It came as no surprise that she soon developed a stitch in her side right before she started wheezing.
Slowing, Harrison turned his head and frowned. “Another stitch?”
“Just a small one.”
The very next second she was back in his arms, her dress soaking the fine linen of his shirt as he strode down the three blocks toward the school. With laughter rumbling from his throat when she suggested he was going to hurt himself if he didn’t put her down soon, Harrison flipped open the latch of the wrought-iron gate that separated the school from the sidewalk. He then continued up the path leading to the front door, nodding to the Huxley butler, Mr. Barclay, who was already holding the door open for them.
“I wasn’t expecting to see you still manning the door, Mr. Barclay,” Harrison said, stepping past the butler, then stopping with Gertrude still in his arms when he reached the marble entranceway.
“I find it much more exciting back here than at our new residence,” Mr. Barclay said. “The sisters do enjoy the house by Gramercy Park, but it gets a little quiet there for me, what with Miss Henrietta and Miss Mabel occupied with so many different matters these days.” He smiled. “That’s why I asked to be reassigned here at the new school when the sisters know they won’t be at the other house, because ... well...” He looked at the puddle of mud pooling under Gertrude. “Adventures seem to happen often these days, and I’m sure that will only increase once we get the school up and fully operational.”
“Was that someone at the door, Mr. Barclay?” Mrs. Davenport asked, poking her head around the corner of the hallway before she let out a small shriek, then barreled directly toward them, wearing what appeared to be pattern pieces attached to her clothing. Skidding to a stop in front of them, the skidding a direct result of her being in stockinged feet, she raised a hand to her mouth as she looked Gertrude over.
“Goodness, what happened? Why is Harrison carrying you, and what are you doing with Harrison in the first place?”
“I’m carrying her because she got another stitch, Mrs. Davenport, and she’s also missing her shoes.”
Mrs. Davenport turned a sharp eye Harrison’s way. “How, pray tell, did that happen?”
“Peculiar as this is going to sound, she lost the first one when I made the mistake of pulling her onto my horse, which didn’t turn out exactly as planned. And then she lost the second one when she took a dip in an unexpectedly deep puddle that was, unfortunately, filled with a great deal of mud.”
“You’re right, that does sound peculiar, but because Gertrude is dripping all over the entranceway marble, perhaps it would be for the best if we saved the rest of this conversation for later.” Mrs. Davenport nodded toward the stairs. “Because I’m certain you don’t want the poor dear to suffer from another stitch, you may carry her to her assigned suite of rooms, up on the third floor no less.” She smiled. “I’ll act as chaperone.”
It took a great deal of effort for Gertrude not to roll her eyes. “There’s no need for Harrison to carry me, and aren’t you in the middle of a design lesson with Miss Betsy Miller?”
Mrs. Davenport looked down at the paper patterns attached to her, then gave a dismissive flick of a wrist. “I’m sure Miss Miller has more important matters to attend to for the rest of her day than continuing on with me. She’s agreed to give me weekly instruction, and since I certainly don’t want to neglect you at this troubling time, I’ll just have Mr. Barclay tell Miss Miller something of an urgent nature has come up.”
Knowing it would be futile to argue because Mrs. Davenport was looking far too determined, Gertrude soon found herself being carried up three flights of incredibly steep steps. Mrs. Davenport matched Harrison step for step up the flights, chattering on about her pattern lesson as they climbed.
She shooed him away once they reached Gertrude’s suite of rooms. Setting her down, he sent her a charming smile, then headed down the steps again, leaving her a little weak at the knees.
“Goodness, dear,” Mrs. Davenport exclaimed. “This is beyond my wildest hopes for you, but do know that you must proceed carefully. It’s been my observation that gentlemen such as Harrison, or rogues if you will, tend to enjoy pursuing a lady, so don’t make it too easy on him, especially after he delivered such a cruel disappointment to you just the other day.”
Walking into her little sitting room, Gertrude moved to the bathing chamber, turning once she reached that door. “Harrison, no matter his appearance, Mrs. Davenport, is not a rogue, nor is he a typical gentleman. And while I truly have no idea what he’s up to, I think he may very well have regrets about what happened. I’m intending to hear him out, no matter if you believe that’s being easy on him or not, but do know that I appreciate your concern and welcome your support.”
Unfortunately, Mrs. Davenport didn’t appear to hear a single word of Gertrude’s speech since she was already walking out of the room, muttering something about making plans.
Realizing it would be less than prudent to allow Mrs. Davenport too much time to organize what would surely turn into yet another fiasco, Gertrude stripped off her ruined clothing, hurried through a bath in a marble tub that was so enormous a person could practically swim in it, then towel-dried her hair. Slipping into blissfully clean and dry clothing, she arranged her still wet hair into a knot on top of her head. Slipping her feet into the first pair of shoes she found, she bolted for the door and dashed out of the room.
By the time she reached the main floor, she was somewhat winded. Not wanting to draw everyone’s attention to that sad state of affairs, she drew in a few deep breaths, and once her breathing returned to normal, she walked down the hall at a pace that wouldn’t leave her wheezing again, entering the library a moment later.
What she found inside the library stopped her in her tracks, her gaze traveling over what appeared to be a least a hundred different articles of clothing, all hanging from racks with wheels on them.
“Surprise!” Permilia exclaimed, stepping out from behind one of the racks and beaming at Gertrude. “I hope you don’t mind, but after hearing what happened to you, I decided to change my surprise of having you and Harrison sit down to tea with me and Asher to...” She gestured to the racks.
“But what is all this?” Gertrude asked as Asher stepped from behind a rack that seemed to be filled with clothing for gentlemen, and then Edwina, in the company of Agent McParland, popped up from where they’d been hidden behind a lovely fainting couch done up in blue.
“Harrison is treating you to an entirely new wardrobe to make up for the fact he almost gave you a heart attack earlier and lost you a most charming outfit of your own in the process,” Edwina said.
Gertrude turned and found Harrison sitting on a settee, looking mildly confused while Mrs. Davenport poured him a cup of tea.
“I can’t accept such an extravagant gesture” was all Gertrude could think to say.
“Of course you can’t,” Mrs. Davenport surprised her by saying. “Which is why I’ll be picking up the bill for today’s fun to make amends for all the embarrassment you’ve suffered over the years on my behalf.”
“And I’ll be picking up the bill for the clothing I’m sure all of you have noticed I just happened to have chosen for Harrison,” Asher said as he rubbed his hands together in glee. “I’ve been itching to be presented with an opportunity to freshen up Harrison’s wardrobe.”
“I don’t really think I need to be freshened up,” Harrison argued.
