After a Fashion (A Class of Their Own #1)(66)
“Of course I’ll fetch him.” Lucetta moved forward, but paused midstep when Mr. Bambini moved to block her progress.
“Good heavens, you’re Miss Lucetta Plum—in disguise, of course, but I’d recognize your voice anywhere.”
“I’d appreciate it if you wouldn’t draw attention to me, sir, especially since I am, as you pointed out, in disguise, and there is a reason for that.”
Mr. Bambini tilted his head. “But . . . what are you doing here, and from the looks of things, with Miss Peabody?”
“She’s my friend,” Harriet said, her temper going from simmering to boiling when Mr. Bambini’s eyes widened.
“I’m her maid,” Millie added when he turned his attention to her.
“Maids don’t normally speak unless spoken to,” he pointed out.
Millie grinned. “That’s helpful to know.” With that, she turned on her heel and hustled as fast as she could over the broken glass and out of the shop.
“This is all very unusual,” Mr. Bambini muttered.
“And it’s about to get more unusual,” Harriet muttered right back. She watched as Lucetta coaxed Buford out from under the table and then winced when the tiny little dog charged from behind Mrs. Henderson and directly at him, causing Buford to stick his nose into the folds of Lucetta’s skirt and shake uncontrollably. Harriet stepped forward and scooped the tiny scrap of fearsomeness off the floor, nodded to Lucetta, who then began to pull Buford away, taking him down an aisle that wasn’t littered with glass. There was another sound of something breaking, but Harriet ignored it as she turned her attention back to Mrs. Henderson.
“I cannot apologize enough, Mrs. Henderson, for the distress you’ve been made to suffer over something I had a part in. Allow me to make it up to you.”
Mrs. Henderson frowned, reached out and took the dog from Harriet, and then reached with her free hand to a table, snagged a lacey doily that was resting on it, and thrust it into Harriet’s hand. “Your face is bleeding.”
Harriet dabbed at her face, grimaced when she saw the blood staining the lace, then lowered her hand and turned to Mr. Bambini. “You will not be evicting Mrs. Henderson.”
“Mr. Addleshaw has already paid the rent on this space for the next year, and Mrs. Henderson is behind on her rent by an entire week.”
“I told you I’d have the money by the end of the day,” Mrs. Henderson said. “It’s just that with Mr. Henderson unable to find work and our two children being so sick lately, well, I haven’t been able to keep everything straight.”
Harriet closed her eyes and fought to suppress the rage that had begun to course through her veins.
What type of man was Oliver?
Could he truly believe there was nothing wrong with casting out a hardworking woman from her business—the Henderson family’s only source of income from the sound of it—because he’d wanted to present her with this prime location?
Was he really so ruthless?
The answer immediately flung to mind. Yes, he was, and here she’d been thinking all sorts of ridiculous thoughts, the most ridiculous being that he was actually a kind man underneath all of that arrogance, and that she was developing a small amount of affection for him.
Dabbing at her face again, she squared her shoulders. “Mrs. Henderson, as I just said, there will be no evicting of you done today or for the next year for that matter. You’ll be happy to learn that I’ve decided I don’t care for this spot in the least. It’s much too fancy for what I have in mind. But . . . since my darling Mr. Addleshaw, inadvertently, I’m sure, caused you a considerable amount of distress and pain, the money he gave to Mr. Bambini will be used for your rent this year. I’ll also need you to prepare a bill that I’ll give to my fiancé for all the damage his dog did in your shop.” She forced a smile. “You have my word he’ll pay it promptly.”
“I’m afraid I can’t allow you to make such a completely ludicrous offer,” Mr. Bambini said, going from an indulgent-looking gentleman to an intimidating one in a split second.
“You can’t allow me?”
“This is business, Miss Peabody, and business is done between men. I’m sure that you’re a lady possessed of deep emotional feelings, which are currently getting in the way of what, for me, is a lucrative business alliance. I won’t have you coming between me and Mr. Addleshaw, so you’ll need to simply go along with this deal he and I brokered and be happy about it.”
“I don’t take well to gentlemen trying to order me around, Mr. Bambini.”
“The deal’s done.”
“Yes, it is, and you won’t be losing a dime since I just promised Mrs. Henderson the use of that lovely money Oliver gave you toward rent.” She lifted her chin. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I need to go find my darling fiancé and have a little chat with him.”
She sent Mrs. Henderson what she hoped was a reassuring smile, sent Mr. Bambini a glare, picked up her skirts, and tried to sail dramatically from the shop, her sailing hampered by the pesky fact she had to dodge numerous broken items that littered the floor. She finally made it to the door, pushed it open, and stepped onto the sidewalk, squinting as the sun hit her eyes. Shielding them with her hand, she felt her temper burn even hotter as she caught sight of Lucetta and Millie. They were standing on the sidewalk in the company of a well-dressed lady—that lady being none other than Harriet’s aunt Jane.