They Were Supposed to Be Arguing Over Plaster and Ledgers — They Ended Up Falling in Love
"There was a leak after heavy rain in January. It was repaired.""By whom?""Mr. Gibbs, the town builder.""Properly?"She hesitated. His gaze returned to her. "Honestly, Miss Hartwell.""Cheaply," she said.A faint line appeared beside his mouth, not quite a smile. "And the gallery?""It has held musicians for thirty years.""That is not an answer.""It is the answer the committee prefers."This time he did smile, very slightly. Phoebe felt an unexpected warmth rise in her cheeks and disliked herself for it.He stepped closer to the gallery and pressed his hand against the paneling. "I shall need access above the ceiling, beneath the gallery, and to any accounts of previous repairs.""You shall have them."He glanced at the ribbons and garlands abandoned on the floor. "There was to be a ball?""Lady Enderby's spring ball.""A grave casualty.""Do not mock it, Mr. Meer."His brows lifted. Phoebe drew herself upright."A ball may seem frivolous to a gentleman concerned with stone and timber, but postponing it affects musicians, servants, caterers, lodging houses, dressmakers, chairmen, coachmen, and shopkeepers. In a spa town, society is not ornament. It is commerce."He regarded her in silence. Then he said, "I stand corrected."She had expected amusement, perhaps condescension, not apology. "It was not gossip," she added softer. "I was defending bread."Mr. Meer looked again at the darkened room. "Then we had better see whether the bread may be saved."And though Phoebe Hartwell had known him less than ten minutes, she felt something within her—fear, perhaps, or hope—shift its weight.
By the following morning, Ashcombe Wells had formed three opinions of Mr. Jonathan Meer.The first, held by Lady Enderby and several ladies of strong imagination, was that he was handsome in a severe way and would be improved by dancing.The second, held by Mr. Gibbs the builder, was that he was too young to know anything useful.The third, held by Alderman Voss, was that he was inconvenient.