forearm. “I thought I would like to go out. It’s a beautiful day. I wondered if you would show me around?” She was unsure of Fiona’s response, but she thought she should make the overture. Phoebe knew she would not receive an answer of any kind until Fiona had finished inspecting her. Like a good soldier, she stood at attention and waited for the pronouncement.
“I should take you into town,” said Fiona, rising from the sofa. She wore a pink-and-white-striped silk day dress with three-quarter-length sleeves that puffed high at her shoulders. There was nothing fussy about the dress, no ruching, no flounces, but none was necessary when she filled the bodice so admirably. “That’s what I should do. Take you shopping. Thaddeus established a line of credit for me at the shops I told him I would like to frequent, not that there were so very many choices, you understand. I know he won’t mind if I make purchases for you.”
Phoebe watched Fiona’s complexion bloom pink with excitement and wondered how it was possible that the roses in her cheeks complemented the pink stripes in her dress so precisely. “Fiona,” she said gently. “I couldn’t possibly. I would be very uncomfortable.”
“I mean it. Thaddeus won’t mind, but if you like, I will ask him. He’ll give it his blessing.”
Phoebe shook her head. “No, I’m sure you’re right, but I meant that I would not be comfortable riding.”
“Oh, we wouldn’t be on horseback. That’s absurd. We will take the buggy.”
“Fiona.” Phoebe saw Fiona blink. It was the reaction she had hoped for. “I do not want to go anywhere that my feet won’t carry me.” To emphasize her point, Phoebe placed one hand on her backside. “I havebruises.”
“Oh. Well, there’s no need to be crude about it. Please remove your hand before someone sees you.”
Phoebe did not address the fact that there was no one around since everyone else was engaged with work. To appease Fiona, she let her hand fall to her side. “And to the other point, while I appreciate that you would like to take me shopping, I don’t need anything.” There was no missing Fiona’s skepticism, not when the highest point of her arched eyebrow was halfway to her hairline. “Before you find fault with what I am wearing, perhaps you’ll want to remember that you chose it for me. The pattern. The material. The trim.”
“Did I?” She sighed. “Was I in a mood?”
“You are always in a mood.” To give her hands something to do, Phoebe smoothed her lichen green skirt at the front. The tailored bodice required no attention. The fit was exact, following the line of her shoulders, her arms, the curve of her breasts and waist. Armor would not have protected her so well, she thought, which was why Fiona had suggested it. Phoebe had added a black tie around the high collar and arranged the tails so that they lay flat against the bodice. The knot she had fashioned at her throat was secured with a mother-of-pearl stickpin. The accessories were masculine; the effect was entirely feminine.
“I suppose it’s not completely wrong for you,” Fiona said. Her eyes narrowed on the stickpin. “Is that the pin that Jonathan Halstead gave me?”
Phoebe put her hand to her throat. “I don’t know. It might be, but you gave it to me.”
“Did I? I’m sure it’s the one I had from Jonathan. I have fond memories of him, you know.”
“I’m sure. Do you want it back?”
“No.” She waved one hand airily. “You must keep it. I will think of him when I see you.” She frowned slightly. “When I see you wearing it, I mean. I don’t think of anyone else when I see you.”
“Don’t you?”
Fiona set her jaw. A muscle jumped in her cheek before the line of her mouth relaxed and her lips parted. “My,nowwho is in a mood? You are entirely disagreeable, Phoebe. I wonder that you are here at all since you are clearly out of sorts with me.”
Phoebe spoke quietly, which was always the better course when Fiona was winding herself up. “I came at your husband’s invitation, not yours. Remember?”
“So you mean to punish me? That’s unfair, Phoebe, and beneath you. I told you this morning that I did not extend an invitation because I had it in my mind to go to New York and escort you here myself. That is not the sort of thing I could do without my husband’s permission, and I wasn’t confident that Thaddeus would agree. I was still working out the best way to approach him when he told me about the letter he had written to you. Do you see? While I cared enough to seek his approval, he presented me with a fait accompli. That was very wrong of him.”
