The Case of the Season

Chapter Nineteen

At Simon and Daphne's wedding, Sherlock and Robin stood together and watched, both imagining their own ceremony. They hadn't spoken of the details yet, beyond the timing and the dress, but they would have to soon.

At the party afterward, Sherlock kept her close, his eyes widening as he observed all of the opulence around them.

"Do you want something this lavish?" he finally whispered to her.

She snorted behind her hand and shook her head. "Heavens, no."

"Thank goodness. This is far too much for me."

"Me as well. However, you might not be able to stop my aunt."

"Good point," he agreed, smiling at the thought.

She retreated to her room shortly before the end of the party to change and make sure she hadn't forgotten to pack anything. She and Sherlock were finally making their planned visit to Miss Beverley's country estate.

And they were stopping at Norland Park, her home, on the way.

She was quite nervous about it. Sherlock had to meet her father, though.

In truth, that wasn't what she was most apprehensive about. She was far more worried about him witnessing her normal state.

Here, she had very few responsibilities. There, she worked almost every waking moment just to keep everything running, and she assumed it had all fallen behind in her absence, despite the valiant efforts of the few loyal staff she had.

He was going to observe her with an apron tied around her gown and a cloth covering her hair while she scrubbed and cooked. He would notice that her skirts and shoes got muddy when she made her visits to the village. He'd watch as she sat at her writing desk surrounded by paper, her fingers dirty from using both pencil and ink, while she tried to put another novel together.

It was who she really was, and he hadn't truly seen her that way yet. Deep down, she knew that if he couldn't accept that, he didn't deserve her. And she really had no basis for thinking that his mind would change, considering what had passed between them, especially during the last few days.

But it still scared her. She had never shown herself to anyone in this manner before, and she didn't want to think about what it might cost her.

She looked up as her door opened and smiled as Eloise entered. She came and sat on Robin's bed excitedly before announcing, "The queen has asked me to help her discover the identity of Lady Whistledown."

"That's wonderful, Eloise. I'm sure that if anyone can figure it out, you can. You are remarkably observant, and since you don't have suitors to distract you this season, you have the perfect vantage point to watch your suspects closely."

Robin paused. She knew how much Eloise wanted to discover who Lady Whistledown was, but she also thought some tempering words were necessary. "But you must be careful," she cautioned her. "An untoward accusation could be disastrous for the one it is directed at, and you don't want to hurt anyone."

"Of course not. I have a heart, unlike Lady Whistledown. She only cares about how many papers she sells, not how many people she slanders."

Robin wasn't shocked that the general attitude in the ton had turned against Lady Whistledown. While she had been a novelty at first, now everyone had either been a victim of her pages or was fearful that they would appear in them next.

"I know, Eloise. But zeal can sometimes overtake reason."

Sherlock appeared at the door. "Am I interrupting? I came to bring your trunk downstairs."