Page 61 of Snapdragons
The air was pleasantly warm and scented with the fragrance of flowers and citrus. And the space was quiet. Even the sound of the gardener’s shears was soft and somehow soothing. Underneath it all was the patter of rain on glass.
Penelope released a breath and made a point of relaxing her shoulders. She could find a few minutes’ solace here.
Liam had left, but she could write to him in Ireland. She could tell him in a letter all the things she’d intended to say that morning. Then he would at least know she hadn’t wanted them to be at odds. He would know she cared about and appreciated him. And perhaps when he wrote back, he would express some sorrow at having not even said goodbye. Perhaps he would acknowledge how rash this current action was.
Ifhe wrote back. That one word—if—pulled her spirits low once more. How had everything gone so very wrong so quickly?
Returning to Ireland would have cost her the chance to claim a future of her choosing and any hope of winning Niles’s regard. But remaining in England, she was beginning to fear, might sever her connection to her family.
She needed something to give her some hope, to buoy her spirits. The peacefulness of the conservatory was helping, but she was struggling.
Her wanderings brought her to a section with bulb flowers, ones seldom seen outside of spring. On any other day, she would have thought it a nice bit of luck. But today, in this moment, the sight of snapdragons proved almost miraculous.
They were Niles’s favorite flower; he’d told her so. But he’d also said they were all but impossible to find this time of year. Did he not realize Mr. Layton grew them in his conservatory?
Feeling a surge of excitement that at least momentarily lifted her heavy thoughts, she made her way back to where thegardener was working.
“Excuse me,” she said.
He looked away from his trimming. To her relief, he didn’t seem annoyed by the interruption.
“Might I have a small sprig of snapdragons, please?”
“Of course, miss.” He stepped down from his short ladder and set his shears on the soil beneath the orange tree. “Only tell me which color you’d like.”
It wasn’t a question she’d pondered before. “Which is your favorite?” she asked as she walked with him back to the planter where the flowers were growing.
“I’m fond of the dark-purple ones,” the gardener said.
“Then, that’s the one I’d choose.”
He allowed a quick smile as he walked very businesslike directly to the patch of snapdragons. He studied the various stalks for a moment before pointing to a petite sprig on one plant. The flowers were beautifully formed in miniature and were a gorgeous shade of deep purple. “How about this’n, miss?”
“Perfect.”
He took a small pair of gardening scissors from a pocket in his work apron and, with combined gentleness and speed, snipped the delicate sprig of flowers, then handed it to her.
“Thank you,” she said, taking it carefully. “This will brighten Mr. Greenberry’s day. Snapdragons are his favorite flower.”
“An excellent choice, that.” The gardener glanced back at the many bulb flowers growing nearby.
“And thank you for taking such care of this conservatory. It’s a lovely place.”
His shoulders squared, and his chest puffed a bit. “I work hard at it, and I think it shows.”
“It does.”
He gave a quick nod. “I’m happy you’ve enjoyed it, miss.”
“I’ll let you return to your work.” Penelope raised the sprig ofsnapdragons. “And thank you again for this.”
Another quick nod.
Penelope slipped from the conservatory. Alone in the corridor, she carefully removed one of the straight pins along the neckline of her dress that held the tucker in place. There were ample others, so removing this one would not wreak havoc.
Having accomplished that, she went in search of Niles, or at least in search of someone who could tell her where he was. Her path crossed with a footman, who was able to point her in the direction of the library, where she found Niles.
Excitement added a bounce to her step as she crossed to him at the cherry-wood desk. He looked up from the sheet of parchment he was writing on, smiled fleetingly, then looked back down.
