" Your Mr. Skukman is a man of few words, isn’t he?” Bram said as he walked up to join her. “It’s one of the reasons I hired him.” Bram frowned. “You prefer men who don’t speak much?” “Would you be insulted if I admitted I do?” To Lucetta’s surprise, instead of looking insulted, Bram sent her a look of understanding as he stepped closer to her. “You’re obviously overcome by the shock you’ve recently experienced because of my goat. And while I would love to be able to say that Geoffrey was just out of sorts today, I’m afraid he’s been out of sorts ever since someone abandoned him at Ravenwood a few months back, in the middle of the night.” “Your goat’s name is Geoffrey?” “My sister, Ruby, named it after a gentleman she’d once set her sights on, but a gentleman who turned out to be a bit of a disappointment.” Bram shook his head. “The man had the audacity to go off and marry some well-connected society miss, breaking Ruby’s heart in the process.” Lucetta smiled. “I do believe I’m going to like this sister of yours, Mr. Haverstein, especially since it appears she has no qualms about naming a cranky beast after a gentleman she no longer holds in high esteem.” “Please, since you’ve been set upon by my dogs, and practically mauled by my goat, feel free to call me Bram.” “Very well, since I have experienced all of that madness at the paws and hooves of your animals, I will call you Bram and you may call me Lucetta.” Her smile began to fade. “But pleasantries aside, why do you think your goat tried to attack me, and what was it doing in the tower room in the first place?” Bram blew out a breath. “Geoffrey attacked you because he has a problem with dresses—something we learned when he chased poor Mrs. Macmillan, who’d been trying to help get Geoffrey to the barn the morning we discovered him.” Bram shook his head. “Mrs. Macmillan has not been back to the barn since. As for what Geoffrey was doing in the tower room, I must admit that I can’t even fathom how he got up there without someone noticing.” “It’s "
― Jen Turano , Playing the Part (A Class of Their Own, #3)