Its stark white dotted with tiny hand-emroidered flowers complemented her dark colouring. Those very dark locks of hers swept back elegantly as if fashioned by an expert stylist.
He’d not previously noticed how very white her teeth were. He supposed the white of the dress accentuated them.
The more he was discovering about Miss Pankhurst, er, Dot, the more he realized he’d done fairly well for himself. He’d been prepared to sacrifice himself for his family, and while he was still denying himself a true love, he realized the tender-hearted Miss . . . Dot had many fine attributes.
Plus a large fortune.
“I am bereft of words to describe your loveliness, my dear Dot.”
She came and offered her hand, and he pressed his lips to it. While he normally only air kissed a woman’s hand, this time his lips actually touched her flesh. It was far more intimate than he’d meant.
Colour rose in her cheeks.
“I am gratified the rain has stopped,” he said.
“As am I.”
They stood motionless.
“I thought perhaps you and I could stroll the city. Now that we are properly betrothed, you won’t need the benefit of a chaperone.” He proffered his arm.
She moved to him. “I should like that very much.”
She went to procure gloves, hat and cape—which he helped to drape around her. Once they were on the pavement, he asked, “Have you been yet to Sydney Gardens?”
“No.”
“It’s probably not the best day because it will be soggy, but the walk will do us good after this wretched rain that’s kept us indoors for so many days.”
“The gardens are on the other side of the River Avon, are they not?”
“Yes, but everything’s close in Bath. So different than London.”
“I would love to see London one day.”
“I’ll take you there after we’re married.”
“Do you have a house there?”
He shook his head. “No. Just the one here in Bath and the family seat in Shropshire.”
“What is it called?”
“Hawthorne Manor.”
“And when you’re in London, where do you stay?”
“As close to Westminster as possible. The Appletons have always let houses there for the Parliamentary season.”
“You’ll serve?”
“I’ve been putting it off. My brother did and my father before him.” He drew a breath. “It’s my duty. None of my friends serve. I’ve been trying to persuade Sir Elvin to stand for the House of Commons. He can afford to.”
“Keep trying. He seems to be rather influenced by you.”
She was uncommonly perceptive. How could she have known after just a couple of brief meetings how easily Elvin was persuaded by him? “I do feel that if I were in Parliament, Sir Elvin would be more interested in serving.”
Cloudy skies and puddled streets kept many indoors but seemed not to have affected the chair men’s brisk business. If anything, these burly men were busier than ever on these muddy days. Appleton thought it might be cheaper to use a sedan chair than to repair damage to mud-stained clothing and shoes. Particularly ladies’ shoes.
Dot turned to him. “Do you know where Ellie Macintosh lived?”
“I have no idea. Why do you ask?”
“I just thought . . . I thought I’d like to make inquiries about her. It’s not right that her killer not be punished.”
“I couldn’t agree more, but surely you’re not suggesting that you plan to try to track down a murdering maniac?”
Her step slowed, and she looked up at him with those big, nearly black eyes. “Not me. Us. Did you not vow to be my protector? You said you wouldn’t permit me to go about the city without you.”
“So I did.” Before he’d left his house that morning, he’d warned Annie not to leave. Bath was not a safe place for unescorted young women as long as the madman was loose.
They reached Pulteney Bridge. “The architecture of the buildings on this bridge seems different than the uniformity of architecture throughout the city,” she commented. “I do love the designs of the Woods.”
She was a remarkably observant young woman. “This bridge was not designed by the Woods. It was designed by the Scottish architect Robert Adam.”
“Oh, my sweet heavens, I should have been able to recognize it! Mr. Adam designed the orangery at Blandings for my grandfather, and I’ve always been interested in his work.”
“How fortunate you are. I must tell you Hawthorne Manor has nothing as grand as an orangery nor is it as grand as the least of Adam’s designs.”
She squeezed his arm. “I’m certain I shall love it.”
How strange it seemed that this woman he’d known for so short a time would be mistress of his ancestral home. At least he’d selected someone he admired. Not just any woman could be permitted to step into his dear mother’s slippers.
As they continued walking, he grew solemn. Now that she had brought up Ellie, he was not able to dispel the poor girl from his thoughts. “When you mentioned Ellie Macintosh’s lodgings, did you think I might . . . I would never bring this up with you if we were not betrothed . . . did you think I might have been . . . intimate with the young lady?”
She shrugged. “I thought there was some likelihood that she might have been the sort of young woman who mingled with her patrons in such a manner.”
“You are right to think that many women employed in such a place conduct themselves in such a way, but Ellie wasn’t like that.”
“Which makes her death even sadder, does it not?”
“It does. There was an innocence about her.”
“We must do something.”
“You’re right. What do you propose?” He couldn’t believe he was asking her for advice. This was a young woman who had admittedly never before been away from rural Lincolnshire. She was seven years his junior. But she was possessed of admirable common
