Heartless(63)

Her enthusiasm began to wilt. “No.”

“Yes.”

Cath wilted. Of course it would be the King. Of course it would be the one person she was most determined to avoid.





CHAPTER 24

“I DO NOT WANT to be here,” Mary Ann whispered as the footman helped them from the carriage.

Cath’s gaze swept to the top of the black iron gate before them, all curled bars and jagged-teeth finials. Jack-O’-Lanterns were staked along the top of the gate, their grotesquely carved faces staring down at the road, strings of their internal pulp stuck to the bars underneath.

On the opposite side of the gate, acres of dark mud were spotted with vines and leaves and gourds—most were goldish-orange, but others were ghost-white or yellow-green or speckled with crimson. There were pumpkins as small as Catherine’s ear and some the size of the carriage. There were smooth pumpkins and warted pumpkins, fat pumpkins and narrow, caved-in pumpkins that lay like beached whales in the mud. Fog had rolled in from the nearby forest, covering the ground in misty gray. Though Catherine was wearing her heaviest shawl, she felt chilled to the bone as she looked out onto the gloomy patch.

“I’m beginning to have second thoughts myself,” she confessed.

“Let’s leave,” Mary Ann prodded, latching on to Catherine’s doubts with renewed enthusiasm. “We’ll get pumpkins at the market like everyone else. They’ll probably be more cost effective anyway. Or, better yet, let’s not make a pumpkin dessert at all. Why not something with peaches? Everyone likes peaches.”

“Pumpkins are seasonal right now and seasonal desserts are always best. And they do say that Sir Peter’s sugar pie pumpkins are the sweetest in the kingdom.”

“Fine, but—why not currants? Currants are seasonal. Or apples? You make a fine apple crumble…”

Catherine chewed on her lower lip. “I do make a fine apple crumble,” she agreed. Sighed. Roughly shook her head. “We’re being silly. We’re here, and I’ve already chosen a recipe, and we might as well get this over with. He’s a farmer, isn’t he? He’ll be glad for our business.”

“Are you sure? It’s not very welcoming.” Mary Ann eyed the piked Jack-O’-Lanterns. “In fact, he could really use a business adviser.”

“Too bad your expertise is already spoken for. Come on, we’ll be in and out in the flutter of a hummingbird’s wing.” Cath inched closer to the gate. She could see a small cottage situated to the north side of the patch, with a curl of smoke coming out of the chimney and firelight flickering through the windows. “They seem to be home.”

The gate squeaked on its reluctant hinges as she pushed it open.

“Oh, fine,” Mary Ann muttered. “Wait one moment while I grab my bonnet.” She rushed back to the carriage.

Knotting her hands together, Catherine stepped onto the path that bordered the pumpkin patch. She inhaled the smell of fresh-churned dirt and growing things, but beneath the freshness was also something akin to mold and rot. She grimaced. It was impossible to imagine anything pleasant coming from this land, but the rumors about Peter’s famed pumpkins were unmistakable.

Great baking began with exceptional ingredients. And she needed to win this contest.

“I feel like we’re trespassing,” Mary Ann said, shutting the gate behind them.

Cath turned, about to agree, but stopped short. Mary Ann’s bonnet was one she’d never seen before. Simple but beautiful, made of crisp blue-dyed muslin that matched Mary Ann’s eyes. It was tied with a sunflower-yellow ribbon.

“You have a new bonnet.”

“Yes, I bought it yesterday. At Hatta’s Marvelous Millinery.” Mary Ann looped the ribbons into a bow.

Cath’s eyes widened. “You didn’t!” she said, trying to imagine Mary Ann browsing through the shop where she’d drank tea and stood on the table and cowered from a monster attack.

“What?” said Mary Ann, grinning cheekily. “I simply had to see it after you told me about the tea party. Besides, it’s hardly your secret to keep. All the town’s gossip has been about the extraordinary new hat shop. Now there’s a man who knows how to market to his customers. What do you think?”

“It’s … lovely,” Cath answered. “You’re lovely in it.”

Mary Ann shrugged modestly. “It’s by no means the most elaborate piece that was on display, but the moment I saw it I felt like it was just right. Wearing it makes me feel almost…” She hesitated a long moment. Too long.

“What?” Cath prodded.

Mary Ann looked away. “Whimsical,” she murmured.

It took Catherine a moment to realize her friend was blushing.

Mary Ann never blushed.

“Whimsical,” Cath repeated.

“It’s silly, I know. But you’re always dreaming of roses and lemon trees, and the Marquess has such a grand imagination when it comes to the stories he tells, and even Cheshire is passionate over tuna and cream. Whereas, to me, life is all numbers and logic. Profit and loss. Practical and safe. I thought it might be nice to let myself just … dream. For once.” She fidgeted with a yellow ribbon. “With this hat, it seems possible. Why”—her eyes brightened—“this morning, I even had a fantasy that I’d single-handedly balanced the budget for the royal treasury, and all of Hearts saw me as a hero.”