Page 25 of Unmasking the Silver Heiress
The two of them had giggled over the moment, falling back into comfortable silence as the carriage ambled its way over the final stretch of road to their destination.
Meridian House was built into a sloping rock face, with a tumble of flat, green land sprawled out around it, dotted with fruit trees. It was nowhere near as grand as a country manor like Somerton, where she and Nathaniel had passed the prior month, but rather stately in its practicality. Timeless. It was an heirloom estate, grand enough to have a name, but modest enough to allow for neighbors.
They were not the first carriage to arrive in the drive that day, judging from the unloading in process as they approached the drive.
A man she almost mistook for Nathaniel was shouting orders at workers while they heaved some particularly heavy piece of covered furniture free from its secured place on the transport wagon. He must have been a relative, she realized, for even from a distance she could see the likeness in the two men. This one was not as richly colored, nor as sleek, and he did not possess the elegance of motion that her own husband did, but they were undoubtedly kin.
He waved in their carriage with a smiling enthusiasm Nathaniel never would have displayed so openly and approached himself to open the door for them, extending a hand to assist Nell out into the bright afternoon sun.
She took care stepping out onto the uneven cobble, which was much in need of mending and overgrown between the pebbles. While she found her balance, the man was occupied assisting Sarah out next, then speaking to the driver with instructions for stabling the horses and taking some rest inside the house.
"Nell!" called a voice from the house, sending her spinning in its direction with her heart directly in her throat.
Nathaniel strode across the lawn with an expression on his handsome face that at least seemed pleased with her arrival. He was sharply dressed, his boots glinting in the sunlight as he approached her, holding out his hands for hers in welcome.
She did not rightly know what gesture was appropriate, and so gave a tenuous smile back and reached her own fingers out, allowing them to be wrapped in the warmth and strength of his large, strong hands. She did not trust herself to do much more. When he leaned forward and pressed a soft kiss into the swell of her cheek, she thought very well that she should be hailed a heroine for not slumping to the ground in a dead faint.
"You've made excellent time," he was saying brightly. "I did not estimate your arrival for another night or two at least. You must forgive the state of the house, but you know as well as any that it is a work in progress. Allow me to introduce my cousin, Christopher Cooper. He is assisting us with putting the house back in order."
The other man appeared again, giving a little bow in greeting. "No one calls me Christopher," he told her. "You must call me Kit, as everyone else does."
"Well, then you must call me Nell," she said with a smile and the shadow of a curtsy. "How wonderful to meet you, Kit. I was not expecting family to herald our arrival."
"Oh, your husband has seen to a great many things in anticipation of your arrival," Kit told her, a distinct note of playful ribbing in his sparkling blue eyes. "I've never seen him quite so determined."
"I find that hard to believe," Nell demurred, pleased despite her awareness that this must be little more than routine flattery.
"I have taken a few liberties," Nate confirmed in a low voice, drawing her attention back to him, only to immediately be snared in the hypnotic pull of those chameleon's eyes, as dazzling as the autumn foliage around them. "I imagine you'd like to rest before I bombard you with all the particulars, however. It has been a long journey."
"It has," she agreed, breathless.
That knowing little smile curled at the corners of his mouth. He gestured toward the doors to Meridian, tucking her hand into his elbow with that same, practiced motion he'd used back in London. "I will show you to the bedroom," he said. "You've earned a spot of relaxation."
She allowed him to lead her away, catching only the barest flicker of bafflement in the face of his cousin as they passed into the house, sheltered from the bright illumination of the afternoon sun.
Bedroom,he'd said, as though there were only one so far. If she'd been alone in the stairwell, she might have given a little jump of victory at the outcome of her little ruse, regardless of its failure back in London.
"I have been making inquiries," Nathaniel said low and deep, in a whisper meant for only her ear.
She knew it wasn't intended to be seductive, nor even particularly intimate, for it was simply Silver Leaf business. All the same, she couldn't stop the gooseflesh from rising on her arms. No one could rationalize that tone of voice with her silly physical reactions, now could they?
"The Dempierre family rarely mingles in local company. However, they are fond of a particular clothier in Dover proper, a Frenchwoman whose designs apparently were so luxurious that they put her life at risk during the initial uprising. I have already visited the shop and commissioned several things for you. It is my hope that you can gather information while you are being fitted."
"I likely can," Nell said cautiously. "It depends on the temperament of the seamstress, or, I suppose, those in her employ."
Nathaniel gave her a little smile, as though he were genuinely pleased with her response. "I never doubted it," he assured her, leading them to a halt to open the door to the master bedchamber.
The trappings were very simple. There was a bed with lots of lovely, soft pillows and warm blankets, though, and that was all she really cared about. Furniture would simply be ornamental in the wake of Nathaniel's absurdly luxurious bedding.
She walked forward, taking in the scope of the room. Temporary curtains had been hung, just plain bolts of black fabric, blocking the light from the room. She gripped one and flung it back and was momentarily struck dumb by the view.
From here, high on the vantage point from the hilly terrain, one could see for miles out. A sloping terrain gave way to a sheer drop, and beyond that was nothing but shimmering blue water, stretching endlessly into the horizon.
Nathaniel approached from behind, stopping short of touching her, with his hands folded behind his back. "Do you approve of the view, my dear?" he asked, as though he knew that she did.
"Oh, Nathaniel," she said, turning over her shoulder to gaze up into his face. "Do you know I have never seen the sea before? And there it is, right outside my window!"
The teasing amusement slid from his expression, seemingly driven away by the surprise of her words. "Never? How can that be?"
