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Chapter Five

Selina

T he door of Hatchards shut behind Selina and Phoebe with a tinkling bell, nearly drowned out by the sounds of the bustling Town.

Selina was still reaccustoming herself to the din of Town after spending such a long time away.

It almost felt as though London had grown sharper, faster in her absence.

Society waited for no man—and certainly not for a woman trying to understand where she fit now that she was both widow and heiress.

She had returned to Town with every intention of keeping both her widowhood and her wealth intact, but Mr. Drake had put the merest sliver of doubt inside her.

It was simple curiosity, though. A whisper of wondering whether she had been too swift to make such solid decisions about the long future before her.

“Well, that was a success, don’t you think?” Selina said.

“Oh, most certainly.” Phoebe resituated the two books she had bought, which were wrapped in brown paper and tied with twine, the Hatchards stamp pressed clearly onto the top. “Though, there was nothing so urgent about purchasing these that we could not have delayed doing so for another day or two.”

Selina shot an amused glance at her, recognizing Phoebe’s way of implying they might have welcomed Mr. Drake today rather than waiting until Monday.

The truth was, Selina too had found herself wishing she had not set their next meeting for so many days in the future.

He had been so…amiable. He had not stayed long, either—something Phoebe had been quick to point out after his departure—and he had engaged Phoebe in conversation every bit as much as he had spoken with Selina.

When Phoebe had latched onto Selina’s facetious suggestion that he help with the task of sorting through George’s poetry books, Selina had wanted to box her ears.

Mr. Drake had responded with a gentle willingness, however, rather than the eagerness she would have expected from a man trying to weasel his way into her good graces.

She did not require assistance sorting through George’s hunting equipment. She herself was an avid huntress, and George’s dislike of that fact had been a constant cause of tension between them.

Selina had agreed to Mr. Drake’s aid purely out of a desire to further the acquaintance and find an answer to the question of his intentions.

She could not deny the hope she felt that they were pure.

“Mrs. Lawrence!”

Selina turned at the sound of her name and found Mrs. Winser and her daughter hailing her from a dozen feet behind. A footman followed them, carrying a small object covered by a piece of cloth.

Mrs. Winser glanced at the package Phoebe held. “Hatchards?” she asked knowingly. “You will have less cause to regret your purchase than we, I trust. We have just come from the pet shop down the street.”

“The pet shop?” Selina’s gaze darted to the object the footman held.

Mrs. Winser nodded. “We are returning home for a few days, and the only way we could persuade little Johnny not to come to Town was to promise we would bring him a surprise when we returned.” She motioned to the footman, who obediently stepped forward, held out the object, and removed the covering, revealing a cage.

Selina and Phoebe drew nearer to better see it and found themselves looking at a small, tawny rodent with a furry tail.

“What is it?” Phoebe asked with a hint of wonder in her voice.

“A dormouse,” Miss Winser replied. “We nearly chose the flying squirrel, but Mama insisted this creature would be more suitable.”

“The last thing we need is something that gives Johnny ideas about flight,” Mrs. Winser said with a wide-eyed look.

“He is forever jumping from trees and stairs. He was laid up nearly two weeks from his last adventure. He need never know of the flying squirrel, though, and will be quite content with this fellow.”

The dormouse scrambled around the cage, then raised up on its hind legs, its whiskers twitching as its beady eyes darted around.

“Can you imagine how much Teddy and Lou would adore something like this?” Phoebe asked Selina, referring to two of their shared nephews and nieces.

“They would be in transports,” Selina agreed. “Whether Richard and Jane would share their enthusiasm is the true question.”

“Well, the shop is just around that corner.” Mrs. Winser pointed to the street behind her. “Cutler’s Emporium of Curious Creatures—or something to that effect. It is certainly worth exploring, even if you have no intention of buying anything. Prepare yourself for the smell, though.”

After a few moments of discussion, Selina and Phoebe followed Mrs. Winser’s directions and found themselves inside a dim shop.

Cages and lanterns and a host of scents competed for their attention.

Squawks and screeches and scurrying filled the room as the harried shopkeeper darted from cage to cage, looking much like the frantic dormouse.

He greeted them, but once they assured him they were merely there to peruse, he excused himself to tend to a loudly squawking bird.

