Clearing his throat, the gentleman turned his gaze to the water again. “I know Oakham is too small to require multiple physicians, but what if I were to commission you to make the medicines I prescribe?”
Violet’s heart sank and her legs slackened, hanging limp from the bridge as she stared down into the water.
“I sense that your brother isn’t wholly enamored with being a physician, so this would allow him to focus more on the manufacturing. With your skill guiding it, surely, it is quite profitable,” he continued.
Truth was rarely a happy thing. Yes, it was imperative to a better life, but far too often, it did not coincide with that which one hoped to happen. Truth swooped in to ruin best-laid plans and the grand dreams of the future, and for all that Violet had longed for his plan to be the solution to their troubles, truth wouldn’t allow it.
And some part of her didn’t wish to dissuade Dr. Vaughn. His tone was so pleased and hopeful that it made her feel like a wretched beast for dashing them so thoroughly. Yet presenting him with the reality of their situation may be the easiest manner in which to convince him to leave as soon as the Finches’ child was born.
“You cannot sustain yourself on seeing patients alone,” began Violet.
“I do not require much to sustain myself. I didn’t come here looking for an extravagant life. I just want peace and quiet.” Dr. Vaughn paused, drawing her gaze to him, and she spied a wistful smile. “No doubt others would laugh at me for wanting so little and would likely think I am settling for an inferior life, one where I am not living it to the fullest. But I spent far too much of my life amongst those focused on having more, and I would rather focus on contentment.”
The man exuded serenity as he spoke, drawing Violet in with an image of a life that seemed far better than the ones so many focused on. They wrung their hands about not having enough money, but their desire for “more” was the true culprit of their unhappiness, keeping them from appreciating the simple joy to be found in a simple life. One needn’t host parties, possess the finest things, or travel the world to find fulfillment, and plenty of those who spent their lives in a whirl of self-indulgence rarely found it.
A woman could be quite happy even when wearing home-sewn gowns and living without a carriage.
“That is admirable, Dr. Vaughn,” she said with a sigh. “But I know better than anyone just how much money there is to be made in Oakham. To split the work would be to split the income we have, and we could not survive on selling prescriptions alone—”
Violet snapped her mouth shut before the dreaded “unless” slipped out, for there was no point in admitting to the apothecary shop scheme she’d posed to her family. They would never countenance opening one, and Mama would rather quit Oakham altogether than be counted amongst the tradesmen.
For the briefest of moments, she considered whether or not they could reverse the division of labor and Dr. Vaughn could open the shop, but she brushed aside the idea just as quickly. It would be a waste of his skills and would ruin the successful balance she’d struck with her brother, to say nothing of the factthat it didn’t alter the fact that a physician could not sustain a family in Oakham on visits alone.
Dr. Vaughn’s brows lowered, his forehead furrowing as he considered that. “It is far from ideal, but surely, we can give it a chance. For now, at least. With time, we might settle on a better solution.”
Violet smiled at him, as she knew he wanted her to, and nodded. Let him try if he wished. Dr. Vaughn wanted assurances, and Violet couldn’t help but yearn to scoop them up and cling to the hope that everything would turn out well in the end. But truth was a stern mistress, and she had learned long ago not to ignore it. Dr. Vaughn was a wonderful man, but he needed to provide for himself just as she needed to provide for her family; their goals were contrary to one another, and there wasn’t a resolution that would keep them both in town.
He needed to remain for a little time, but Dr. Vaughn’s lease could be broken, and he could return to London, where he had patients aplenty and a family to assist him. If he hated Town so very much, the gentleman could find another situation. The country was full of towns that would welcome Dr. Vaughn into their fold. He didn’t need Oakham. Not like the Templetons did.
“If I may be so bold, I will say that having such a talented apothecary on hand is quite a boon,” said Dr. Vaughn, slanting a look at her that held a twinkle of mirth to it. “Much to my teachers’ consternation, I never learned to enjoy that aspect of medicine. I may excel in many ways, but I cannot seem to get my tablets as uniform as yours, and it is entirely too irritating. Having you manage it for me would be a great blessing.”
Violet couldn’t help but smile at that admission. “For my part, I love mixing medicines. It makes me feel like a witch, brewing potions and spells. With a bit of eye of newt and wool of bat.”
Jerking away from his gaze, she slapped a hand over her mouth as her cheeks pinked. Why she’d admitted such a thingwas a mystery; even Felicity and Diana knew nothing of her propensity to cackle as she boiled ingredients over the fire or ground them down with mortar and pestle.
But Dr. Vaughn laughed. “I haven’t thought of it in that manner, but I suppose with many of the ingredients, it does seem a bit like witchcraft.”
“Do not tell the townsfolk,” she said with a grimace. “I fear they may just burn me as a witch if I were to admit it as such.”
“Ah, yes. Being the hoyden witch must be difficult in Oakham,” said Dr. Vaughn with a serious air.
“Are you teasing me?” she asked with a frown.
“I wouldn’t dream of it.”
Violet stared at his profile for a long time before turning her gaze back to the river, her feet swinging once more. She didn’t want to think of rivalries or battles. For now, she simply wanted to enjoy this moment of peace and the beauty around her.
“You were right about Geoffrey Cavendish,” he said, breaking through her thoughts.
“Pardon?”
“The Invisible Hand. It’s quite a gripping tale,” he said.
Violet’s gaze swung to him, and she sat there, thinking through his words, trying to grasp the meaning.
“You recommended that I read it, and I found it quite entertaining,” he clarified.
Straightening, Violet considered the man at her side. “You read it already?”
