Disclaimer: They are not mine, they are NOT mine, they are SO not mine! Sigh.
Dedication: This story is dedicated to Lady T for filling in for me, for putting up with my oddities and for going above and beyond the call of duty. The girl is a saint! ; )
It was a beautiful sunny morning and I moaned and rolled over, pressing my nose into the bed where Thomas had lain all night next to me. I breathed in his lingering scent deeply. It was heavy and masculine and my senses reacted to it immediately.
Only one more night.. I groaned when the thought came to me, tears immediately springing into my eyes. I sat up and shook my head defiantly. I convinced myself that I would not cry on that day, there would be plenty of time for crying later.
I was surprised to find that it was late morning as I went downstairs to prepare a bath. Then, as I remembered how many times we had been together -- I was amazed that he could wake up and leave so early after what we had put our bodies through. His stamina was unbelievable.
I did the morning chores and then took a long, hot bath, remembering every moment from the night before. I remembered the wonderful combination of his hard body and the hot water between my legs, then the hunger in his voice when he had begged me not to stop kissing him. My face grew red with embarrassment as I remembered him urging me to give myself pleasure, and how he had finally convinced me that it was not a terrible thing.
I dressed in one of my favorite walking dresses, taking my time to look my best for our last day together, I wanted him to remember me looking as beautiful as possible. I decided, instead of walking, to take the cart so I would be fresh and cool when I saw him.
My heart raced as I drove into town and toward the mill, filled with anticipation at seeing him again. It leapt with excitement as I saw his beautiful horse, and another, tied to the post in front of the office.
Just as I was beginning to rein my horse in, the office door opened and my pulse quickened as Thomas came out to meet me, followed immediately by another young man. The latter tied the horse while Thomas took my hand and helped me out of the cart, smiling and winking at me secretly. " Good Morning, Elizabeth," he said innocently.
"Good Morning, Thomas," I managed, in a voice surprisingly unaffected by my racing heart. He led me to the young man who stood on the walk and began to introduce me.
"Elizabeth, this is my very, very good friend Joseph Young," he handed my hand to the other man as he continued the introduction. "Joseph, I would very much like you to meet Elizabeth Richmond."
Joseph took my gloved hand and raised it to his lips, and I looked up to meet his gaze for the first time. I was startled to note that he, also, was an extremely attractive young man -- quite different from Thomas, but hardly less handsome.
His suit was very fashionable, expensive and in very good taste. He was fair-haired, but with a dark, healthy complexion. His eyes were dark green with flecks of gold and dark brown and they were warm, with just a hint of a mischievous twinkle in them. I smiled -- yes, I could see the two of them creating quite a stir in their day.
"It is a pleasure to meet you, Joseph. I want you to know how much I appreciate your coming so quickly."
He smiled warmly. "A pleasure meeting you, and it was no trouble at all. Thomas said that it was urgent and I am eager to do anything I can to help you here -- may I call you Elizabeth?" I nodded as Thomas urged me inside the office.
The books were laid out neatly on the desk and Joseph immediately began explaining the situation to me simply and confidently. "... the only possible explanation that we come up with is that since Mr. Hamilton was planning on owning the business himself, he ran it very well."
I looked at Thomas, shocked at how much of the story he had apparently felt free to tell him. Joseph continued, "The business is doing very well, and there is nothing unusual about the books -- at least from what we have seen thus far... which is, of course, a HUGE relief." He looked excitedly from me to Thomas and I, also, turned to Thomas wide-eyed.
He winked and motioned toward Joseph. "Didn't I tell you he would be wonderful?" My mouth nearly dropped opened and I frowned at him deeply. "So the next thing to do is prepare for the men to return next week and get things up and running again. Do you see any possible problems arising concerning the men?" Thomas asked him.
Joseph shook his head and shrugged his shoulders, "There is nothing that I am particularly worried about. Do you have any concerns, Elizabeth?"
I shook my head. I could think of nothing but how strangely Thomas was acting.
"I have a few important things to take care of," Thomas said brusquely. "Elizabeth, why don't you show Joseph around the mill and get acquainted. I am sure there is more that he can explain to you, and maybe you will be able to answer some of his questions also."
I nodded numbly and Thomas left quickly, mounting his horse and leaving a cloud of dust floating past the office window. "He was surely acting odd, don't you think?" I asked absentmindedly, watching the cloud diminish slowly in the street.
"Who? Thomas...? Thomas always acts odd!" he exclaimed, laughing. "Shall we begin with the ledgers? I would like you to know exactly where you stand financially..."
Thomas was gone for several hours and Joseph and I had become quite comfortable with each other in that short time. He was, indeed, everything that Thomas had said he was. Kind and generous, and very knowledgeable about business. It was a great relief to know that he was in control and to know that he would be staying.
"Where ARE you staying, by the way?" I asked, as it came to mind.
He smiled, obviously pleased that I was concerned. "Thomas has set me up at a very comfortable Inn. I suppose in a few weeks, if you decide to keep me on, I will look for a more permanent place of residence, but this will suit my needs very well until then."
I was nodding in reply when the office door opened loudly. Thomas had returned and he was in a drastically different frame of mind than when he had left earlier. Joseph was immediately concerned and, needless to say, so was I.
"What is it, has something happened?" Joseph asked, frowning and moving toward Thomas.
Thomas was extremely agitated, his was breathing very hard and he continually paced the floor, scowling. "Silas Hamilton's body has been discovered."
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