“Well I don-” he began but she cut him off before he could find a way out.
“Or perhaps there is another reason you wish to confess to me as to why you cannot climb?”
Selina stood calmly as he tried to stare her down and get her to back down. She smirked inwardly. He should know by now that she was quite bullheaded when she wanted something and now was no different.
There was only one of two things that would happen. He would either admit defeat and confess to being unable to climb or he would break under her and climb.
Selina knew very well that the Duke would never admit defeat so easily so there was only one thing to be done. She took a step to stand in front of the tree and with raised brows, gestured with her hands for him to go ahead.
She did not have to wait for long for the Duke to make up his mind. For once, she kept her comments to herself as the Duke slowly trudged up to the tree like a man being led to his sentence.
Perhaps I should let him off?She thought to herself for a second before discarding the notion.
Although Selina’s motive was for her own entertainment and also to show the Duke that he was not above fun, she also was doing it because she knew that this was the only way to get him to allow Barbara to have fun while she learned.
Although it was not the only way to ensure that but as the opportunity presented itself to her, she did not see any reason to pass it up.
Selina raised her hand to her mouth to stifle the giggle that threatened to escape her as the Duke stood in front of the tree, looking around as if judging where the best place was to begin his climb.
The Duke turned to her, his eyes boring into hers as he frowned, having heard the giggle she was unable to hold back. She immediately dropped her hand from her mouth and cleared her throat softly before focusing again.
“I’m waiting…” she prompted him.
“All right,” he raised his hands to the thickest part of a low branch. “If I just hold on here and…”
He moved his foot to the tree bark and pulled himself up but then the branch bent under his weight and he slid down, stumbling slightly.
Selina bent over and giggled once again, trying to get herself to calm down as he stared at her with ire. She straightened herself and erased the smile from her face, motioning for him to continue.
Her lips widened in amusement when the Duke wrapped his arms around the tree trunk, one of his legs doing the same as he tried to push himself off the ground with the other leg to propel him up the tree.
He really had no idea how to climb a tree. Selina was unable to hold herself back this time as she let out a loud laugh, giving up entirely on the idea of holding back her laughter.
The Duke presented a comical sight with his arms and feet wrapped around a tree and his face pressed against the tree he was currently hugging. It was such a contrast to his usual demeanor.
She laughed even more when he glared at her. The Duke did not look right, glaring at her in that moment. She wondered if perhaps that was his attempt to look scary.
There had obviously been many who looked at the Duke and ran in fear from the intimidation his mighty frame and constant frown struck in their hearts and she was sure there would be more who shrank in fear as they looked at him but now was not the moment, for the mighty Duke looked anything but intimidating.
She watched as his legs slid down the tree and his arms unwrapped from around it. His face, which had been pressed to the tree had reddened from the force he’d used in trying unsuccessfully to pull himself up.
His look sent her into another bout of laughter that had her clutching at her stomach as it cramped from the exertion and tears pooled in her eyes. She could not remember the last time she had laughed so much.
“Oh goodness!” she exclaimed as she cleaned her eyes of the tears. “Will you accept the help I offer so willingly now?”
“Well, it is just that-” he stepped away from the tree and dragged down his coat, cleaning off the tree bark that had broken off on him.
“I am not particularly dressed for the occasion, that is all.”
“Mhmm.” Selina snickered. “I am sure that is what it is.”
“Perhaps if we were in riding clothes and-” he began, cut off by a singular sound from her closed lips that betrayed her unbelief.
“We- that’s not even what we were here to talk about!” he exclaimed in irritation.
“Fine. I will have you be Barbara’s governess while I look for another. Of course, I will pay as I would the other governesses for your time,” he conceded.
“Oh, that is not necessary. I am glad to do it for-”
