Lionel had been tapping his foot in time to the music, something he stopped as soon as he realized.
“My leg will not stand it,” he whispered.
“Your leg will not stand a waltz, but this is something very different. Let me show you.”
Cecilia drew Lionel after her into the middle of the room where the other children and some of the farmhands were taking a turn over the flagstone floor. Those not dancing were stamping their feet or clapping their hands in time with the music that Tom Hatch was playing with skill and gusto. Cecilia took both of Lionel’s hands in her own and began to dance, turning a circle around him.
At first, Lionel seemed apprehensive, but that expression soon changed to one of wonder. Cecilia laughed, a feeling of joy bursting from her. In the society of Earls and Dukes, such dancing would be regarded as childish and primitive. In the company of ordinary people though, and with music provided by a simple farmer, probably self-taught, such thoughts did not matter. All that mattered was an expression of enjoyment in the music. An expression of joy, of life.
Lionel raised his hands above Cecilia’s head, twisting them so that she spun into a tight embrace. Then he spun her out again after stealing a kiss on her cheek. That made the youngest of the Hatch children laugh aloud when she sat on the lap of one of the older children. Lionel took a step, clearly not wanting to put undue pressure on his leg but taken with the music enough to make the attempt. The tune changed, then changed again.
Finally, Cecilia was breathless and red-faced. She and Lionel drew aside, stepping out into the cobbled yard with two mugs of ale. In the Hatch kitchen, one of the farmhands was playing a tin flute while another beat a rhythm on a tea chest. Tom Hatch was enjoying a dance of his own and Doris and her daughters were preparing sandwiches for the gathered throng.
“Magical,” Lionel breathed.
Cecilia nodded, taking gulps of foaming ale. Looking at her, Lionel wiped the residue from her upper lip where it had formed a thick mustache.
“I’m sorry I got so upset over the snub from the county set,” Cecilia mumbled. “I should have remembered that some things in life are more important. Like this.”
She looked towards the candlelit kitchen and the dance which was still in full flow. Outside, night had replaced day.
“You deserve to be recognized by your peers,” Lionel insisted with a wave of his hand, his smile fading. “I am glad you had the idea to bring us here and I agree that this part of life is more reviving to the soul than any number of balls or dinners. But, I will not have my Duchess snubbed. I will not have anyone looking down on you.”
Cecilia tossed back her hair, taking another swallow of ale and this time kissing Lionel to transfer her foam mustache to him. They both giggled like schoolchildren.
“It does not bother me in the least, provided you are by my side,” she smiled.
“Which I will always be,” Lionel replied, fervently.
Cecilia’s heart beat with a flurry. “Always?”
“Always.”
He drew her out of the pool of light cast from the kitchen door. The deeper shadows of a barn enveloped them.
Cecilia felt Lionel’s arms going about her waist and sank into his embrace as his kiss deepened upon her lips.
CHAPTER 26
Cecilia lost herself to the sensation that swept through her body. It started at several points, all of them where Lionel’s body made contact with her own. Her lips, her hips, her bosom. Lionel’s hands slipped from the curve of her waist to her back, pressing her against the warm stone of the barn wall. Only the sensation of that stone reminded Cecilia of where they stood. The drape of shadows was scant cover from the eyes of those who danced mere yards away. She pushed Lionel to arm’s length, feeling that his body was drawn to hers as though by magnetism. Then she took his hand and began feeling her way along the wall of the barn, leading Lionel by the hand. Presently, they came to the door and slipped inside.
The darkness within was warm and thick with the smell of horses and hay. Thor put his head over the top of his stall and Summer did likewise. Cecilia led Lionel deeper into the gloom of the stables, until they reached an empty stall. It was newly clean and covered with a thick layer of fresh straw, courtesy of the Duke and Duchess earlier in the day. Lionel fumbled with the latch of the stall door in the darkness, chuckling at hisineptitude and their daring. Cecilia felt like an adolescent girl, surreptitiously stealing moments of innocent romance. The stall door eventually opened with an alarming creak. Lionel put a hand to her lips and they both froze where they stood.
Overhead came a whispered voice.
“Did you hear that?” a girl said.
“No, Mary. Not a thing,” came the voice of a young man.
“I thought I heard someone below.”
“Just me, my love.”
A husky chuckle came from the girl.
“You’re sure no one came in… and don’t give me any of your filthy jokes either, Henry Hatch.”
“Everyone’s in the house dancing with the Duke and Duchess. Pa will be playing until the early hours. He never needed much of an excuse for ale and song. Trust me.”
