But as they left the room, Jonathan hoped it wouldn’t come to that. He hadn’t felt so accepted by the men who were supposed to be his peers in ages, and he had to admit that he rather liked it.
Chapter Ten
Charlie didn’t often care that his tongue failed him when he felt even slightly out of sorts. The things that mattered the most to him were inside his head, heart, and body, and experience had taught him most people would be horrified and shun him if he let those things out.
Jonathan was the shining exception to those fears, but as the afternoon wore into evening with the two of them setting up the camera to take a few initial photographs of the house from the view of the gardens, Charlie wished he could gather his worries and fears into a reasonable argument that would make Jonathan quit the place at once.
“I don’t suppose we could get away with taking additional photographs of this place beyond what we’ve been charged to capture,” Jonathan said idly as Charlie handed him a dry plate for the last photograph of the day. “The scene is perfectly stunning today.”
It was the truth. The cheery afternoon had given way to a golden hour of intense light that caught every nuance of light and shadow around the stately architecture of the house. To Charlie’s unpracticed eye, the images he and Jonathan wereproducing would be as lovely to look at as any of the grand landscape paintings in some of the rooms within the house.
The outside of the house and the gardens didn’t intimidate Charlie at all. It was the house’s interior that made him feel as if demons might rise up out of the floorboards to steal his soul. If he’d had his way, he and Jonathan would have slept outside under the stars.
“One more,” Jonathan said, inserting the dry plate into his camera, then leaning down to adjust the lens.
Charlie waited as patiently as he could. He needed to find his voice so that he could warn Jonathan to be careful. He needed to sort his thoughts into words to begin with so he could articulate all the reasons they were in danger. But he was as far from being able to do that as he was from scooping an armful of stars out of the sky.
He tensed even more when he spotted Davidson coming out from around the side of the house.
“I wonder if Brutus intended me to photograph Fairford’s servants as well as the guests,” Jonathan said absently before clicking the shutter and taking the picture.
He stood with a smile when that was done and grinned at the approaching footman, who, unbeknownst to him, had just had his image imprinted for all time.
“Mr. Moorgate,” Davidson said with perfect coolness as he approached. “I’ve been sent to inform you that supper will be in one hour.”
“Very well,” Jonathan said, nodding to Davidson with more grace than Charlie felt the mean footman deserved.
Davidson glanced at Charlie, narrowing his eyes slightly.
Charlie narrowed his eyes right back.
Jonathan missed the exchange entirely. “Right,” he said, turning to Charlie. “You carry the exposed plates and I’ll take up the rest of it.”
Charlie ignored Davidson’s lingering looks and rushed to do as he’d been told. Exposed dry plates were extremely delicate and valuable, and being asked to carry them was much more of an honor than Davidson would ever be given.
The fact that Davidson didn’t know that and sneered at Charlie anyhow took a bit of the pride of helping Jonathan away. That feeling didn’t last long at any rate, and once Davidson returned to the house, Charlie forgot to feel antagonistic toward him.
As much as Charlie hated being inside the house at Fairford, he didn’t mind being alone with Jonathan in his room.
“Will you take your supper with the other servants?” Jonathan asked as he changed into supper clothes. “Or would you rather I tell them to send something to you up here?”
Charlie’s eyes widened. “You would do that?”
Jonathan glanced at him in the mirror, where he’d been checking his work as he tied his cravat. “You seem intimidated by Lord Frome’s household,” he said.
Charlie hugged himself, rubbing one arm. “They aren’t happy.”
It was an odd thing to say, he knew. He didn’t expect Jonathan to understand what he meant.
Jonathan surprised him by saying, “Yes, I’ve noticed,” with a frown. “It’s never a good thing when a household’s servants aren’t happy.”
Charlie’s shoulders relaxed and he began to warm with the thought that Jonathan understood after all.
Until Jonathan said, “There’s probably a bad apple downstairs,” as he went back to staring at his reflection in the mirror. “Downstairs dynamics can be fickle. I would be willing to wager that Mr. Glenn rules his underlings with too firm a grip.”
Disappointment deflated Charlie. That wasn’t what it was at all. Feelings like the ones he’d been filled with since arriving inFairford House almost always came from the family that owned the house.
“Am I presentable?” Jonathan asked, turning to Charlie with a teasing smile.
