A quiet Tabetha was slightly unnerving.
Tell her, you fool!
Later this morning. He would tell her everything later that morning.
“And despite your extensive knowledge and fashion sense, I think you’d look beautiful in yellow as well.”
She turned her hand and squeezed his fingers. The silent communication was as reassuring as it was unnerving. “What will we do once we’re in London?”
Stone inhaled sharply at the question. Up until that moment, he’d done fairly well avoiding talking about the future.
“Do you have a home there?” she persisted.
He had Burtis Hall, one of the largest mansions in Mayfair at his disposal, but over the past few years, he and Peter had leased bachelor apartments at a lodging house near Bond Street.
No man appreciated having his mother keeping tabs on him via a household of servants.
But he couldn’t very well tell Tabetha any of this. Not unless he was prepared to go into more details of the truth.
He was saved from having to answer when a farmer’s cart came into view ahead of them, and as they turned the corner, a few shops appeared. Most of the tradesmen in this small village had already begun their day but it was doubtful a duke would have.
Even a jilted and catless one.
Although… Stone had a feeling the duke and his men hadn’t stopped here. Even so, he forced himself to stay on alert as he pulled the gig to a halt outside of a shop he’d ducked into on his journey up.
“Should I come inside with you?”
Stone stared down at their hands, still clasping each other.
“I promise not to listen to music in my head while I walk.”
Damned little minx was teasing him now. He glanced down at their feet, where Archie had curled into a ball. Making a hasty decision, he removed his jacket and tossed it over the creature. “Damned thing would give us away in a second,” he growled and then climbed off before lifting her down to the ground beside him. “And keep your hands off your bodice.”
Touching her was second nature to him now. She ducked her head and clutched his arm as they entered the shop.
“I’m going to see if the clerk knows anything about a duke passing through. If you could—”
“Bread. Jam. Cheese and meats if they have any.”
“And wine.” Even now, he found himself leaning forward so he could graze his lips along her temple. “And cream for Archie, if they have any. I’ll meet you at the counter.”
“And what does my husband want?” There went that chin, and then her fingertips touched her bonnet.
“Nothing he can eat in public.”
His comment ought to have sent her blushing but had her returning his stare with a dangerous one of her own.
“A most convincing reason to dine in private.”
So damned dangerous, this one. He turned her in the direction of the back of the store and sent her off with a quick swat to her bum. The giggle she sent from over her shoulder was as much promise as it was complaint.
“Can I help you with anything, sir?” A tidy-looking fellow wearing a white apron approached. “Are you returning from Gretna or on your way up?” His eyes twinkled knowingly.
Stone laughed but didn’t answer outright. “You see a lot of that, I imagine.”
“At least three or four a day.” The man was smiling and in that instant, Stone envied the simple life of a shopkeeper. Ironic that if two of his father’s distant cousins hadn’t been tragically killed in a freak carriage accident two decades before, making his father the Earl of Ravensdale and changing all of their lives forever, Stone very well might have lived similarly.
He chatted amicably with the fellow, learning that although a ducal caravan had come through the day before, they’d only stopped to change out horses before continuing south.
This man did not seem to be dissembling. Likely, Culpepper thought that he was racing to catch up with the two of them—and his cat.
“Will this suffice, Mr. Chester?” Tabetha appeared at his side with a basket full of rations, speaking to him in a submissive manner he doubted he’d ever hear from her again.
He studied her selection and quirked a brow. For such a predictably impractical lady, she’d made surprisingly practical selections. And she hadn’t forgotten about Archie
“Indeed.” He slanted her a teasing look. “Mrs. Chester.”
The shopkeeper chuckled and walked around the counter to add up the cost.
“So you are returning from Gretna Green.” The man winked at her, having gotten his initial answer after all.
Stone