“Could the unfortunate fate of my driver be the reason?” he asked with a grimace.
She gave him a look of uncertainty. “They might be out in the stable, but...” She paused when she heard voices coming from the direction of the kitchen. “They could be having their breakfast.”
Thomas led her down the hall toward the back of the house, his expression growing more serious. “I recognize one of those voices,” he murmured.
“Well, I don’t know how. I assure you, I haven’t purloined anyone from your household,” Katherine said when they paused in the doorway to discover the staff seated around a long trestle. At one end sat a man she didn’t recognize, his hands clasped around a steaming mug of liquid.
“Well, I’ll be damned,” Thomas muttered.
She glanced up at him and blinked. “You look as if you’ve seen a ghost.”
“That’s because... because I’m looking at one,” he whispered. In a louder voice, he said, “Fredericks? Is that you?”
The sound of the trestle’s benches scraping on the wood plank floor was accompanied by a round of gasps as all the servants stood and turned to stare. They belatedly bowed and curtsied in unison.
“Your Grace,” Fredericks replied with excitement. “I can’t tell you how relieved I am to see you didn’t burn up in the fire.”
Thomas blinked several times as he stepped into the kitchens. “How is it you’re alive?” he asked in wonder, hurrying to join his driver at the head of the trestle. He clasped Frederick’s shoulder and gave it a shake, as if he had to convince himself the man was real.
“I was just telling everyone here what happened,” the driver said. “At least what I remember of it.”
“When I found you in the snow... I was sure you were dead. I couldn’t find a heartbeat. You weren’t breathing,” Thomas said in a quiet voice.
“Probably because I was half-frozen,” the driver replied. “The ’orses woke me, which had me up and about real quick when I realized they wasn’t hitched to the coach. Then I saw the flames. Didn’t know it was the coach burning up until I was almost next to it. I can’t tell you how fearful I was.”
Thomas allowed a grin of relief before he furrowed his brows. “You spent the night out there?”
“I did, sir. But it was warm due to the fire. Found one of the coach lanterns and was able to relight it. Used it to find my valise and yours,” he explained. “Your trunk broke loose from the back of the coach when it went into that ravine, so it didn’t burn up, either. We brought it back in the coach Her Grace had sent to collect me,” he added, his attention going to Katherine. “Much appreciated, Your Grace.”
“I am so relieved you’re well, Mr. Fredericks,” she said. She approached and stood next to Thomas. “But didn’t you have some sort of attack? Apoplexy?”
Fredericks grimaced before he bowed. “I did, Your Grace, but I think it was just something I ate at the last coaching inn we stopped at, when the ’orses were changed. Gave me an awful pain right in my heart.” One of his hands fisted, and he pounded his chest.
“You weren’t hurt when you fell from the coach?” she asked in awe.
Blinking, the driver seemed to think a moment before he said, “Well, the snow must have cushioned my fall, I suppose. I’m sore this mornin’, but nothin’s broke.”
“Well, that’s a relief,” she said. She turned her attention to the other servants. “Good morning, everyone. I’d like to introduce you to His Grace, the Duke of Pendleton,” she added. “He’ll soon be master of Whyte Hall Park since I’ve once again accepted his offer of marriage.”
Thomas grinned and nodded several times as the servants reacted in surprise. A quick glance at Johnson had him realizing that with the arrival of his driver, the lady’s maid hadn’t been able to share the news of their betrothal. “I didn’t mean to interrupt your breakfast,” he said. “Please, carry on, and when you’ve finished—”
“We’ll be ready for ours in the breakfast parlor,” Katherine interrupted. “But not until Mr. Fredericks has finished sharing his gossip from London.”
Despite her comment, Jackson hurried over to her. “I saw to it coffee and tea are ready for you and His Grace, ma’am,” he said in a quiet voice. “Cook set out rolls and ham. She’ll have eggs ready for you shortly.”
“Very good, Jackson.” She threaded her arm around the duke’s and angled her head toward the door.
Curious, Thomas led her out of the kitchens and down the hall. “What was that all about?” he asked, his relief at learning the fate of his driver making his steps light.
“This is the most excitement my servants have had in a very long time,” she said in a quiet voice, nodding toward the door to the breakfast parlor on their right. “With the weather, they haven’t had the opportunity to go to town. Even for church,” she explained. “They are bored, and they can’t start hanging the greens until the day of Christmas Eve, so your driver’s arrival is a welcome diversion.”
“Ah, I understand,” he replied. “Perhaps I should be gladIam not the diversion.”
She tittered. “You are for me.”
Thomas pulled out a chair for her, his brows furrowing at hearing her comment.
Katherine didn’t see his expression, though, for she hurried to the sideboard and poured him a cup of coffee and her a cup of tea. “A very welcome diversion,” she said. She set the cups on the table and then returned to the sideboard to dish up a plate for him.
