“Helen, might I introduce Mrs. Talley?” he asked, motioning to the lady before him. If she thought it surprising or insulting that he couched the introduction in a manner that placed Helen on a higher social standing, Mrs. Talley gave no hint of it as she offered up a proper curtsy.
“It is my pleasure to make your acquaintance, Miss Byrnes.”
The child stepped forward to offer one back, though she returned to Silas’s side the moment it was over.
“Are you two going for a drive?” asked Mrs. Talley. When Silas answered in the affirmative, she immediately launched into a detailed route they ought to take, describing all the many sights in the area that might be of special interest to them. Mrs. Talley had no carriage of her own, but no one hearing her speak would miss the desire in her tone as she expounded on the subject.
“Any of those are perfect drives. However, with the weather as it is today, I would suggest the route by the pond,” she added with a smile. Then giving them another curtsy, Mrs. Talley turned to leave.
Silas watched her glide away and glanced down at his daughter. Mrs. Talley so clearly wished to join them, yet she refused to invite herself along. And of all the ladies he’d met in the area, she seemed the best courting candidate, yet he hadn’t had much of a chance to speak with her.
Turning to Helen, he asked quietly, “Would you mind terribly if I invited Mrs. Talley to join us? She seems so keen to go and would make an excellent guide during our exploration.”
His daughter watched him for another silent moment before nodding.
“Mrs. Talley,” he called after her. “Would you care to join us?”
The lady turned with a broad grin and nodded. “That would be lovely.”
Then focusing on Helen, she added, “Are you certain you do not mind me intruding on your time with your papa?”
Helen glanced away from Mrs. Talley and shook her head. Silas turned his attention to the phaeton and realized a critical mistake when he examined the front seat.
“It will be tight with the three of us, but I’m certain we can manage,” he said, offering his hand to Helen.
“I can sit in the back,” she said, moving to the seat directly behind the driver. “There is no reason for us to be crushed together.”
Silas’s brows rose at that. “Are you certain you wish to, Helen?”
But she merely nodded and took his proffered hand, climbing into the rear seat without another word. Silas leaned forward and gave her another warm smile, brushing his favorite corner of her chin with his thumb, but Helen did not meet his gaze and drew her jacket tighter about her. Reaching to the front, he snatched up a lap blanket stowed there and shook it out, tucking it around his daughter before helping Mrs. Talley into the front seat and offering up the other blanket; it would leave him a touch chilled, but it was of no consequence.
Taking the reins in hand, he urged the horses forward, and the phaeton rolled down the street. Mrs. Talley laughed when his jerky start had her bumping back into the seat, and Silas began to apologize, but she waved it off before he could form the words. Much of his life had been spent on the water, and his time on land hadn’t included a carriage of his own, so his skills were middling at best, and it required all his attention as they made their way through the village and into the countryside.
Once there, Silas glanced at Mrs. Talley and scoured his thoughts of what to say. “Do you hail from Titchley?”
She gave him a bright smile. “Except for my marriage, I’ve spent the whole of my life here. My husband was the son of a business associate of my father’s, and we made our home in Portsmouth. After he passed, I returned to help care for my parents and have remained. And you?”
“A small village inBedfordshire, though I hardly consider it home any longer,” he replied. “Like many lads, I was sent away to school at a young age, and my father decided the navy was the best course for me.”
“And then, you traveled the world. That must’ve been so very exciting,” she said.
The conversation continued in that vein for some time, and it was the same questions and answers he’d given many a time before. People rarely had creative queries and voiced the self-same ones again and again.
But it allowed his thoughts to drift to that long-ago time, and Silas wondered if his father had chosen the navy to spite his brother-in-law. It was certainly the sensible choice as his elder brother, Thomas, had already paved the way into the profession, and Father had other sons that needed his connections and funds far greater than Silas. However, Silas was certain his father had never forgiven Uncle Foster for requiring Silas to cast aside the Polkinghorne name.
Certainly, the navy suited Silas and provided him with training and experience that served him well in his current endeavors, but for all that he’d insisted on remaining in it, the initial decision had been entirely Father’s despite Uncle Foster’s objections. Curious.
Silas opened his mouth to share that startling revelation, but his teeth snapped shut as he glanced at Mrs. Talley. As much as he wished to vocalize the thoughts bouncing in his head, Silas didn’t feel right in sharing it with this relative stranger. She seemed nice enough, but this was certainly not the sort of discussion one had during their first outing.
And so he kept his counsel and wondered if he mightn’t talk to Hatch about it later. He doubted it would yield much insight, but the fellow had a listening ear, even if he didn’t always add to the conversation. Of course, there was one person who would fit the bill, but Silas dismissed that thought as quickly as it came. As much as it pained him to admit it, Miss Delmonte was right to insist on distance.
Placing those thoughts to the side, Silas returned his attention to the lady at his side.
“Isn’t it beautiful?” she said, pointing to the landscape stretching out to their right. Though they’d seen much rain of late, the last few days had been dry enough to leave the roads in tolerable condition (which was Silas’s primary focus at present). A thick blanket of clouds hovered overhead like an unwanted houseguest who’d stay well past their welcome, but ribbons of light streaked through, and the fields were a patchwork of greens as they alternated between sun and shadow.
“What do you think, Helen?” she asked, turning in her seat to draw the girl’s attention to a particularly lovely copse of trees that were caught in a shaft of golden light. “Is it not glorious?”
Silas stiffened and cast a quick look over his shoulder. In all his pondering and conversation, he’d forgotten she was there, for Helen had been silent the entire journey. Her gaze met her father’s and then drifted to Mrs. Talley, scrutinizing the pair of them. Helen did not reply, and perhaps he ought to chastise her for ignoring Mrs. Talley, but at present, Silas found it difficult to form words while Helen’s gaze burned into the back of his head.
