Ashbrook Abbey: A Regency Romance (Business of Love) by Heather Chapman

Author:Heather Chapman [Chapman, Heather]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2022-09-13T23:00:00+00:00

Chapter 7

Work itself did not worry Ambrose—it was type of work Kate had alluded that posed a problem. He did not much care for cleaning nor cooking; he knew nothing of either. He was even less useful in matters of the garden or repairing any type of building.

She led him past the front door. Loftus had sent his maids over earlier in the week to dust and ready the house. The front entrance was flooded with light from the bay window in the parlor. The cream-colored walls of the small sitting room were accented with wood beams on the low ceiling and friezes around the windows. Blue drapes adorned the large window, making the room feel larger than it actually was. The furniture surrounded the brick fireplace, and a smaller piano sat against the interior wall. The wood had been polished; the furniture kept in good repair.

“This is the guest parlor,” Kate explained, motioning to her right. “My parents never entertained large crowds, but the room works nicely for simple gatherings.”

Ambrose realized she was staring up at him, as if waiting for a reaction. He attempted to calm her nerves by smiling, but he knew it was forced, rigid. “It is a lovely room.”

She turned to her left. “And there is the study. It was my father’s, but I suppose it is yours now, if you’d like.”

The study was even smaller than the parlor and had bookshelves spanning from floor to ceiling on each wall. The leather-bound books were seemingly organized by size and subject, and the window in the room had a small seat below it. The only other furniture in the room was a desk and a leather-bound chair. The aisles around the desk had just enough room to walk about it.

“It’s a fine study.”

She stared up at him, her eyes seeming to glisten. His stomach fluttered. He hadn’t recovered since seeing her out of her blacks and into dresses of color. The effect had startled him. How had he not recognized her beauty before?

“And over here is the kitchen…” her voice trailed off, again full of excitement. He had never heard so many words coming out of her lips at once. She kept inserting small memories at the sight of the hearth or the table or some other sentimental piece. The cottage had breathed new life into Kate, and Ambrose found the effect to be equal parts beautiful and alarming.

Being attracted to his wife was not part of the plan. Things could get messy. He scratched his chin and turned his attention back to Kate’s tour. She was rambling about the time she’d spilt flour all over the rug in the kitchen. Her cheeks indented when she laughed—a charming sight.

Ambrose let out an audibly exhale. He was doing a poor job of keeping his mind from noticing her beauty.

The cottage was surprisingly clean and orderly. Loftus’s tenants lived in cottages on the outskirts of the land, but whenever Ambrose had visited them, he had found the homes to be dirty, dingy, and cluttered.

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