The Earl's Return by Callie Hutton

Author:Callie Hutton [Hutton, Callie]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2016-08-21T18:30:00+00:00

Chapter Twelve

The next morning, Redgrave joined the rest of the party who were traveling to the nearby town, Ilmarsh Bridge. The women were expected to enjoy a morning of shopping, while the men planned to investigate ruins of an ancient castle, followed by ale and companionship in the local tavern, The Ale and Grain House.

As always, once he joined the group, he scanned the area for Mary. She stood with her mother and two other ladies. Thinking this was as good a time as any to approach Her Grace, he strolled in their direction.

“Good morning, ladies.” He bowed and accepted the dowager’s extended hand. “Your Grace.”

“Redgrave.” Her smile was a tad warmer than the last time. However, she did cast a speculative glance at Mary, which set him a bit on edge. Had there been gossip?

He gave a small bow to Mary and the other two ladies. “I assume you will be enjoying a morning of shopping?”

“I hope to make a trip to the bookstore. Lady Genevieve tells me there is an excellent one in town.” Mary’s eyes glowed with excitement, like a child awaiting a favored treat.

“Indeed, there is. Browen’s Shop of Books and Music is well stocked for such a small town. The owner is a former professor at Cambridge and brought his love of books with him when he moved to Ilmarsh Bridge. I am sure you will enjoy browsing the shelves.”

“Have you been there before, my lord?”

Redgrave smiled inwardly at Mary’s formal address, but obviously any other term would have elicited more than speculative looks from the dowager. “Yes. I one time visited Lord and Lady Billingsley when my carriage broke down not far from here. One can also get decent food at The Ale and Grain House, where I believe the gentlemen will be gathering after our visit to the castle ruins. I assume the ladies will be joining us there, as well?”

“I believe that was Lady Billingsley’s plans, although I am not too sure about visiting a public tavern,” Lady Margaret, one of the other guests, said. She looked beyond Redgrave’s shoulder. “I believe the carriages have arrived to transport us.”

Redgrave bowed once more. “Enjoy your morning, ladies.”

The gentlemen piled into two carriages, the ladies into three others. The ride to the town was quick and easy. Since it had been at least a few days since the last rainstorm, the roads were quite passable.

Traipsing around castle ruins with the other men might be of interest, but Redgrave would much rather have spent his morning in the bookstore. He enjoyed spending quiet, peaceful times browsing bookstore shelves, discovering new books, flipping through older, beloved ones. Additionally, that was where Mary was headed.

Mary.

Her charming day dress of woven Chinese silk with hand-painted cornflowers brought a slight tint of blue to her eyes. He’d noticed on other occasions her eyes seemed to change colors depending on what she wore. One more thing to set her apart from other ladies.

“Redgrave, I hear your father-in-law is putting together a group of men to buy a diamond mine in Africa.

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