In Praise of Younger Men by Jaclyn Reding Read Free Book Online Page B

reason, all those years before. Had she been frightened? Excited? Had she ever known the heartache of loving a man she could not have? What had made her choose Sir Hugh on that spring afternoon? Harriet reached for her locket and closed her fingers around it, drawing courage from its presence in her hand as she stepped inside the shop and slowly looked around.
    “Good day to you, madam.” A slim, scholarly-looking fellow in spectacles came forward from where he’d been sorting through a stack of books to greet her. “Welcome to Firkin and Sons, one of which I am.” He smiled at his own jest. “Is there something in particular I might help you find?”
    Yes, please, if you wouldn ‘t mind, Perhaps you could direct me to the nearest unmarried young man . . .
    Harriet smiled at him, shaking her head. “I just thought to browse a bit.”
    The clerk grinned, nodding. “Well, we have just about anything a lady’d be looking for here at Firkin and Sons. Popular novels over here: Austen, Edgeworth, others. Poetry in the far corner. We even have those little etiquette guides the younger misses are so fond of.”
    “Etiquette guides?”
    “Aye, madam. You know the ones that tell you the proper way to dress and talk and how to catch a gentleman’s eye?”
    Harriet’s interest was instantly piqued. “Indeed? And where did you say I might find those?”
    “Toward the back of the shop there, madam. By the fashion journals. You can’t miss them.”
    Harriet nodded, thanked the man, and departed immediately in the direction he’d indicated. She came at last to a small alcove set apart from the main area of the shop. A pretty little carved bench was set against the wall and Harriet stood, scanning the shelves until she happened upon a title in shining gold leaf:
    A Reflection on Refinement by A Lady of Quality.
    Curious, Harriet took the small book and opened to the first page.
    All Manner of Useful Advice on Propriety, Beauty, Grace, and Accomplishment For the Cultivation of Fe-
    male Etiquette By A Lady of Rank and Most Esteemed Grace and Virtue.
    What followed was ten chapters of detailed instruction on most every topic of female interest, from fashion to deportment, coiffures to proper speech. It was all the things young girls were expected to know and practice in the sphere of society, all the things they were taught from a tender age by their mothers . . .
    ... all the things Harriet had never learned.
    Harriet lowered onto the bench, reading through the first few pages.
    A lady’s posture should always be that of a graceful willow, elegant and straight, without the slightest hint of a slouch.
    Without even realizing it, Harriet straightened her back, drawing her shoulders back, her chin higher as she flipped the page to read on.
    A true lady of elegance never looks into a man’s eyes directly. Instead she gives brief glances from out of the corner of her own eyes before casting her gaze downward demurely so as to draw attention to the softness of her cheek, the grace of her hands . . .
    By the time she finished reading the first chapter, Harriet was convinced that the “Lady of Quality” who had written the book was nothing short of a genius. This book, and the assistance of Lady Lucinda Harrington, were everything Harriet needed to find herself a husband.
    Harriet took some coins from her reticule and paid the clerk, then quickly left the shop, intent on spending the rest of that afternoon studying each page. She’d completely forgotten her initial purpose in coming to Firkin’s in the first place, to see if she might be as fortunate as her mother had been when she’d found her father. But as she approached the door to leave, Harriet had to stop when she found her way suddenly blocked.
    “Hello, Harriet.”
    His eyes were dark, blank, his expression guarded. Still her breath caught at the sight of him. She wondered if he were still angry with her.
    “Tristan . . . hello. What are you doing here?”
    “I