She laughed, alone on the stairs, her head spinning with falling into Henry’s touch, his kiss, his smell.Him.
She grasped the banister. Best not to fall headlong down the stairs. What was she doing, where was she going? Henry, Mina, nursery, strawberries.
Mina was dressing one of her dolls when Susannah came into the nursery.
“G’morning, Miss Beasley. Have you been writing my story?”
Oh, sweet child. I’ve been dallying with your grandfather.
Susannah clasped her hands together. “What do youthink? We are going to the strawberry patch. You, your grandfather, and me. Let’s have Swift get your boots and bonnet.”
Mina picked her own bonnet—one with red ribbons to match the strawberries, she said—and once her little half-boots were laced and tied, she wanted to be off.
“We have to wait for your grandfather. If he doesn’t come up soon, we are to go downstairs and drag him away from his callers.”
Mina wrinkled her nose. Oh, no. Had she learned that habit from Susannah?
“Grandfather hates calls. Especially in the morning. Is it Lady Newland?”
“I believe so, yes. Shall we read something to pass the time?”
Mina got into the big chair withThe Further Adventures of Tommy Treadwelland read or pretended to read a chapter to Susannah. It was hard to know how good Mina’s reading was when she knew the whole thing by heart.
“Now, let’s read a chapter fromThe History of Giles Gingerbread,” Susannah suggested.
Mina was reluctant, but Susannah promised to help with the bigger words. Mina went and got the book.
She climbed back into the chair and whispered to Susannah, “I don’t like Giles as much as I like Tommy.”
Just as if the book could hear and have its feelings hurt.
“It’s good of you to read it to me, then. I like Giles enormously. Go on, let’s start at the beginning.”
With some stumbles and some help from Susannah, Mina got through the first chapter.
“Shall we go see if we can free your grandfather and make our way to the strawberry patch?”
“Yes!” Mina jumped up and ran out of the nursery.
Mina was outside the pink drawing room by the time Susannah made her way down the stairs.
“I waited for you so we can go in together.”
Susannah opened the door and walked in with Mina. And couldn’t breathe.
“Miss Beasley.” Mina was tugging on her hand.
Susannah looked around. Henry was nowhere to be seen. Her eyes quickly went to the visitors again. No. No.
No, no, no.
“How do you do?” Mina was saying to the ladies in the room. “I am Miss Wilhelmina Kirby.” She curtsied.
“Isn’t she darling? Your grandfather has gone to hurry the tea, Mina,” one woman was saying. “Isn’t that amusing? An earl chasing down refreshments.”
“When Emma runs this house, the tea will arrive promptly,” said another middle-aged woman.
The first woman, the one who must be Lady Newland, said to the others, “Lady D’Oyly, Miss D’Oyly, Miss Charlotte. This is the earl’s granddaughter.”
