Page 17 of Fortune’s Final Folly

At the head of the table, Joshua watched her intently, making Kate all the more nervous.

“Tea, miss?”

Kate jumped in her seat, not realizing a maid stood next to her, her question spoken in a calm, even tone.

“Umm…” She glanced at the table and reached for the finely painted teacup and saucer. As she took hold of it, her fingers shook, causing the cup to clatter against its base. Kate paused, took a shallow breath, and then held it in as she grasped the handle in a firm hold. “Yes, please.” She exhaled.

She wasn’t used to being served, except for the few times she and her parents had journeyed to the inn down the street from their building. And that had been many years ago when she was still in the schoolroom.

When the maid paused to pour Joshua’s cup, he shook his head and dismissed her with a soft smile that Kate had seen him use with her students on many occasions. The other servants trailed after, and they closed the door behind themselves, leaving Kate alone with Joshua once more.

“I hope you slept well.” He collected the platter of meats and held it out to her. When she shook her head, he shrugged and started to pile his plate with the delicious-smelling ham. “I can say with almost certainty that the stench of smoke and burnt wood will likely never be removed from my jacket.”

Kate was uncertain what the correct response to his declaration was. Should she apologize and offer to replace the garment? Or commiserate with him regarding the likely ruination of her favored nightshift, as well?

Thankfully, he continued before she had time to decide.

“Between you and I,” he said, dropping his voice low and glancing around the room as if to verify that they were, indeed, alone, “I despised that coat. The collar was scratchy at my neck, and the sleeves were a half-inch too short. Not to mention the uselessness of the shallow pockets. It is my valet who thought the thing ‘the height of fashion.’ Mayhap I should have made him wear the dreadful thing for a few hours.”

Kate nearly caught herself laughing but held it in, preferring only an amused grin at this jest. The coat had likely cost more than her entire wardrobe, and it was her fault that it had gotten ruined. Besides, if she laughed, it would pain her chest as it had earlier when she coughed. The maid who’d come to tidy her room had assured Kate that she’d overheard the physician say the cough was from the smoke she’d sucked in escaping the fire and it shouldn’t persist more than a day or so.

It was exceedingly odd to think that only the previous evening, she’d wandered about her home alone, too conservative to even stoke the fire. And now, just one day later, Kate was here, sitting at a table with proffered tea, cocoa, and farther down the surface, blocked by a centerpiece of soft peach blossoms, a pot of coffee. Kate could smell the earthy, nutty aroma of a blend much akin to that offered by the bookseller in Cheapside.

And she and Joshua were speaking of ruined garments.

This was far removed from her normal morning conversations regarding the children’s time spent with family while Kate dwelled on her solitude.

“I have arranged for my carriage to be readied within the hour so we may go directly to Cheapside.” Joshua used his utensil to place a perfectly cut piece of ham into his mouth. After chewing for several moments, he swallowed and continued. “I am certain you are anxious to see your building. Quite frankly, I am, too.”

“Yes,” Kate mumbled. She collected a piece of toast and scooped porridge into her bowl. “I cannot imagine what I will do if everything is lost.”

Everything…what little was left from her parents. They’d lived simply, possessing only what they needed and giving the rest away, but there were still things that held great emotional value. Her mother had not gifted her much, but there was a quilt, a beaded bracelet, and a poem she’d scribed for Kate one Christmastide. Losing them in the blaze would wound Kate greatly.

Insignificant items, yet meaningful—if only to her.

“My man says the second floor is easily reachable. We shall be able to search for your possessions as long as we do not linger.”

We? Kate kept her eyes focused on her plate, though her thoughts were on Joshua.

No one had ever taken such an interest in her or her schoolroom. Most of her students’ parents hadn’t so much as even visited their children’s classroom.

“We have spent some time together, but I find I know little of you and your family,” Joshua mused.

Kate would not share that there were many times she felt as if she did not know much of her parents. They’d loved one another and their church, and they’d certainly been devoted to Kate and her well-being. Yet, devotion and love are two very different things in a practical sense.

Love was strong.

Devotion was intense—a responsibility, a duty, a burden.

“I mean to say, when they were with us, I enjoyed chatting with your father regarding many things. In fact,”—Joshua chuckled softly, setting his fork aside—“I believe it was he who insisted the Americans, with their religious ideology, would be the first to throw themselves at our mercy. And…heavens, what would he think of Napoleon being sent to St. Helena?”

Kate’s heart ached at the many small things she’d let go about her parents: her father’s love of political matters despite his commitment to the church, and her mother’s love of pastries, though her father called it gluttonous and sinful when her mother wasn’t listening.

“He did relish a rousing political sparring match,” Kate said.

“He certainly did. Do you remember the evening I came around and your father insisted I remain until he listed all of Henry VIII’s greatest feats?” Joshua poured coffee into his cup and added sugar and a healthy amount of milk to the brew. “I remember feeling envious of you being sent to bed.”

“And I’d longed to stay up and take part in the conversation,” Kate admitted.