CHAPTER 23
The Ruins of Hadleigh Castle
It was a subdued morning. If not for the outgoing tide, the fog was so thick that progress would have been futile without Nicholas at the helm to guide the slender cutter through the flotilla of frigates and past fishing boats bobbling in the waves. The sky brightened as the mist burned away, making it easier for Alix to see her book in the tiny cabin. Only moments ago, Albert Frisk had stopped by to invite Jenny down to the galley for breakfast, and Nicholas had soon followed.
"Hello," he said, poking his head through the door, waiting patiently for Alix to calm Snap's noisy response. "You're alone? I thought your maid would be with you."
Alix tucked away the borrowed book of sonnets she had been reading. "Come in, won't you? The pot is still warm, if you'd care for tea," she added, automatically opening the cozy to pour. "Albert Frisk dropped in a minute ago," she continued, as Nicholas took the opposite chair, completely at ease in their cramped surroundings. "They should return soon."
"It's not like Frisk to take liberty."
"Not at all-I've been reading," Alix demurred, unwilling to cause trouble after insisting Jenny should accompany her once she learned that Albert was to care for Snap on their adventure. Ever since Stragglethorpe, his only regular visit had been at Snap's evening walk, and Alix had determined that a day at the beach was the impetus their budding relationship needed.
Nicholas lifted his gaze to the row of windows. "We're just passing the Essex marshes and will put in soon. I thought you might like to walk around the shops in Southend before lunch."
"I might," Alix replied, clinging to Lily's haughty reserve as she gazed out at the tattered fog hiding the famous Hadleigh estate.
"We can take a drive out to see the castle later, if you wish."
He smiled at her surprise, as she wondered how he had acquired the talent to read her mind. "Most of Hadleigh has crumbled now. My father gave me a tour of the old keep when I was a lad, and shared more about the Hundred Years' War than I could ever remember. Is this afternoon soon enough, or-"
"Oh, after lunch is smashing!" Alix bit off her excitement belatedly but could not regret her undue enthusiasm when he grinned appreciatively.
"All right. I'll be sure Frisk has a coach ready." As if he was aware of her discomfiture over the awkward slip, he finished his tea and reached for his hat as he rose to leave. "Don't worry-today belongs to you alone. I'd better get back to the helm. Thank you for the tea," he added, and then was gone.
Alix watched Snap snuffle at the closed crack of the door while wiggling the stub of his tail expectantly, and then Nicholas's voice returned distantly as he hailed his man from the hallway. "Might I have a word, Frisk?"
The door slid open, and Jenny entered, her cheeks pleasantly flushed. She waited for the terrier to scamper through before closing the door, and then turned to fix her hat busily. "I promised not to be long."
"Yes, but was it long enough?" Alix hid her interest by assuming a new place in her book while the maid's forehead wrinkled with perplexity.
"Long enough for what?"
"Please, sit down. Nicholas said we'll be docking soon." "Milord was here?" Jenny said suspiciously, putting aside the evidence of his empty teacup when she took his place. "Yes, he came by looking for your Albert."
"He found him right enough, but he's not my Albert." "Did you see what you went to see?"
"We just went down to the galley. Why?"
"No reason."
"Fie, I know that innocent look by now; you can't pull the wool over my eyes, milady," Jenny protested brusquely. "There is absolutely nothing going on between Albert Frisk and meself. If you listened to anything, you'd know he is nothing but a rake and a rounder."
"Yes, I recall you saying something of the sort before."
"I've four brothers, haven't I? I should know." "Yes, I recall your family as well."
"Then why are you sitting there looking like the kitten caught with cream on her whiskers?"
"Who, me? You're exaggerating," Alix replied, blindly paging through the book. "I was just wondering if you enjoyed breakfast."
"Breakfast? Who said anything about eating?"
"Precisely."
NICHOLAS ESCORTED THE IMPOSTOR through the storefronts along High Street, aware that he had lied when promising the day belonged to her, because he was thoroughly enjoying it himself. In the candy shop, he realized that she was not beyond her own artifice by insisting her maid should sample the chocolates, rather than tasting them herself, all the while covertly watching Frisk's reaction.
Nicholas thought that Albert appeared to be more stoic than interested as he stood aside with the terrier. Frisk's initial intent to pursue Jenny Smith had been an effort to find information about the impostor, but since Nicholas's search of the chambers and the enlistment of Poole Investigations, Albert had retreated-whether because of frustration or disinclination, Nicholas had no particular desire to know. But he was on the cusp of meddling in his servants' affairs to discover if the impostor was one who had stacked the cards to watch them fall, or if she was merely an incurable romantic.
They finally left the shop with more sweets than anyone could eat, and the impostor offered Nicholas a peppermint stick when he settled beside her in the brightly painted shay. As Frisk shook the reins at the rented horses and drove their fanciful carriage past the cutter waiting at the pier, Nicholas struggled with a desire to stretch his arm behind her. Oblivious to his proximity, she watched the windswept dunes sprouting marram grass, holding the dog, which eyed him with quick intent. Undeterred, Nicholas rolled the peppermint stick in his mouth and commented, "It's turned into a fine day."
"Yes, it has," she agreed with what he now recognized as her singularly melodious prosody. When she turned to him, her crystalline eyes reflected the sky, and her wind-tousled curls tugged loose from the careful coiffure of her hair.
Nicholas could not help but grin, although it drove her eyes away. "We're passing Two Tree Island," he said to appear informative, even if they had sailed this way earlier. "It shouldn't take long to get up to the castle. There's a splendid view, but despite repeated attempts at renovation, it's long been an impossible loss."
"Did you by chance have the opportunity to see the exhibition of John Constable's paintings of Hadleigh?"
Nicholas should have anticipated her interest in the famous studies of the ruins. Her innocent question raised a thousand in turn, including how ridiculous she thought his clumsy investigation into how much she knew about Caravaggio, when he had suspected only that she was not Lily. "Unfortunately, I was at sea that summer."
"Oh." The impostor's gentle response taxed him greatly. As if anticipating that Nicholas longed to touch her, the terrier cast him a cautious look while sitting up to sniff the breeze.
"I enlisted with the navy before finishing the university and shipped out soon after," Nicholas shared affably, looking over the distant estuary, instead of at her. "Because of my experience at Lion Shipping, I was given the rank of second lieutenant. I suspect it was only natural that John and I became shipmates. We were assigned to a frigate patrolling the waters between the Mediterranean and the Gold Coast. We served two years together, before the end of duty."
"Oh."
Was he boring her with unwanted trivia, or would it eventually lead to an enlightened exchange? Nicholas