Lord Weston rounded the table to peer over his shoulder. “It can’t be,” he muttered.
Max worked carefully with the charcoal to move up the page and see if the return address would appear as well. It was harder to read, and he squinted at the parchment. “Lady Althea Tangredi, 23 Exeter Street.That doesn’t make sense. Was her relationship with a woman?”
Olivia shook her head. “No, the other letters make it clear it was a man who wrote them.” Her cheeks stained pink, and he wondered at the content of the other letters.
“Perhaps Lady Tangredi was his patron? It would make sense to use her name and address since the relationship was a secret,” Mrs. Kingsley said.
“True,” Mrs. Grisham said. “Oh my goodness, we have to go tell Susanna. She will never forgive us as it is for finding out something before she did.”
Olivia nodded. “I can’t leave the shop just yet. And we are meeting the new land steward at noon. So, I’ll let you take the letters to show Susanna. I will visit later in the week and get my chance to read them.”
“Are you sure? It doesn’t seem fair,” Mrs. Grisham said. “Why don’t you keep them and we will all come by Belhaven tomorrow afternoon to read them together.”
“We should head home. I would like to write my brother immediately,” Lord Weston said to his wife.
Lady Weston nodded. Her husband helped her to her feet. “Olivia, you keep the letters, and we will see you tomorrow.”
Olivia’s friends bundled back into the capes and scarves and hurried out the door. Once everyone was gone, Max picked up one of the other letters, which sat still folded on the tabletop. He waggled his eyebrows at Olivia. “Shall we read some more?”
“No, we can’t. I agreed we would read them all together tomorrow.” She glanced at the letter in his hand, and Max grinned at the look of longing on her face. Olivia shook her head. Then she bit her bottom lip. “But they wouldn’t have to know, would they?”
Chapter Twelve
The cold airslapped Olivia in the face as they exited the store shortly before noon. She felt a little guilty for reading the letters without her friends but having a partner in crime made her feel better. Max’s mischievous grin had been irresistible when he asked her if they could read the letters. She glanced sideways at him as she locked the front door.
“At first, I thought the letters to be ridiculously over the top, but his sincerity won me over.” Max whistled softly. “And that last one, if only I had words like that to seduce a woman.”
She pursed her lips. The idea of Max sharing intimate words like those in the letter with any woman left a sour taste in her mouth. Not that it was any of her business. She turned and found Max waiting with his elbow winged out. She slid her hand through and laid it on his sleeve. He persisted in being charming, and it was starting to wear down her carefully built wall of self-preservation.
“The thing that bothers me is that the letters don’t follow each other chronologically,” Max said. “It’s like an itch I can’t scratch. I must know the entire story. Would it be possible for me to read the others? Does it all make sense as a whole?” His brow furrowed in consternation.
Olivia chuckled. “Yes, I can gather the others if you’d like to read them. You never could leave a good mystery alone.”
Max shrugged, and his smile returned. She had a sense that he appreciated being understood. It made her wonder: Where had he traveled? What sort of art had he hunted? Who were his friends? Was he happy with the path he had chosen? Did he miss home? Had he missed her?
Olivia pushed away all her questions. They were not friends anymore, and his life was not her business. When she thought of his abandonment, the wound still throbbed. Spending Christmas without Henry would be hard enough; she did not need to dredge up her old feelings for Max. The best thing to do was focus on the bookshop and settle things at Belhaven as quickly as possible. Then she could decide what to do with her life in the new year. Olivia sighed. Whatever that might be.
Max tugged her closer. “Cold?”
She shook her head and tried to pull away. But Max stopped suddenly; his hand gripped hers. “Look at the festive display in that window.”
Olivia followed his gaze. Mr. and Mrs. Ford had decorated the front window of the general store with greenery and bunches of holly berries. Three shelves displayed a myriad of items that would make nice Christmas gifts. A dusting of flour on each shelf made it look like they were covered in snow. And the center of the display featured a beautiful snow globe. A tiny painted couple skated in a winter wonderland beneath the glass dome.
Max pulled them over to stand in front of the window. “Look at that. Oooh, that pocket watch is tops, and look at those toy soldiers. I loved playing with toy soldiers as a child.” His face lit with excitement. “What do you fancy?”
Olivia stared at the globe. She used to have one when she was a child. A gift from her parents at Christmas. That scene had been of carolers singing in front of a grand home. Her mother always loved to go caroling. She pointed to the ice skaters. “I quite like that one. I do enjoy ice-skating.”
“Yes, I remember you would skate circles around Henry and me.”
Henry and Max had been bloody awful skaters. But she loved gliding across the ice and the floaty feeling of gracefulness that the skates provided. Her mother would always have hot cider waiting as the three of them tumbled into her kitchen with red noses and rosy cheeks. The pond at the end of the lane by her house was the best place to skate.
Henry had been too scared to tell Mr. Daniels he was off skating. Before she died, his mother had always been afraid he would fall through the ice and rob his father of his heir. The whole household was careful to watch over a very annoyed Henry. So they always warmed up in her mother’s kitchen, where Anne listened attentively to their escapades. Olivia’s heart ached at the fond memories.
Max nodded his head toward the festive window display. “You know it might be a good idea to decorate the window at the bookshop for Christmas. You could feature your favorite books and perhaps increase sales. This window is so cheerful.”
Olivia shrugged. Window dressing was a waste of time. She did not plan to celebrate Christmas without Henry. He was the only one who made the holiday special. How could she possibly enjoy the season without her best friend? The corners of her eyes filled with tears. She tugged Max away from the window display.
They continued down the street. Two doors down, the dressmaker shop had their window display done up for Christmas as well. The centerpiece of the window was a beautiful dress of red silk. The design featured an off-the-shoulder style that would beautifully showcase a necklace. It had puffed sleeves in airy tulle and full skirts with a damask print in pale gold. Olivia caught her breath. The dress was exquisite.