Page 11 (1/2)

"I should do," he said "The doctor wishes to see o I trust the rooht find it srand surroundings"

"Neither do I"

She opened her eyes "I’m sorry I did not ht sleeping rough Any room with a bed will be a luxury Well, except this one, I suppose," he said, looking about the ainst the walls, and thein a motley collection of cots and beds A feere on the floor

"It’s depressing," she said quietly

He nodded He should be grateful He hole of limb and body Weak, perhaps, but he would heal Some of the other men in the roory," he suddenly declared

She looked up, and he found he rather enjoyed the startled look in her a eyes

"If the doctor wishes to see me, he can bl--" Edward cleared his throat "He can find ave him a concerned look "I shouldn’t want--"

He cut her off by pointing toward a pile of fabric--scarlet and tan--on a nearby pew "I think that’s my uniform over there Would you be so kind as to fetch it?"

"But the doctor--"

"Or I’ll do ityou, I’m bare-arsed under this shirt"

Her cheeks burned scarlet--not quite as deep a hue as his coat, but impressively close--and suddenly it occurred to hie

Him: Several months in Connecticut

Her: Teeks in New York

No wonder he had not recognized her face He’d never seen her before

Their e?

It had never been consummated

Chapter 4

Lieutenant Rokesby isn’t unbearable at all In fact, he’s quite a decent fellow I think you’d like hihbor

I showed him your miniature He said you were very pretty

--from Thomas Harcourt to his sister Cecilia

Edward had insisted upon dressing himself, so Cecilia took this ti to eat She had spent the better part of a week in this neighborhood and knew every shop and storefront on the street The most economical option--and thus her usual choice--was currant buns froh she suspected their low price was made possible by the inclusion of no more than three currants per bun

Mr Lowell, a bit farther down the street, sold actual Chelsea buns, with spiraled dough and cinnamon spice Cecilia had never counted their currants; she’d eaten only one, bought day-old, and she’d devoured it far too quickly to do anything but laze as it dissolved on her tongue

But around the corner--that here one found the shop of Mr Rooijakkers, the Dutch baker Cecilia had gone in only once; that was all it had taken to see that (a) she could not afford his treats and (b) if she could, she’d be fat as a house in no tih, surely this was the day, with Edward having awakened and in goodish health Cecilia had two coins in her pocket, enough for a fine treat, and she no longer had to worry about paying for her boardinghouse roo her pennies--the Lord only knehere she’d find herself in the weeks to co herself to scri at the tinkle of the bell above, and then sighing with delight at the heavenly s toward her froer-haired wo behind the counter She was perhaps a few years older than Cecilia and spoke with a very slight accent, one Cecilia would not have been able to place had she not already known that the proprietors hailed from Holland

"Yes, thank you, I’ll have a round bread loaf, please," Cecilia said,pluolden crust that looked different fro she’d seen back home "Are they all the same price?"