“We shall start at the haberdashery,” Tabs said matter-of-factly, “where my brother will buy me three new ribbons.”
“And me!” Ginny added brightly.
Still laughing, I said, “We most certainly will not.”
“Iwant three new ribbons,” Anna said with a beguiling look that always seemed to work in her favor.
I cleared my throat, my smile waning. Anna wanted me to buy her something?
“You will love the lending library, Miss Lane,” Mother said, and soon the four of them were absorbed in conversation of books and stories.
Soon, the edge of the Steine came into view. Situated at the heart of Brighton, the Steine was a wide, expansive, and fashionable green lawn, along which an L-shaped row of shops bustled with customers. One could find just about anything desired, as well as one of the finest lending libraries in all of England. At the head of the Steine, the Marine Pavilion loomed over all. I could just make out its edges. I hadn’t yet received an invitation to one of Prinny’s parties, but perhaps after I secured this investment ... I’d longed to see inside those walls.
We stopped at the southernmost border, and while Mother quietly whispered reminders to Tabs about proper behavior and propriety, I advised Brunner of our afternoon plans.
“Come, Graham!” Tabs tugged on my arm. Distantmusic, merry and cheerful, from across the Steine carried on the wind as we made our way toward the shops.
And I wasn’t proud of it, but somehow, the three of them wore me down, much to Mother’s chagrin. Our first stop resulted in a rainbow of ribbons, which all three girls let fly in the wind as we walked down the footpath.
The afternoon crowd bustled in every direction, some on horseback, others in gigs or phaetons, many by foot. I noted every man who tipped his hat at Anna. Per my duty as her host, of course. Not smiling or being overly friendly to tourists was my duty these next few days.
Mother walked beside me. She slipped her arm through mine, pinching the sensitive skin of my underarm. I groaned, giving her a fierce look, but she leaned in close.
“You are much too quiet. Walk beside her. Speak with her. Encourage her, if you want to secure this deal,” she whispered.
“Miss Lane is not her father. She will not like my interference.” Especially not after all I’d revealed that morning. Besides, we’d made a new agreement. She’d promised to form a fair opinion of Brighton, and I wanted to make that task as easy as possible for her.
“She is a woman. She may not want to talk numbers and calculations, but she’d rather have you as a companion than Tabitha.”
“I highly doubt that,” I muttered. Things were shifting between Anna and me, but not quitethatmuch.
Mother, unfortunately, was set.
“Tabitha, come,” she said, releasing me and reaching out for Tabs. Then her eyes widened, and she nodded purposefully toward Anna.
Without Tabs, she was left with Ginny, whose morose attitude could send even the cheeriest of tourists running. I braced my shoulders, took a few calming breaths, then stepped forward to Anna’s side.
ChapterFifteen
Anna
Laughter carried on the salty wind. Through every door, around every corner, it mingled with the pattering sounds of horses’ hooves on the dirt footpaths bordering what Graham called the Steine. Sunshine fell upon us from an open blue sky, and I felt as though my every breath reached deeper than the last.
The Steine pulled everything together, like a force of gravity. Shops, inns, houses, a library, the Royal Circus with a stone horse leaping at its top, and more were all situated on the borderline of the Steine’s open green lawn. Rows of entertainment and commercialism growing outward, he’d said, and I believed him.
“That, just there,” Graham said softly at my side, startling me, for I’d thought he’d been walking with his mother, “is the Marine Pavilion, where the Prince Regent takes residence.”
Following his outstretched finger, I saw a white, long
palace-like structure farther down on the northern edge of the green lawn with many windows and a dome-shaped entrance in the center. Graham had mentioned it at dinner with Papa, and several times a day since.
“It looks smaller than I imagined,” I said.
Graham’s brows furrowed.
“The library!” Tabs squealed. “You promised, Graham!”
Mrs. Everett shushed her, but Graham waved her forward. “Go on. Though they may not have anything you’ll like,” he said.
