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eat at your table and make general mayhem in your house, and of course demand you spend money on me,” Finn drawled.
          That shut them up. He listened as chairs scraped and soon he was once again alone to finally finish his newspaper.

CHAPTER FOUR

          
    “Did you take a groom with you, Phoebe?”
          “Yes, Will, I took Moses.” Phoebe said calmly. Lifting her cup, she then sipped her tea.
          “You took my most competent groom and still you have a bruised cheek? And by the way you are gingerly holding that cup I would say your wrist hurts, too.”
          Replacing her cup, she smiled at her brother-in-law, who was scowling at her across the breakfast table. The family always shared their morning meal together, and it was usually time for them to discuss their day and chat.
    Olivia, her eldest sister, sat to her husband’s right and was watching the conversation she was having with Will, her cinnamon eyes lit with a smile. She looked happy and content, far different from the pale, worried woman she had once been.  
    The Langley sisters were all different in appearance. Livvy had red-gold curls where as Bella who sat to her left, was blonde with green eyes. Both had better dispositions than Phoebe, too.
    “Don’t give me that sweet smile, Phoebe, it will not wash. I am up to your tricks, remember, and would like an explanation.”
    After a bath, Phoebe had felt better. Her face had hit the ground as well as her wrist and was now starting to bruise, but not badly. She had thought Sally had managed quite well to cover it, yet perhaps not. Her wrist didn’t throb as it had and the bandage made it feel better; of course, she was forced to wear a long sleeved dress to cover it which could prove a bit warm today.
          “Is that the Moses who comes from a family of carnival people, Phoebe?” Bella said sweetly.
          Phoebe flashed her sister a look that she ignored. Isabella, for the most part, was sweet-natured; however, there was a mischievous streak inside her that when it made an appearance, it was usually to Phoebe’s determent.  
          “I have a groom that was in a carnival?” Will questioned, looking from Bella to Phoebe and then to Livvy, who still had not entered the fray.  
          “Moses,” Bella confirmed.
          Phoebe started spreading strawberry preserve on her toast, making sure to push it to the corners of the bread so she would enjoy the delicious taste in every mouthful she took. After all, it had not been that long ago that strawberry preserves were not in her life.
          “Why do I not know this?”
          “Luke knows,” Livvy said, which drew her husband’s eyes.
          “So my best friend knows but he did not inform me.”
          Phoebe put down her knife after cutting the toast in to four even pieces.  
          “Is there a problem with having someone in your employ who worked in a carnival, Will?” Phoebe was happy for the topic to move away from her bruises and morning ride.
          “Luke said he’s marvelous with the horses, Will,” Bella added.
    “Of course there’s no problem with his past, but I still like to know these things. And Luke should have told me, damn him. He’s just angry because we had an argument a week ago.”
          “He will come about in time, I’m sure, Will,” Livvy said.
          “He’d better!” Will snapped. “I’m sick of his ‘yes my lord, no my lord’ act. He’s just doing it to annoy me, especially as when we were in India, I was always just Will to him.”
          Phoebe saw the flash of pain in her brother-in-law’s eyes. Luke Fletcher’s father had worked for Will’s family, so the boys had grown up together. When Will had gone to India, Luke had accompanied him and both had made their fortunes; however, upon there return Luke had resumed working for Will, much to his disappointment, and it was now