The Lamplighter's Love by Delphine Dryden

Author:Delphine Dryden
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: steampunk, erotic romance, steampunk erotica, steampunk romance, steampunk sex, delphine dryden, steampunk clockpunk alternate history fantasy science fiction sf sci fi victorian, steampunk erotic romance, steampunk free, steampunk short story

* * *

The apprentice had brought her Nicholas’ reply within twenty minutes or so. He would arrange a later shift for Amberherst, as she suggested, and meet her at the Pig and Sprocket at eight o’clock.

His handwriting was jittery, barely legible. Mary wondered if his joints were aching. It was snowing again, unseasonably cold if beautiful. She wrapped a woolen shawl under her cloak, and a thick knitted scarf around her neck, but she was chilled nonetheless by the time she had braved the wind and frost and made it to the warm glow of the pub’s common room.

She felt an illicit excitement as she secured a room for the night, glad for the master’s garb that granted her leave to do so without suspicion. An unmarried woman, carrying only a small valise, still raised many an eyebrow if she tried to obtain a room in an inn. But the publican at the Pig and Sprocket didn’t seem to notice or mind what she was carrying. She was clearly just another traveling tradeswoman to him, no doubt on her way to or from some training or special job of work. He pocketed her money and summoned a boy within seconds to take her to her room, granting her all the deference her uniform demanded.

Mary tried to ignore the irony that the public’s perception had actually changed faster than the true practices within the guild hall. Clever management of information and publicity, she now realized, had affected this. People had been trained to think of the guild as a model of progressive thinking, and an example of what was capable in a truly egalitarian system. And true, there had been some changes. The second in command was a woman now, a relatively young one at that compared to some of the other elders. But Mary had to wonder if Master Temple really had less power as Second Elder than she’d had as a master of her own workshop. Certainly she seemed to hold no sway with Master Smith or the rest of the elders. And when it came to the really important decisions, their thinking was as old and dusty as it ever was.

Alone in the small room, Mary unfurled her one pretty dress from the valise and snapped it out in front of her, pleased to see that it hadn’t wrinkled badly. She was out of her heavy uniform in a twinkling, and couldn’t help but enjoy the curiously light and airy feeling of the smooth blue bombazine as she fastened it over her underthings. The soft silk and wool felt like gossamer after years spent in thick, protective canvas.

A quick glance at the glass confirmed that her hair was a disaster. The tidy twist at the back of her head had started to shed pins, and her hair had dried into fair, wispy curls around her face where the snow had first frozen and then melted. But time only permitted her to tweak the bun roughly back into place with a few more hastily placed pins.

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