Tobias departed from Meg’s little cottage at a more advanced hour than he had anticipated, leaving the luscious Betty sated (at least temporarily) and still a-bed. Aware of the approaching dusk, he hurried toward the main thoroughfare of the town, hastily tucking in his shirttails as he went. Thankfully he met no one he knew who might question why a vicar from a neighboring parish might be loitering so late about the street en déshabille.
As he reached the coaching inn, he was fortunate enough to find a late carter, not only going back to Stratton-over-Wye but ready to depart straight away. They swiftly agreed on terms and Tobias gratefully hopped up beside him.
In the gathering gloom, there was no one to notice his befuddled grin and the morose carrier, who had given nothing more than a
