Page 4 of One Bed for the Bluestocking
“Should you choose to enroll here,” Nat continued, “the two of you would almost certainly attend some of the same lectures.I wouldn’t want you to be taken by surprise.”
Kit nodded, his expression tight.“I see.Thank you for the warning.”
Nathaniel opened the door to their destination and held it for Kit.“That is actually the reason I brought you here.I don’t want to make the same mistake twice, so I’d like to watch you sketch a live specimen.”
“I understand completely.”Kit glanced appreciatively around.They had just entered the Upper Museum, one of the loveliest rooms in the New College building, with a vaulted ceiling lined with stately ionic columns.A series of domed skylights bathed the room in soft light.
But Kit frowned as he noticed the glass-fronted display cases arrayed throughout the room, which were filled with stuffed birds, animals, and other natural specimens.“I thought you wanted me to sketch a live specimen.Is there a garden nearby?Even though we’re in town, I’m sure we can find a bird or a squirrel or even an—aieeee!”
Kit emitted a high-pitched scream as the Upper Museum’s most popular resident strolled over to greet them.He grabbed Nathaniel’s arm, pulling him toward the door.“Mr.Sterling!Run!There’s alion!”
Chapter3
Nathaniel had no difficulty resisting Kit’s efforts to pull him across the room.He could feel the younger man’s fingers trembling where they grasped his arm, and he felt a pang of guilt.He had meant to tell Kit what they would find inside the museum, but he had been distracted by their encounter with Iain.
“It’s all right, Kit.Marigold is tame.”He extended a hand to demonstrate, and the big cat obligingly rubbed her face against it.
Kit peered around Nat’s shoulder, his expression baldly skeptical.“You named the lionMarigold?”
“Someone did.”Nat scratched Marigold in her favorite spot beneath her chin, and she emitted a rumbling purr.“She’s a mountain lion.Or puma, or cougar, as they’re sometimes called.”
Kit did not seem reassured, for his voice shook.“Why do you have amountain lionin your museum?”
Nathaniel considered his answer.“Mostly in an effort to one-up the University of St.Andrews.The university had her brought over from Brazil as a kitten.I know she looks intimidating, but she’s as tame as any housecat.See?”
Kit let go of Nat’s arm, but his expression remained wary.Purring loudly, Marigold began rubbing up against Nathaniel’s legs in a gesture familiar to anyone who had ever owned a cat.
“She truly won’t attack?”Kit asked breathlessly.“Oh!”He gave a gasping laugh as Marigold rubbed her head against his leg.Hesitantly, Kit reached out to scratch the cat behind her giant, furry ears.
“I think she likes you,” Nat observed.
“She certainly seems to.I just…” Kit trailed off as Marigold pressed herself into his hands, purring loudly.“Oh, but you aremarvelous!I can’t believe I’m petting apuma!”He caressed the big cat’s face, then stroked a hand down the length of her back.“Yes, you’re a pretty girl.You’re a very pretty girl.Yes, you are!”
Nathaniel smiled.His initial impression of Kit was that he was a taciturn sort of fellow.But now, he began babbling excitedly.
“How I wish my sister, Pippa, were here so she could see her!She adores cats.They’re her favorite thing in the world.”He spun around, laughing, as Marigold circled him, rubbing herself against his legs.“Those kittens you saw in my sketchbook… those are Pippa’s.She’s forever asking me to make more drawings of them.Not that I mind, of course.I’m always sketching something or the other.Speaking of which…” He squatted down to address Marigold, stroking a thumb across her cheek.“I must draw you.I simply must.Would you let me?Would you, my pretty darling?”
Nathaniel brought over a wooden chair and gestured for Kit to sit.He began petting Marigold himself so she would give Kit a little space.Kit flipped open his sketchbook and pulled out a pencil.He fell silent as he began to work.The only sounds in the long chamber were the purring of the cat and the scratch of Kit’s pencil against the paper.
Nathaniel produced a ball from his pocket that he had brought along for this purpose.He tossed it, and Marigold scurried down the gallery after it.Kit made a sound of delight but never stopped sketching.
Marigold chased the ball for a few minutes, but she soon tired of the game.Yawning, she sauntered over to a sunny spot beneath one of the skylights and stretched out for a nap.
Kit was still sketching eagerly.Nathaniel strolled around so he could peer over his shoulder.
What he saw astonished him.Kit had made not one drawing, but a half dozen—and that was just on this page.He’d seen him frantically turn over a new sheet at least twice.They were sketches, to be sure, not finished paintings.But Nathaniel recognized quality when he saw it, and the anatomical accuracy to the drawings bespoke real talent.
He watched the pencil fly over the paper.Clearly, Kit was Iain’s opposite.He could sketch not only accurately, but quickly, which was crucial for the type of work Nat needed him to perform.
Marigold rolled over onto her back, curved paws pointing up.Kit stood, lifted his chair, and moved it six feet to the right to get the angle he wanted, then flipped to a fresh sheet of paper and began sketching furiously.Now that the cat was lying still, he was making larger, more detailed sketches.He was also scrawling abbreviations that Nat could not decipher in the margins.
It was Nathaniel’s impression that Kit had forgotten he was there, nor did the young man seem to notice the trickle of patrons wandering about the room.He was unaware of anything but Marigold.
Nathaniel watched with growing excitement as Kit sketched for another ten minutes, then turned his page only to be met with the thick sheet of brown card paper that marked the end of his pad.He drew back as if affronted, then blinked and glanced around.
His eyes met Nathaniel’s, and he staggered to his feet, sending the chair skidding back a few inches.“I’m so sorry!”He glanced around the room.“How much time has passed?”
“Only a half hour or so,” Nathaniel reassured him.
