“Do they? How would you know?” she demanded with laughter sounding in her voice.
“Isn’t that why ‘morning calls’ are actually in the afternoon? Because everyone is still abed from the previous evening’s exertions?”
“I wouldn’t know,” she finally said after silence had stretched between them for a moment.
Nathan glanced toward her to see if he had somehow offended her, but she was staring around curiously.
“I must say, Braxton, I had been wondering about your choices in carriages, but this is the best way to see everything. I never realized how very beautiful the countryside was so close to the centre of Town. I only venture as far as I can walk, usually, and when we’re in Town, I so rarely have the time to indulge in going very far afield. And when we’re travelling to and from Town we’re always well enclosed in Lady Frampton’s rather cumbersome travelling carriage.”
Nathan smiled over her wide-eyed wonder as she gazed about at the passing scenery. She was such a sweet young woman. Too bad she wasn’t the righttonfor his purposes. If he were feeling ready to wed and if she had the right background, he might wish this courtship were real. And, of course, if she didn’thate him. He admired her restraint while he also admired her pretty features. She had managed to not berate him on either of their excursions thus far. Nathan had been expecting, once there were no witnesses of it, that she would give him another piece of her mind for his treatment of her two years ago. He pushed the thoughts from his mind along with thoughts of how much time he was wasting on this expedition and tried to enjoy the afternoon.
Beatrice sighed and settled herself back into her seat.
“Thank you for thinking of this. I wouldn’t have thought you would have the spare time, but then, since there is less traffic it might not even end up being all that much longer than a drive in the Park, will it? But so much more enjoyable.”
“You don’t really enjoy Town, do you?” One more reason why she wouldn’t make a good countess. Nathan was glad for the reasons. He ought to write them down so he could remind himself when needed.
Beatrice bobbed her head in an undecided manner. “It isn’t that I don’t enjoy it. I am sure there are many redeeming aspects. And if my time were completely my own, I would avail myself of them, to be sure. But that isn’t currently the case. And in any case, I think escaping the hustle and bustle would always feel attractive, wouldn’t you say? Is that not why you suggested this venture? Or did you honestly think it would cause that much more gossip than driving in the Park?”
Nathan laughed. “I suppose you are correct, there were multiple factors that went into my suggestion.” He followed her gaze and looked around. “I didn’t even realize how much I would enjoy it. And I quite like being in London.”
“You see,” she almost crowed, as though she had won a point. “I think, even though the city is quite marvellous in many ways,it isn’t quite natural to be piled on top of one another. People need to be able to see vistas and greenery.”
“What about in the winter?”
Beatrice laughed. “Well, you are determined to be difficult, aren’t you? Perhaps we needn’t always have greenery, although there are the pines and firs to give us colour even in the coldest months, aren’t there?”
“You are the clever one,” he acknowledged. “So what has you so preoccupied with my aunts that you are unable to avail yourself of what the city has to offer? It didn’t seem to me as though they much begrudged you these excursions.”
Beatrice’s light laugh sounded a little fake this time. “Wasn’t that the strangest thing, my lord? Had I suggested last week that I wanted to stroll in the Park during the fashionable hour it wouldn’t have gone in quite the same manner, I’m sure. But that isn’t to say that I ever actually asked them. It is just that there are always so many errands and duties to be performed that it never even crossed my mind to ask. And besides, it wasn’t as though I was in Town to be social. I am their companion. I must accompany them in their interests, not my own.”
“Did you always aspire to be a companion?” Nathan asked. “Or did the position just present itself at an opportune time?”
Silence followed his question and he could feel her stiffen beside him even though a tricky piece of terrain prevented him from turning to look at her. By the time he could take his eyes off his horses and the road to glance in her direction, she seemed to have resettled into her usual serene presence.
“I suppose it was just presented at the right time, you could say, my lord,” she agreed without looking at him. “Tell me about being Braxton,” she invited. “I know you never expected to takethat on, and it is likely more onerous than most would think, but surely it also has its redeeming points, too.”
Before Nathan could realize it he was prattling away about his new role and life. He had never been one to share details about his life, but there was just something about the way Beatrice listened and asked gentle questions that invited confidences. He had found that about her in the past, and it was still obviously the same. Before he knew it, he had told her nearly everything without learning a single thing about her.
“Would you believe I actually enjoy learning about crop rotations and animal husbandry?”
Her light tinkle of laughter and quick nod led him to keep talking.
“I am grateful that the tenants have been most encouraging. They were a little suspicious and cautious at first, of course, and it hasn’t actually been that terribly long, but I guess I asked them the right questions to help them see that I want to know what I’m doing and so some have stepped forward and almost been eager to help me.” He paused for a moment wondering why he was making such confidences but he carried on despite his misgivings. “It turned out the steward wasn’t ideal to the position, and I’m reasonably sure he was skimming some of the profits from the estate. Once I had learned enough to be able to tell that something was amiss, I replaced him, but I’ve been burning with rage and humiliation ever since.”
“I understand the rage, but why the humiliation? It wasn’t you who hired him.”
“No, but I’ve been trained in investigation, I ought to have known something was wrong.”
“Do you mean prior to your inheriting? Do you think your father would have welcomed your interference?”
Her question was a good one and it prompted a bark of laughter from him. “No, he would not have.”
“Would he have even let you look at the ledgers?”
“Never!”
“So how were you to know?” Her reasonable tone was soothing to his roiling emotions. “I can sort of understand that you’ve taken on the feelings along with the title. You are Braxton now, and it was Braxton who allowed the cretin to take advantage. But it was also Braxton who rather quickly solved the problem, so it is likely time for you to forgive Braxton for the error and move along to other concerns.”
