Page 63 of The Thief
Babette and Graham did not have many staff and they liked it that way. They preferred a small group and their home being modest allowed that.
When they had moved out of their townhouse in the city to the modest home on the outskirts, Scarlett had questioned why they would move to a smaller place. Babette had stated that she preferred to have the smaller house as it needed less upkeep but still had enough bedrooms for any guests that might need to stay. They also had a room for her whenever she felt like coming home.
Scarlett sighed and looked around, happiness filling her heart as she looked at the faces of her parents. Her mother’s excitement could not be contained while her father looked slightly bored as they rode across the long bridge and into the small town on the other side.
Alastair and his parents had chosen to ride in a carriage behind them so they were single file down the bridge and did not have to worry about squeezing uncomfortably into one.
As soon as they arrived back across the bridge, the coachman parked the carriage in the stables, surprising her mother.
“Are we not going farther?” she asked.
Scarlett shook her head.
“The market is right outside the stable gates so there is no need to take the carriage any farther. It is not a long distance at all, Mama.”
The coachman opened the door and helped her and her mother exit the carriage, her father waving him off to get out himself. Just as they were departing from the carriage, the other one pulled up and they waited for the rest of their party to join them.
Once the group had gathered, they headed out of the gates and into the market.
It was bustling and loud, the smell of earth and spices surrounding them as they walked. Scarlett took a deep breath in, a smile coming to her face as she inhaled all the exotic scents. She looked over at her parents and could not contain her laughter as her mother spoke with one of the stall owners, bartering over a gaudy ring.
“Do you think he will give in before she does?” her father whispered to her, taking her arm and walking with her.
Scarlett laughed and shook her head.
“I do not doubt that Mama will win. He will give her the ring at what she is offering to him.”
Not a moment later, her mother walked over to them, triumphantly holding the ring in her hand.
“Mama, do you really need another ring?” she asked.
Her mother shook her head.
“No, but I thought it was pretty so I wanted it. So, I got it. It is not every day that you see something so lovely.”
Babette walked away from them, admiring the piece as she did. Scarlett sighed and Graham chuckled.
He rested his hand on hers and asked, “How are you doing? I know that you have been sick, and that you are feeling better now.”
She turned to look at him and smiled.
“I am doing so much better now. I was worried that I was not going to make it for a little while, but Alastair was able to find out what was making me sick and a cure.”
“You seem to have grown very comfortable with one another to call each other by your given names,” he murmured, peaking her curiosity.
“We have, yes. We did not think that it would matter as much to stick to social conformities with our situation. We are constantly speaking to one another and it is difficult to keep calling each other ‘My Lord’ or ‘Your Grace’ so we decided to do away with formality for now.”
He stopped suddenly and turned to her.
“Have you thought about what is going to happen after this is all over?” he asked her, looking into her eyes.
She looked away and then looked back at him, unsure of how to respond.
“Well, Papa, I know what is going to happen. Or at least, I am hoping it is going to happen as long as you approve.”
Understanding dawned on him and he looked at her, and then at Alastair, and then back at her again.
“Has he officially asked you or has something happened?” he asked, a scowl coming to his face.
