As the groundskeeper spoke, Ellie felt the wind kicking up and she tugged her ever present black cloak around her even more. At least if it rained later on, she could count on the black garb she wore hiding most of the wetness and if she avoided mud puddles, she wouldn't have to worry about it needed cleaning all that much. She didn't really care though, it wasn't that bad to wash it, so if she got dirty, she got dirty.
At his suggestion that they go inside, automatically Eleanor glanced about for those who might be watching. Then she let her guard down, the man had been hired by the Board, surely they trusted him. And she was a widowed woman so she knew what to look out for. And if he was willing to prop the door open, then she'd go in. At least so far as to get out of the rain that was surely coming.
"Sure, Mr. Wild," she said with a bright beam of a smile. Hiking up her skirts, she stepped into the small cottage he lived in. It was darker than outside which caused her to blink as her eyes adjusted to the shadows. Maybe she should suggest some extra lighting? But that would likely be overstepping her bounds and she didn't want to alienate him when she would need his assistance quite frequently. As soon as her eyes adjusted, she peered around, noting the male touches to the cottage and automatically cataloging what could use a feminine touch here and there. It was one thing Xander said he'd loved about her was how she could enter somewhere and automatically know what to fix to make it look more like a home and less like a place where people lived for convenience.
As soon as Silas walked in, Ellie looked at him and smiled again. "It's a lovely home you have here, Mr. Wild. Where would be a good place to sit? I'd like to go over those charts and maps, please." She left off her sentence that she wanted to look at them immediately because propriety wouldn't allow a woman to command a man to do something any sooner than he wanted to, especially if he wasn't her husband. Xander thought it was adorable when she told him what to do, but Mr. Wild? She doubted he'd find it so endearing.
At his suggestion that they go inside, automatically Eleanor glanced about for those who might be watching. Then she let her guard down, the man had been hired by the Board, surely they trusted him. And she was a widowed woman so she knew what to look out for. And if he was willing to prop the door open, then she'd go in. At least so far as to get out of the rain that was surely coming.
"Sure, Mr. Wild," she said with a bright beam of a smile. Hiking up her skirts, she stepped into the small cottage he lived in. It was darker than outside which caused her to blink as her eyes adjusted to the shadows. Maybe she should suggest some extra lighting? But that would likely be overstepping her bounds and she didn't want to alienate him when she would need his assistance quite frequently. As soon as her eyes adjusted, she peered around, noting the male touches to the cottage and automatically cataloging what could use a feminine touch here and there. It was one thing Xander said he'd loved about her was how she could enter somewhere and automatically know what to fix to make it look more like a home and less like a place where people lived for convenience.
As soon as Silas walked in, Ellie looked at him and smiled again. "It's a lovely home you have here, Mr. Wild. Where would be a good place to sit? I'd like to go over those charts and maps, please." She left off her sentence that she wanted to look at them immediately because propriety wouldn't allow a woman to command a man to do something any sooner than he wanted to, especially if he wasn't her husband. Xander thought it was adorable when she told him what to do, but Mr. Wild? She doubted he'd find it so endearing.