The Lamplighter's Love Read Online Free Page B

beyond friendship the guild would know,
because the guild always found out about that sort of thing. And it
would be a strike against him as a would-be Lamplighter. It was
hardly a job for a married man, or even a man who hoped to soon
marry. Nor for a seducer, if that was all those two had between
them.
    “If he wants her, he’d better hurry,” Mary
said to herself, knowing it was uncharitable in the extreme.
    “Mary?” Nicholas spoke from behind the
mirrors, and Mary flushed to realize she’d been speaking out
loud.
    “Nothing. I’m here, whenever you’re
ready.”
    “Good. It’s calm now, let’s get you strapped
in.” He raised an eyebrow at her as she swung the screens aside. “I
want to show you something new today.”
    After their odd moments of connection
yesterday, Mary was keenly aware of every touch, every brush of his
skin against hers as he buckled her hands into place. Had he always
taken such care, she wondered? Or was she just more sensitive to it
now that she’d allowed these foolish notions to enter her head? His
fingers seemed to leave trails of sensation behind them, pulling
shivers from her that she tried desperately to resist.
    With the mirrors back in place, she saw that
things were indeed calm at the moment. The early traffic had
abated, the ship channel was quiet and no disasters seemed
imminent.
    It was all running like the clockwork it
mainly was, and she saw nothing that wasn’t familiar, long since
mastered.
    “You said there would be something new,” she
said, puzzled.
    From beyond the mirrors Nicholas spoke, his
voice sounding closer than she’d expected. Mary squinted through
the brass hinges between two panels, but could see nothing beyond
the screens.
    “There is, but it isn’t on the viewers. I
want to talk to you today, to explain something. And I want to make
sure you listen and think.”
    She nodded. Then, realizing he couldn’t see
her, she spoke her agreement. “All right. I’m a captive audience
now anyway, I suppose.”
    “About that. It has occurred to me that
you’ve probably already deduced the guild’s plans for you. You’re
nothing if not smart, Master Mary Cross.”
    It was still a thrill to hear that title. “I
have given it some consideration. I can’t quite believe it’s what I
think.”
    “I believe they’d like me gone with the New
Year. And I have reason to believe the guild currently favors you
for my replacement.”
    “But Amberherst and I have only just started
taking longer shifts. I thought you still had another year to go at
least,” she protested.
    “I’m almost thirty, Mary. I can’t keep the
pace up much longer. No one could, the guild knows that all too
well.” He sounded resigned, but Mary heard a note of bitterness as
well. “It will be a splendid retirement, of course. Land, money, a
title. A voice in Parliament if I care to exercise it.”
    That was the well-known reward of the
Lamplighter, to be showered with such benefits. In part this was
recompense for the fact that, after their unique service, many
Lamplighters suffered crippling arthritis and loss of vision before
reaching even nominal old age. But the prize was still tremendous.
And with the recent reforms, even a female Lamplighter could look
forward to holding land and taking a title after retirement. At
nineteen, this all seemed a goal too high to even be dreamed for
Mary, whose parents were stolidly middle-class.
    “Will you keep horses? I’ve always fancied
having horses,” she admitted, though she knew it sounded childish
next to the idea of a seat in Parliament.
    Nicholas chuckled. “I expect so. I’ll be an
earl, after all. But Mary, more important are the things I won’t
have.”
    He must be standing—no, kneeling, she
realized—right before her knees. She felt a distinct warmth where
his body blocked the chill from reaching her forelegs. Mary was
hyperconscious of the bared skin of her neck and chest, the hint of
cleavage she knew was on display