Rosalind imagined that only she would recognize the irony of being worried about both a great society lady and her housekeeper.
Then Nanci looked troubled. “Rosalind, will you be all right with being alone with Mr. Armstrong?”
“I suppose I’ll have to do my best.” Secretly, she was thanking her lucky stars and the Lord’s many blessings. Ever since Jim and Jerome had made snide comments about seeing her with Mr. Armstrong, Rosalind had been harboring many doubts about how she was going to be able to be seen with the man and keep her position in the house.
This occasion was a boon, for sure.
She said nothing else to Nanci as they greeted the men. Douglass seemed to eye her a bit too long, but quickly turned his attention to Nanci. Holding out his arm, he said, “You look fetching.”
“I hope we aren’t too late?”
“It’s not a problem.” Turning to Reid, Douglass said, “I’m going to escort Nanci privately for a while. I’ll meet you here in two hours?”
Reid barely had time to nod before Douglass walked with Nanci toward one of the scenic trails.
Rosalind watched their figures fade into the distance before she walked to Reid’s side. “I’m curious. Did you know Nanci and I were going to be here?”
“I did not.” His voice was harsh.
“I didn’t either. I didn’t know you were going to be here until I saw you standing here with Mr. Sloane.”
Looking vaguely uncomfortable, he looked back at the trail where the other two had now disappeared. “Douglass is intrigued by Nanci.”
“She is a beautiful girl.”
He eyed her closely. “Nothing will come of their liaison. I hope she realizes that.”
Rosalind was worried too, but loyalty to Nanci made her defensive. “I believe she is past the age of being naive about such things, Mr. Armstrong. I don’t know much about being a servant in a large home, but I have come to the conclusion that no maid has delusions of marrying the young master of the house.”
“I pray you are right. I would hate for your friend to get hurt.”
“I think a lot of the shine wears off when one launders another’s clothing, Mr. Armstrong.”
The muscles in his jaw twitched, but he said nothing.
“Well, it seems as if we have two hours to explore. Is there anywhere you’d like to go?”
She shrugged. “The Fine Arts Palace isn’t too far. Shall we go there?”
“That would be fine.” He started in that direction, walking slowly so she could keep up, but otherwise with no concession to her.
At first she worried about what people would think about the two of them being together, but she promptly forgot about her reservations. The other visitors seemed to be far too entranced with the wonders of the fair to give Rosalind and Reid more than the most cursory of glances.
After they walked up the marble steps and into the grand building, Reid guided them to a gallery on the left. Then, as he stood in front of a collection of Italian Renaissance paintings, he asked, “Have you discovered anything new?”
“Well, I met a street vendor, a woman.” Briefly she told him about the flower girl Minerva. She told him she had seemed particularly observant, but, of course, Rosalind didn’t know her well enough to pry for more information. “I’m going to visit her again as soon as I can. Perhaps we can develop a friendship.”
“That is a good idea, Rosalind,” he said as he guided her into another one of the one hundred forty rooms. She looked around with interest, enjoying the sights, but truly unable to think of anything other than their conversation. “There is one other item I should probably mention.”
“What is that?”
She scanned the area around them and saw that most people were ignoring them. However, one or two ladies were watching her converse with Reid with curious expressions. That made her even more aware of the need to tell Reid about her conversation with Jim as well as relay Jerome’s snide remarks. She did so as quickly as she could.
To her amusement, Reid was incredulous. “I am a gentleman. I would never set my designs upon you.”
“Yes, sir. But unfortunately, my reputation is not quite as stellar. Everyone would believe that I had designs on you.”
“What would you like me to do to repair your reputation?”
“Nothing at all. If you make too much of a fuss about our innocent relationship, it will only cause more speculation.”
“But still, I hate to think of you being subjected to such things.”
“Mr. Armstrong, don’t forget, my sister has gone missing. I fear she’s been subjected to much worse than gossip and speculation.”