Had something happened in one of the coal mines? She knew Robert trusted the foremen—both lead foremen had been under his employ for years. If there had been an accident in one of the mines, surely she would have heard about it in the news.
She struggled to come up with another reason why Robert would flee York when the weather was so bad.
“Whatexactlydid he say?” Ivy asked, turning to regard the housemaid directly.
Anne blinked a few times. She seemed reluctant to speak until Ivy’s eyes widened with her impatience. “The ghosts of the past have driven me from York,” she recited as if from memory.
Ivy jerked back on the small tufted seat. “Ghosts?” she repeated, not expecting such an answer.
Anne lifted a shoulder. “That’s what Graves said hislordship said, my lady,” she affirmed. “Is the house in York haunted, perhaps?”
About to reply in the negative, Ivy considered the query a moment. She hadn’t been to Gladstone Hall in a very long time. Almost a decade. Perhaps some ghosts had settled in during her absence. “I never encountered any whilst I lived at Gladstone Hall,” she murmured. “But then, that’s been years ago.”And only when I wasn’t in London for the Season, she didn’t add.
The sudden knock at the door had them both reacting in shock until Ivy nervously tittered. The talk of ghosts obviously had them on edge. “Come,” she called out. She turned her gaze back towards the mirror and watched her husband appear, framed in the opening door, as a reflection in the dressing table mirror.
She had to stifle the urge to inhale sharply before she allowed a look of awe. He had dressed for dinner, his formal clothes all black but for the white satin waistcoat embroidered with red leaves and berries. Even his shirt, cravat, and stockings were black, so the contrast with the waistcoat was stark.
For a moment, his expression seemed as severe as his clothing. Far too serious for one about to head down to dinner in a country house. Apparently the sight of her awe, reflected in the looking glass, caused him to soften his expression.
“You look surprised,” he commented. “And rather lovely this evening.”
Ivy couldn’t believe how her body reacted. A frisson skittered down her spine and through her belly, which had her inhaling softly when the pleasure was at its peak. “Why, thank you,” she said, coming to her feet. She slid them into the black slippers Anne had set out for her.
The housemaid immediately stepped back and dipped a curtsy before disappearing into the dressing room.
While Robert seemed surprised by Anne Salisbury’s sudden departure, Ivy was not.
She knew there was a reunion in the maid’s future, and she already knew how much the man involved was looking forward to it.
