Authors: Gloria Harchar
"Then heaven help me."
Nicola
turned to another project, but her heart wasn
'
t in it. She gl
anced at the
pixie
, not wanting to talk about it anymore
.
"
You look quite pretty lounging amid ribbon and bows. Too bad no one else can see you. You could make yourself useful and decorate a hat.
"
Allegro blurred into a golden star and blew out a delightful tune. The energetic notes reminded
Nicola
of Beethoven
'
s
"
Le Nozzi di Figaro
.
"
She started to scold him for talking too fast,
and then
grimaced, wishing the little Caller wouldn
'
t bother her in public. Anyone who happened by might think she was short a sheet, talking to herself.
"
Marry the Earl. Gain prestige. Wear the hats yourself.
You can start a trend,
"
Allegro
sang, improvising the
melody
with his own lyrics
.
Nicola
gathered the ribbon and gave the whirring golden
pixie
an arched look.
"
Your suggestions won't sway me
.
"
Frustration welled up inside her as she stared at the rejected piece she
'
d worked on for several days. She picked it up.
"
That old harridan. I
'
m going to add this
Clockwork Blue
ribbon anyway.
"
"I'm afraid Glissando won't return any time soon."
"Why do you say that?" She started fastening the ribbon around the band of the hat.
"Not that I want to malign another pixie, but he's a slide-note. After all, his name is
Glissando
."
The
satin ribbon proved difficult to hold
, and Nicola had to concentrate to pin it in place, plus it was hard to find somewhere to sew it with all the flowers and gears.
"What do you mean by that?" she asked around a pin she held between her lips.
"Let's just say that he switches sides as fast as he beats his wings.
But maybe I'm being too severe in my analysis of him. He does seem to be getting a conscience. I think he was sincere about wanting to make things right with you.
"
"
Cogs
. Well, I covered any mishaps Glissando might claim for an excuse. I sent a letter of my own."
"Very wise of you, Miss Moore."
She sighed. "But nothing is a certainty. You know? It really would be something to see."
"What?"
"If I were to marry the Earl—
w
hich I won't
,
"
she
quickly
tacked on. "But it
would be a rare treat for me to appear in my creation
with gears and all. I could
turn my nose up at that haughty Lady Kensington. Too tawdry, indeed!
"
"
Pardon me. Am I intruding?
"
Startled,
Nicola
whirled to find Falcon standing at the doorway. Her cheeks grew hot.
"
Oh, no, not at all.
"
His dark hair gleamed. Today, he wore a sienna-colored waistcoat with tan trouse
rs
. She gazed at the sharp line of his jaw and the stark proud stamp of
his beaklike nose. Absently, she marveled at the fact he had
a
face
resembling
a bird of prey.
He glanced about the room.
"
With whom are you conversing?
"
"
Uh, no one.
"
How mortifying.
He peered behind the door, then turned to study her, his brow knitted.
"
Do you always hold conversations with yourself?
"
"
Not always.
"
"
But sometimes?"
Allegro gave a mischievous chuckle.
"
Only when you are blessed with Callers.
"
"
Only when I
'
m cursed with overbearing men.
"
She glared at her small tormentor.
The Falcon followed her gaze.
"
So, my pursuit is making you addlepated?
"
"
With love,
"
Allegro fluted, grasping his heart.
"
With indigestion,
"
Nicola
retorted.
Falcon widened his
eyes
and beetled his brows. He glanced under the table upon which Allegro perched.
"
Are you feeling unwell?"
She shifted, realizing she had gotten carried away by responding to the pesky Caller.
"
I do not truly have indigestion.
"
"
That does not concern me. However, the fact that you seem to be conversing with someone other than me when there is no one else in this chamber does give me cause for worry.
"
His
alarmed
glance gave her an idea.
"
Ah
... you
'
ve found me out. I
'
m quite wrong in the upper story, in addition to being a hoyden.
I see pixies. I refer to them as my Callers."
"You see pixies." The statement came out flat. He still held his
eyes
wider than normal.
Ye
t
they were intent, so sharp.
But she really wasn't fabricating the pixies, which made her smile. Why hadn't she thought of this before?
"
Yes
.
I see them, talk to them, and scold them.
They are as big as my pinkie." She held up her little finger. "They have wings that are the colors of a rainbow, and they wear cravats, waistcoats and trouser, although their shoes are strange—they curl at the toes."
"You say you talk to them. Do they answer?"
"Of course. So.
Are you
certain you wish to buckle with me?
He narrowed his
eyes
.
She glanced to where Allegro had perched. The
pixie
had disappeared. She decided she didn
'
t need him; she could pretend
he was still there.
Tilting her head, she smiled at a bonnet.
"
Well, Allegro, I wouldn
'
t want to give him false
hope
.
"
"
Allegro. You even named them?"
Falcon stared at her.
"
No, they named themselves, or rather, I suppose their parents named them. I never really asked. Do you see him? He's
sitting there on the hat. Oh, but I forgot, no one can see him but me.
"
She cocked
her head at a
hat with the curled ostrich feather
interspersed with a collage of rusty nails
.
"
What? You lost your
pixie
dust? Well, don
'
t look at me—I didn
'
t take it. I wouldn
'
t know what to do with it if
I
had.
"
She ventured a peek at Falcon.
He continued to stare at her, the intensity in his dark
eyes
unnerving.
She raised her chin.
"
The
Clockwork Blue
might not be worth the sacrifice of attaching yourself to a woman who is as queer as Dick
'
s hatband.
"
Suddenly he smiled.
"
It will be worth any strange notions to which you might have a tendency.
"
"
You have a
mysteriousness surrounding you
that I
'
m unexpectedly anxious to explore.
"
He grasped a castoff snippet of
Clockwork Blue
ribbon and feathered it over the seam of her lips, dipping along the underside, the caress making the tender skin there tingle. Then he took the ribbon, now s
l
ightly moist, and rubbed it along his own full mouth. The action was strangely
intimate
. He put the ribbon in his breast pocket.
Shaken,
Nicola
stiffened her spine, reminding herself that her station in life was far below his. She busied herself with her hat, desperate to persuade him she was unworthy of his pursuit.
"
What do you think? It would look good on Mrs. Campbell. You probably didn
'
t know you are attempting to court
a milliner who plans to have her own shop one day
.
"