“I was looking for you.”
“Me?” He smiled with surprised pleasure. “I was looking for you.” Water dripped off his hat. He began to remove his overcoat, saying, “Here, take my—”
“Nay.” I put my hand on his arm to still his offer. “I should be gone.”
His brown hair had fallen out of its queue and curled around his shoulders. “The moment we were disbanded, you were the first person who came to mind. I went to your home and was told you were at Mistress Hunter’s.”
“I was the first person you thought of?” I laid my hand against my stomacher, touched by his consideration.
“You’ve been so invested in our cause. I knew you would want to hear the news as soon as possible.”
His thoughtfulness warmed me, even as the air cooled from the storm. I tried to hide the emotions that welled up at his words. “Everyone has already gone into the tavern. Won’t you be missed?”
“Aye, but we’ll be in there for hours.” He smiled, his entirecountenance energized. “This is it, Libby, the moment we’ve been waiting for. I can feel it.”
I nodded, knowing far more than he did.
He ran a hand over his face to wipe away some of the rainwater. “We’ve been disbanded and told to go home.”
“Will you?”
He shook his head. “Nay. I will stay, at least until the first of June, so I can stand with my fellow burgesses.”
“Beyond that?”
He shrugged and pointed toward the tavern. “It will all depend on what we decide. There has been talk of holding a colonial convention to discuss the grievances we have against the king.”
“Won’t that be dangerous? Even treasonous?” I had to raise my voice over the wind and rain. We were being reckless to stand in the elements, though the thick branches and leaves of the tree offered us some protection.
“Meeting to discuss the wrongs committed against us?” He shook his head. “We’re British citizens, and we have a right to bring our grievances before the king. That is not treason. We do not have representation in Parliament, and that is wrong.”
“Will you participate in the convention?”
“If we agree to hold a convention, and if I am elected, aye.”
“What about your father? How has he responded to all of this?” I watched him carefully, remembering what both Louis and Sophia had said about Henry. Was he spying? And if so, who was he spying on?
His enthusiasm dimmed. “He is not happy, but he agrees ’tis too soon to know how this will end. He supports my involvement, hoping I will be a voice of reason in these meetings.”
“And will you?”
A bit of devilry lit his eyes. “It depends on which side he thinks I’m supporting.”
Instead of making me smile, his answer turned a knot in mygut. I looked down at my hands, which were clasped over my apron, and then nodded toward the tavern doors. “I should not keep you.”
“I wish you could join me.”
“Aye.” If Papa were alive, he would be there and would bring the news home to us. Just as Mister Archer was sure to do with his family. It was so disheartening to know that my newspaper was read, sometimes out loud, in this very tavern, yet it was not proper for me to enter with these men. The matters they discussed would eventually end up in my newspaper, but I was kept from offering my opinions until everything was settled and decided.
Henry must have heard the longing in my voice, because he said, “If you’d like, I will stop by your home this evening when our discussions have ended.”
“Truly?” My spirits lifted. “I’d like that.”
“Then I will come.” He took a step toward the door. “But it will be late,” he warned.
“I don’t care if it is the middle of the night. I’ll be awake.”
Henry smiled, and the look of eager anticipation in his eyes made my stomach fill with butterflies.
