Full Steam Ahead
the contents. His frown deepened. His penmanship wasn’t much better there. Too many scratched-out words and sideways notations in the margins. How was he ever going to submit his findings on boiler safety to the Franklin Institute when his notes were in such a sorry state?
    Darius shoved his notebook aside and blew out a heavy breath. He didn’t have time for this. He’d advertised for a secretary weeks ago. Why had no one applied? It was beyond frustrating.
    He pushed up from his chair and paced across the carpet. Passing the untouched breakfast tray his housekeeper had brought hours ago, he snatched up a scone that had gone stale. He shoved it in his mouth, grimaced as he chewed, and washed it down with a swallow of the tea that had cooled too far to even be called tepid.
    He had to eat something if he wanted to avoid Mrs. Wellborn’s scolding. He was certain the woman kept an accounting of each morsel served him just so she could tell if he ate anything or not. The tyrant. A corner of Darius’s mouth twitched upward slightly as he contemplated his housekeeper. At least she’d ceased pestering him about eating his meals while they were hot. She was an intelligent woman, after all, and could recognize a lost cause when she saw one. His work took precedence. Over everything.
    Now, if he could just convince one of the mewling cowards from Liberty to hire on as his secretary, he’d really be able to make some progress. It wasn’t his fault Miles Connor hadn’t had the sense God gave a goose. The fellow made the unwise decision to snoop around the pond instead of remaining at the house during one of Darius’s experiments. Had he known the grocer was about, he would have warned him of the danger. But no, the man just strolled up to the pond, bold as you please, without a word to anyone. By the time Darius realized he was there, the steam had built up too high in the boiler for the safety valve to release, and the two men had to run for cover. The explosion had been a mild one—fully under Darius’s control, of course—but Connor took exception to being showered with a few splintered timbers and iron shards.
    Oakhaven had seen few visitors since that ill-fated day.
    Darius reached for a boiled egg from the breakfast tray,thinking it would taste better cold than another scone. At the same moment, a knock sounded on his study door.
    “Come in,” he called as he sprinkled a pinch of salt over the egg.
    The door opened, and Wellborn, his butler, stepped inside. “You have a caller, sir.”
    “A caller?” Darius bit off half the egg, suddenly ravenous now that his stomach had recognized the arrival of food. He chewed quickly and sent the egg the way of the scone before glancing up. “Who is it? I don’t have time for idle chitchat with the neighbors, you know.”
    “Of course, sir.” Wellborn’s dour expression never altered. Nor did he comment on the fact that no neighbor had come to chat in several months. A fact they were both well aware of.
    Darius salted the second half of his egg and popped it into his mouth.
    Wellborn didn’t so much as raise an eyebrow. “Your caller is an applicant. For the position you posted in Liberty a few weeks back, I believe.”
    Darius choked the egg down and lunged across the carpet toward his butler. “Why didn’t you say so, man? That’s the best news I’ve had in days. Send him in at once.”
    Wellborn’s disapproving gaze raked Darius from his rumpled hair, to his unshaven jaw, to his rolled shirt sleeves. “Perhaps you’d like to freshen your appearance first, Mr. Thornton?”
    Darius shook his head. “Time is of the essence, Wellborn. Please show the man in.”
    Wellborn opened his mouth, held it for a moment, and closed it. “Very good, sir.” He bowed his head slightly, then left to collect the applicant.
    Darius watched the flawlessly attired butler stride out the study door. The world was far too concerned with superficialtrappings to Darius’s way of

Similar Books

Love's Rescue

Christine Johnson

Mask Market

Andrew Vachss

0800720903 (R)

Ruth Axtell

Dark Prophecy

Anthony E. Zuiker

The Big Snapper

Katherine Holubitsky