All Chapters of Your Grace, I’d Rather Have Firewood Than Flowers: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

“Could we trade that bouquet for firewood?”Only after the words were out did Sara clasp her hands more tightly in her lap. It was hardly the right way to begin a job interview. Especially when the man interviewing her was a duke who lived in the grandest house in the region and had roads named after his family.Rowan Verno glanced at the white flowers on the corner of his desk. Logs were burning in the fireplace, but their warmth did not reach Sara’s feet where she sat, well away from the door. His fingers were reddened too, on the other side of the desk. Apparently, she wasn’t the only one feeling the cold.“They were a gift from the capital. I didn’t order them from a florist, so I doubt I could ask for something else instead.”“...I’m sorry. I wasn’t trying to tell you how to spend your money. I saw one of the women from the washhouse gathering fallen branches earlier, and then, with all these flowers here, I thought...”Her voice trailed away. She hadn’t asked why the woman could

“I’m not asking you to go and buy firewood for the duke’s household.”As she spoke, Sara moved away from the doorway to let a servant collect Ines’s basket. She had assumed that an explanation would be enough, but the woman had finished her work and was on her way home. Keeping her here for a lengthy explanation would be an imposition, whatever Sara had to say.“I want to find out what makes buying firewood difficult for the townspeople. But you’re going home now, aren’t you? Would it be all right if I came to the washhouse tomorrow?”“I won’t have time to take you around, even if you come there. I could talk for a little while the water’s heating, but that’s about it.”“That would be plenty. Just tell me the way, and I’ll find it myself.”Ines glanced once at Beatrice, standing beside Sara, before giving her directions. Finally, she insisted that Sara come in clothes she could work in. Sara tugged at her thin sleeve and decided not to mention, for now, that she owned nothing better s

Only six of the twenty-four forms Mika had prepared came back. Sara had thought she was asking for nothing more than names, addresses, the number of bundles wanted, and a preferred collection date. Yet the people who had come to discuss their purchases sat with blank sheets on their knees.“Was any part of it difficult to fill in? You aren’t committing to an order yet, so it’s quite all right to leave anything you’re unsure of blank.”At Sara’s question, a woman with soot on her sleeve folded the corner of her paper between her fingers.“I understood that. I thought I’d ask a neighbour to read it when I got home. But having them know how much firewood we buy every time is a bit...”When the woman fell silent, Sara didn’t press her. Accepting a neighbour’s kindness wasn’t the same as wanting to show them inside the family purse. Across from her, Ines took her hands from the washing and peered at the paper.“I can’t read this small writing here either. I could answer if you asked me. Ev

Sara called at the wholesaler that morning as arranged, then took the sample firewood she had permission to split to a woodworking shop. Its owner, Toma Verde, repaired tubs for Ines. Tubs awaiting repair lined the doorway, and from farther inside came the sound of a plane shaving wood.“I’ve been considering making the bundles equal in weight and charging the same price. I thought that might prevent complaints about someone receiving a lighter bundle.”After hearing her explanation, Toma set down his plane and picked up the sample she had brought.“Anyone bringing wood after a rain would like that arrangement. They’d be paid for all the water it had soaked up, too.”While Sara searched for an answer, Toma took two pieces of wood from a workshop shelf. They were the same kind and almost the same size, he said. When he placed one in each of her hands, the difference in weight was unmistakable.“This one&rsqu

At the house Sara visited, the broth left at the bottom of a small pot was slowly warming over the fire. The woman, who introduced herself as Edda, covered the copper coins visible from the doorway with a cloth before offering Sara a chair.“I shouldn’t have said anything to Ines. I wasn’t asking for a discount. I can just leave it this time.”“Yes. I haven’t come to persuade you to stay in the order. But may I ask what makes the payment difficult? You needn’t tell me anything you don’t want to.”Edda gathered the laundry from the chair and carried it to the bed. Once Sara was seated, she settled beside the pot.“I had a fever last week and couldn’t do my sewing. I can work now, but there are days between handing it in and getting paid. I know buying together saves money. But I can’t put the fire out and wait until then.”Sara thought uneasily of the day she had celebrate