must excuse the state of the room, Mr. Brendan. This is where I do the work of the gazette. Donovan says I should have an office near the printing company, but I like being home. Here we are!”
She moved to the end of the table and gestured with a flourish to two armchairs in the bay of the window. Between them was a small table with a silver candelabra and three worn candles. The only other thing on the table was a small framed canvas of needlework that looked only partially complete. On the floor beside one of the chairs was a stack of newspapers. “It’s not very pretty here, but interestingly, my thoughts seem clearer here than anywhere else in this house. Isn’t that odd, to be in a room as chaotic as this and be able to think clearly?” She laughed and shook her head. “On my word, sometimes I hear the things I say and marvel at them. Will you sit? Please do—I’ll just pop out and tell Mrs. Plum you’ve come.”
She darted past him and out of the room before he could even answer.
Marek looked at the two armchairs. They reminded him of the two in the drawing room—as if two people often sat here to while away their hours. He chose the one the farthest from the needlepoint and sat on the edge of what he assumed was Donovan’s chair. This house and this woman intrigued him. It was a puzzle to be unlocked, or a view into a life that looked fascinating in comparison to his boring routine.
A moment later, Mrs. Honeycutt fluttered into the room, smoothing the lap of her skirt as she came across the room to join him. “I’m so glad you’ve come, Mr. Brendan,” she said again as he rose to his feet. She sat in a cloud of pale yellow in the chair beside him; he sat as well. She clasped her hands on her lap and leaned forward, her eyes sparkling with excitement. “I have the most extraordinary news,” she said, as if confiding a secret.
“I thought you might.”
“I should begin by...oh, wait!” she said suddenly. “How terribly ill-mannered of me, Mr. Brendan. Let me first inquire after your health.”
“Pardon?”
“And your day, of course? How would you say the talks are progressing?”
Marek was once again reminded how inept he was in social situations, but he didn’t understand why it was necessary to begin with social pleasantries as if they had met at some official function. She had said she had news, and he would like to know what the news was. “Mrs. Honeycutt, if I may—would you share with me your reason for inviting me here today?”
“I invited you to tea, Mr. Brendan, because I do have extraordinary news. But as we are friends, I should like to know that all is well with you.”
This strange notion of friends again. “I appreciate your—” he searched his brain for the right word “—ardor for making new friends, but as I am here only a very short time, I don’t think that possible.”
“What?” She seemed surprised. “Of course it is possible!” she insisted. “One should not limit one’s acquaintances, one should embrace them. What is the point of living if you don’t?”
He could think of any number of answers to that. Procreation, for one, a thought that made his heart skip a beat or two. Study. Animals. There were many things that made a life worth living above and beyond simply making acquaintances.
“All right, I understand you’re reluctant. But perhaps you will try for my sake? You happen to be the most interesting person to have entered my house in some time.”
She asked with such a pleasant pair of dimples and arresting blue eyes that he couldn’t rightly refuse her. “Very well,” he said. “How do I try?”
Her dimples deepened into a beaming smile of victory. “You may start by telling me if you’ve at least had the pleasure of seeing some of the sights of London.”
“I have not. What else might I tell you?”
“What? But we’ve some very fine museums, Mr. Brendan! I could make a list of attractions for you—”
“Thank you, but I’ve no time for it. Might you tell me your news now?”
She clucked her tongue at him. “Are you so entrenched in your occupation that you can’t take the time to see a bit of London? And the parks—you must find time to walk, particularly through Hyde Park. It’s very soothing, really.”
He waited.
Mrs. Honeycutt groaned theatrically