Selina pulled two handkerchiefs from her reticule and offered one to Phoebe.

They put them to their noses as they began their exploration of the animals.

The smell was overpowering, but the sights were too interesting to abandon: vibrant, talkative parrots, slow-moving iguanas, small wild cats who watched them with leering gazes, striped snakes, and an abundance of the tawny dormice Mrs. Winser had purchased.

They made their way toward the rear of the shop at a leisurely pace, always staying near one another but taking their time to admire the creatures that interested them most.

“Oh, Selina! Look at this!”

Selina joined Phoebe in front of one of the larger cages near the back of the shop.

A delighted laugh escaped her when she reached it, for through the thin bars peeked the most curious gray creature with tufts of straight white fur sticking out of either side of its head.

Its rich brown eyes were alert, flicking between her and Phoebe as its small fingers fiddled with its long, striped tail.

“What is this, if you please, sir?” Selina asked the shopkeeper, who was giving food to one of the nearby parrots.

He shuffled over in his brisk way. “Ah, that is a marmoset, madam. A small type of monkey. Would you like to see it?”

Selina glanced at Phoebe, who nodded eagerly.

The shopkeeper opened the cage and gently removed the marmoset from it, then stretched out the arm it sat upon so Phoebe could see the creature more closely.

“Its face is so very endearing.” Phoebe tentatively stroked its back.

Selina took a step closer and followed suit, unable to stop a smile. “It is a difficult face to resist.” She had heard of women who chose monkeys for pets, but never had she seen one herself. She could understand the appeal now. It was so soft and curious in its appearance.

“Would you care to hold it?” the shopkeeper asked .

Phoebe’s eyes rounded, but she nodded, and Selina relieved her of the burden from Hatchards.

The shopkeeper transferred the monkey to Phoebe’s arm, bringing a large smile to her face just as the bell rang.

He glanced at the shop door. “Just a moment, if you please.” He hurried off to welcome the newcomer, leaving Phoebe and Selina with the monkey.

It reached a hand to the necklace Phoebe was wearing, and she laughed at the way it tipped its head inquisitively as it inspected it.

“Would you care for a turn?” Phoebe asked.

Selina hesitated, but there was something irresistibly charming about the creature and its wide, innocent gaze. “Very well. But only for a moment.”

Phoebe set her arm next to Selina’s, and the monkey obligingly moved over, apparently reciprocating her curiosity. But it did not sit still as it had done before. Instead, it crawled up her arm and around her shoulders as though she were a tree.

She laughed with surprise at the feel of its padded feet on the skin of her neck.

Holding to her shoulder, the monkey reached for the wrapped books in her hand and tugged at the string, undoing the tidy bow. He brought the twine to his mouth and chewed at it for a moment before discarding it.

He climbed down her arm, then took the package from her hand.

“Oh!” Selina said in surprise. She grasped the books to take them back, but the monkey would have none of it, evading her with ease by crawling up her arm again while unwrapping the package.

The brown paper was tossed to the side, and he gave the two books a shake next to his ear.

He dropped them to the floor with a large thud, apparently unsatisfied.

Trying to keep pace with the rapidity with which the creature jumped from task to task, Selina stooped to pick up the books and dust them off while balancing the monkey on her shoulder .

“Oh!” Phoebe cried out as he jumped and grabbed onto one of the cages.

Selina stood hurriedly, but the marmoset quickly scaled the wall, settling on one well out of their reach. In his hand was Phoebe’s reticule. He uncinched the small sack and turned it upside down, shaking out the contents. Coins, a sachet of potpourri, and a fan fell to the floor of the shop.

“No, Pip!” The shopkeeper ran up and tried to reach for the monkey, which only climbed higher.

Selina blinked, still trying to grasp the change from the soft, docile creature who had first emerged from the cage to the busy and mischievous animal now fishing in Phoebe’s reticule. He found a sugar lozenge and put it between his teeth.

The tight-lipped shopkeeper shook his head at the monkey. “He loves nothing more than sugar, but it makes him into a madman.”

They watched as Pip worked out the best approach to ingest the lozenge, something he accomplished with astonishing rapidity. When he had finished, they were obliged to lure him back down with yet another sweet, which Selina provided from her own reticule.