Page 28 of The Bastard's Iberian Bride
“Yes, miss.”
“From Mr Gibson?”
“No, miss. From Mr. Kincaid.”
Her heart sank just a little, and she chided herself.
Mabel caught up with them. “Johnny—”
“Johnny?”
“Well, it’s his name.” Mabel studied the cobblestone entry. “I’ll look after my miss, Johnny, and you can go find your dinner.”
“I allow as I can, Miss Mabel, but I haven’t lasted this long doing what I can instead of what I’ve been told to do. And me seeing Mr. Gibson talking to Mr. Kincaid, afore Mr. Kincaid talked to me.”
Paulette’s heart beat a little faster.
Mabel opened her mouth, preparing for one of her speeches, like when she’d been Paulette’s nursemaid eons ago. Her plump cheeks went rosier than usual and her lips trembled somewhere between a smile and a scolding.
Johnny’s eyes twinkled, focused solely on the maid.
A groan found its way up her throat. She’d seen one or two of Mabel’s romances over the years. They’d come to naught, as would this, if the maid planned to stay with her.
“We’ll not have an argument on the steps of this inn, Mabel. Johnny, deliver us into the parlor and then go and find Mr. Gibson. I must speak to him immediately.”
