Book of Love by Erin Satie

Author:Erin Satie [Satie, Erin]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Little Phrase

Chapter 14

Alistair watched Coco sashay away, biting his lip to stop himself from whistling at the view. She had manners enough not to crow about her little victories, but a certain sway in her step convinced him that she did enjoy them.

“She’s a sour one,” muttered Freddy.

“She knows her own mind,” Alistair corrected.

“Even worse.”

Alistair declined to pursue the conversation. Not only would convincing Freddy of Coco’s worth be difficult, it would be counterproductive. He had a hard enough time courting Coco without inviting any competition.

He congratulated the winner of the back-sword match—and then the loser, too, for putting up a good fight. Both boys pretended not to care. Then he continued the circuit of the property that he’d started before the game distracted him. Chilly was about to get married, and Alistair intended to commemorate this milestone in his friend’s life with a truly spectacular prank. Considering the circumstances, he’d have to come up with something Nell would appreciate. That limited his options.

As did the setting. Joseph Dowell, Nell’s father, was the youngest of four brothers. Family resources stretched far enough to bestow an established estate upon the three eldest. Unfortunately, because the Dowells had run out of spare houses before their fourth son came along, the youngest boy had inherited a comparatively generous parcel of land with nothing on it. He’d had to build his own home, and reeling from the expense, he and his wife had raided the attics of their relatives for furniture.

The elegant new construction didn’t at all match the eclectic decor, much of it shabby or damaged. Nor did it present as many possibilities for mayhem as Alistair might have hoped. Older houses had oddities he could exploit. New ones tended to be more straightforward.

He had a glimmer of an idea. Instead of chasing after it, he left it alone. Either it would develop flavor like a fine broth or go stale like unwashed drawers.

While the prank simmered, he returned to the front parlors where most of the guests had congregated. Knowing Chilly’s family fairly well and only being moderately fond of them, mostly he was looking for Coco.

He found her listening attentively to a rambling story about taking Nell to the beach as a child. Quite… courteous of her. Not that he was surprised, exactly. Coco had excellent manners, sometimes. When she wanted to. Since Alistair didn’t find the story interesting himself, he moved on to join Chilly.

“How are you holding up?” Alistair asked his best friend. “Nervous? Excited? The big day is almost upon us.”

“As far as I’m concerned, the wedding is the prize at the end of all this”—Chilly cast a derisive glance across the crowded parlor—“family time.”

“How can it be that so many people are delightful as individuals, and yet almost all families are appalling when assembled as a unit?” Alistair mused. “I think it’s a paradox. Is that a paradox?”

“A riddle fit for the Sphinx,” Chilly agreed dryly.

“Too good for the Sphinx. Those riddles have answers. Who’d really be stumped by the one about the creature having four legs and two legs and then three? It’s so obvious.

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