“Not in the least,” Cecily said, a bit too emphatically.
Never mind, she would let that one pass. It suited her purpose at present.
“Exactly. There must be something else at issue. Perhaps they already had some grudge. A gambling debt or an insult. Who knows why men fight.”
“I suppose.” Her cousin watched her through hooded lids. Like a lizard. But a moment later, she switched back to her usual, sunny pitch. “Anyway, I’m glad to hear it. I wouldn’t want you to get your hopes up. I think Eli will always be a bit heartbroken over me. He certainly kissed me the other night like a man still in love.”
“When you cried your forfeit and made him, you mean.” Jane couldn’t help herself. It stung, and she wanted to sting right back.
But Cecily only smiled smugly. “Call it what you like. He seemed to enjoy it.”
“Isn’t yourhusbandmissing you? You should probably get back to him.”
“Don’t worry about Sir Thomas. He knows my devotion, and unlike some, he doesn’t fuss over a little harmless fun.”
They faced off across a tense silence until Cecily finally said, “I’d best let you get ready for the closing race then. I’ll send Biddy in to see if she can do something about your hair.”
The only race left on Friday was the Wokingham Stakes. Eli would have been just as content to begin the ride back to London after breakfast, but Lady Kerr was adamant that they should take theoccasion to see everyone off in their finery, and Edmund wouldn’t miss the last race.
No matter. It meant more time with Jane before they returned to sleeping under separate roofs. He’d gotten used to having her near, to talking to her as he used to when things were still easy between them. It felt like more than four days had passed, but it was also too short.
It was going to be harder to steal time alone with her once they were back in town.
He still couldn’t believe what they’d done. It felt like a dream. She’d been so responsive to his touch, her strict demeanor forgotten.
No one else knew that side of her. To the rest of the world, she was upright and proper. The other Jane, the one that came out when she finally let her guard down, that was only for him. The notion gave him almost as much pleasure as he’d felt last night.
When they got to the races, Eli took a seat at her side, as he usually did. Once the crowd started cheering, he might have another few minutes in which they could actually talk without fear of anyone overhearing. But Jane kept her face turned out toward the Royal Procession as if she hadn’t seen it twice before. She sat stiffly in her seat, inclined slightly away from him.
Is she embarrassed again?
“How are you this morning?” he tried. Innocuous enough if anyone was listening.
“Very well. I’m focused on the race, though.” She kept her gaze straight ahead as she spoke, never looking at him.
That wasn’t a good sign. Eli pushed down a growing unease.
Perhaps she was waiting until the crowd started cheering to tell him something. He tried to be patient, but his mind jumped between various possibilities. She’d enjoyed herself. He was sure of it. Why had the frost returned overnight?
The pistol rang out, and the horses charged forward. The crowd began to cheer. Still, Jane didn’t favor him with a word, nor a look.
Eli touched a fingertip to her wrist, the delicate warmth of her skin making him wish he could dare more contact. “Is something wrong?”
She jerked her hand away.
A definite yes. What had he done? He’d left her room last night when she’d wanted him to. Was he to be punished just for saying that he missed her? Or did she regret everything in the light of day?
“Not here,” she whispered.
Where then? It was impossible to get a moment alone. At least at the races, there was enough noise to cover their words.
Seeing he was about to protest, Jane added, “Cecily is watching.”
Eli managed not to turn and look. Instead, he pretended to shield his eyes from the sun and follow the course, while stealing glances toward Lady Kerr from the corner of his vision. She was a few places down from him today. Sure enough, either she had a terrible crick in her neck, or she was straining to watch them.
Could she have learned he’d spent last night with Jane, somehow? They’d been careful. No one had seen him come or go from her room.
The rest of the race was all tension. He and Jane sat silent as two statues, fixed in the same tableau, but never bending toward each other. Eli didn’t see who won. He was too busy thinking about what it would mean if they’d been uncovered.
