Read Online A Scandalous Arrangement by Ashe Barker - Free Book Online
Authors: Ashe Barker
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Adam Luke’s integrity. He had said it would be done, and it was.
Mr. Timmins continued. “However, a courier from a firm of solicitors in Leeds arrived just as we were closing the mill yesterday. He had a letter of authority from that other chap, Catchpole, requiring us to hand over all our accounts and ledgers. I saw no alternative but to comply.”
“Of course. Mr. Luke said he would wish to examine the books in the course of his deliberations. Meanwhile, we are to carry on as normal. Do you have details of that shipment of alpaca wool, please?”
“It arrived the day before yesterday. I have our finest weavers working with it now. The results appear every bit as promising as you suspected, a very fine cloth indeed.”
“Will I have samples for the Piece Hall exhibition next week?”
“Oh, yes, I should think so. Several fine varieties of cloth to display.”
The Halifax Piece Hall, though no longer just a venue for trading pieces of cloth, remained at the heart of the woollen trade in West Yorkshire. Victoria intended to present her latest alpaca yarns and cloth at a commercial fair, and expected to attract considerable interest. Orders should soon follow. Her plan for her future prosperity started here.
* * *
A week had gone by, and no word from Mr. Luke. Victoria contemplated writing to him to seek an update on the progress of his deliberations. Surely he had had sufficient time by now to peruse her accounts and order books, which would demonstrate the strength of her company. What more could he need? What was he waiting for?
She persuaded herself that to hound Mr. Luke would be counterproductive. He had said he would be in touch, and she trusted him. Even so, the waiting was excruciating.
Her mother’s attempts to identify a suitable new home for them had so far proved fruitless. Places they might afford were either too dingy, the neighbourhoods too seedy to offer even the most basic promise of safety for three women living alone, or in dire—and costly—need of repairs. Hester remained optimistic, but Victoria feared they would need to lower their sights, which already seemed to her quite depressed enough. Still, they had plenty of time. Something would come up.
She reached for the pile of orders received just that morning. Her presentation of the new yarns in the Piece Hall had been a fabulous success and she found herself contemplating taking on temporary workers to complete the volume of orders.
Business was booming. Perhaps that was enough to justify a further missive to Mr. Luke.
“Mr. Timmins, do you have a moment?” She would seek her assistant’s view on the matter. He was usually a source of excellent counsel.
“Mr. Timmins is occupied elsewhere, I fear. Will I do?” The deep, rich, and oh-so-familiar tone reached her from the door to her clerk’s adjoining office.
Victoria’s head snapped up from her study of the latest order from Hathaway’s in Huddersfield. She gaped at the figure lounging before her, casual yet so elegant in his fine business suit. His hat was tucked under his arm, his cane in one hand and a leather briefcase in the other. His hair glowed in the sunlight streaking through her window, slightly tousled as though from a breeze. He treated her to a smile, quite dazzling really, as he stepped forward to deposit his belongings on her desk.
“You appear surprised to see me, Miss Wynne. Did I not say I would be in touch?”
“Yes, but… I expected… I thought to receive a letter, or a telegram perhaps. You did not say you would come in person.”
Privately her heart soared. Surely he would not have made the journey just to turn down her offer. His presence here was a good sign, it must be.
“Ah, but I needed to see the property for myself, inspect my latest acquisition.”
His slightly mischievous smile suggested there may be more to his words, some ulterior meaning, but Victoria could not fathom that. She rose to greet him, offering her hand to
Mr. Timmins continued. “However, a courier from a firm of solicitors in Leeds arrived just as we were closing the mill yesterday. He had a letter of authority from that other chap, Catchpole, requiring us to hand over all our accounts and ledgers. I saw no alternative but to comply.”
“Of course. Mr. Luke said he would wish to examine the books in the course of his deliberations. Meanwhile, we are to carry on as normal. Do you have details of that shipment of alpaca wool, please?”
“It arrived the day before yesterday. I have our finest weavers working with it now. The results appear every bit as promising as you suspected, a very fine cloth indeed.”
“Will I have samples for the Piece Hall exhibition next week?”
“Oh, yes, I should think so. Several fine varieties of cloth to display.”
The Halifax Piece Hall, though no longer just a venue for trading pieces of cloth, remained at the heart of the woollen trade in West Yorkshire. Victoria intended to present her latest alpaca yarns and cloth at a commercial fair, and expected to attract considerable interest. Orders should soon follow. Her plan for her future prosperity started here.
* * *
A week had gone by, and no word from Mr. Luke. Victoria contemplated writing to him to seek an update on the progress of his deliberations. Surely he had had sufficient time by now to peruse her accounts and order books, which would demonstrate the strength of her company. What more could he need? What was he waiting for?
She persuaded herself that to hound Mr. Luke would be counterproductive. He had said he would be in touch, and she trusted him. Even so, the waiting was excruciating.
Her mother’s attempts to identify a suitable new home for them had so far proved fruitless. Places they might afford were either too dingy, the neighbourhoods too seedy to offer even the most basic promise of safety for three women living alone, or in dire—and costly—need of repairs. Hester remained optimistic, but Victoria feared they would need to lower their sights, which already seemed to her quite depressed enough. Still, they had plenty of time. Something would come up.
She reached for the pile of orders received just that morning. Her presentation of the new yarns in the Piece Hall had been a fabulous success and she found herself contemplating taking on temporary workers to complete the volume of orders.
Business was booming. Perhaps that was enough to justify a further missive to Mr. Luke.
“Mr. Timmins, do you have a moment?” She would seek her assistant’s view on the matter. He was usually a source of excellent counsel.
“Mr. Timmins is occupied elsewhere, I fear. Will I do?” The deep, rich, and oh-so-familiar tone reached her from the door to her clerk’s adjoining office.
Victoria’s head snapped up from her study of the latest order from Hathaway’s in Huddersfield. She gaped at the figure lounging before her, casual yet so elegant in his fine business suit. His hat was tucked under his arm, his cane in one hand and a leather briefcase in the other. His hair glowed in the sunlight streaking through her window, slightly tousled as though from a breeze. He treated her to a smile, quite dazzling really, as he stepped forward to deposit his belongings on her desk.
“You appear surprised to see me, Miss Wynne. Did I not say I would be in touch?”
“Yes, but… I expected… I thought to receive a letter, or a telegram perhaps. You did not say you would come in person.”
Privately her heart soared. Surely he would not have made the journey just to turn down her offer. His presence here was a good sign, it must be.
“Ah, but I needed to see the property for myself, inspect my latest acquisition.”
His slightly mischievous smile suggested there may be more to his words, some ulterior meaning, but Victoria could not fathom that. She rose to greet him, offering her hand to
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