Miss Pendleton (Update to C.222 END) - Chapter 188

“The rain stopped rather quickly, didn’t it?”

At noon in the bright Whitefield, Ian gazed out through the wide-open window of the dressing room at a cloudless sky, his face etched with deep melancholy.

“Three days doesn’t seem that quick to me.”

Laura, who was tying her husband’s necktie, gave a playful smile.

Originally, Ian had planned to return from Sheffield, rest for a day, and then board a train to Leeds. However, the past three days had left him stranded in Whitefield due to a relentless downpour that canceled train services.

Ian made good use of the three days his schedule was disrupted. Between catching up on postponed work, he visited Laura’s study to soothe her hands with warm compresses, strolled with her through the Long Gallery listening to the sound of rain, and led her to the east guest room—where they had once dramatically reconciled—to share moments of love.

Having spent the past month on a hectic schedule inspecting business sites, the autumn rain had gifted him a sweet respite.

“If a task must be done, it’s better to finish it quickly, darling.”

“I know. That’s why I’m preparing for this trip.”

He was to board a train to Leeds today, his final destination. It was the last stop not only because Leeds was the farthest from Whitefield but also because, beyond his business inspections, his visit to the engineering college there was expected to be extensive.

Ian had long supported scholarships at Leeds Engineering College. Leeds was a city renowned for wool and industry, and fostering educated technicians while advancing engineering research was vital.

As Ian owned many businesses in Leeds, the growth of its engineering college was of great interest to him. He hoped the college would offer a broader curriculum to local youth and become a institution worthy of supporting students from other regions. During this visit, he planned to discuss the establishment of humanities programs with the dean.

He also needed to persuade the board of trustees and meet with scholarship recipients to encourage their studies—an indispensable part of his duties. The trip would take at least four days.

Ian looked down at Laura. His industrious wife, diligently tying his tie, seemed even more endearing than usual. Her face, revealed clearly with her hair pinned up, was as pure as the autumn sky. A pearl earring, rarely worn, dangled from her round earlobe, and the misty gray-blue chiffon dress she wore accentuated her slender, graceful figure like fog in a forest.

To think he had to leave such a wife and the estate for four days.

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