The water washed over them. The current was mild, nonthreatening. And as Edwina looked over at the Duke, lying in the river beside her and looking every bit as shocked at their predicament as she was feeling, the only thought on her mind was that she had taken everything far too seriously.
The water seemed to wash away all her worries.
CHAPTER 27
“Well, this is a fine state of affairs.”
The Duke was laughing, and Edwina couldn’t resist laughing along with him. She shook out her sleeves, which had become soaked when she’d thrown out her hands to catch herself, and struggled to her feet.
The Duke stood and held out a hand to her.
She looked up at him, perplexed.
“Allow me to help you.”
Edwina nodded and held out her hand. The Duke took it and pulled her to her feet.
They still stood in the river, and the water rushed around their ankles, but because the current was mild, it was easy to keeptheir feet. The difficult part was walking along the riverbed, which was slick and uneven. Several times, Edwina lost her footing and found herself clinging to the Duke’s arm in order to remain upright. She was embarrassed by that fact, but at the same time, it pleased her to have a reason to remain close to him, little though she would have liked to admit that out loud.
They reached the water’s edge. The Duke climbed out first, and then, much to Edwina’s surprise, he reached down and swept her up into his arms.
“What are you doing?” she protested. “I’m perfectly capable of walking, Your Grace.”
“I’m sure your skirts are very heavy, soaked in water as they are,” he said. “In fact, I know they are since I’m carrying you.”
“Put me down.”
“I will if you insist, but we’ll move more quickly if you don’t have to fight to walk in those skirts. And besides, I do believe you’ve left a shoe at the bottom of the river, and I wouldn’t want you to injure your foot.”
He was right, though it embarrassed Edwina to realize he had noticed the loss of her shoe. She tucked her foot up inside her skirt. “Verywell,” she said. “Up to the house then and quickly—let’s get this over with.”
“As you wish, Lady Edwina.”
Fortunately, they were on the far side of the house, and there were no other treasure hunters on site. They reached a side door, and the Duke opened it and slipped inside.
“We shouldn’t be alone together,” Edwina told him. “Put me down now, and I’ll go to my room and change. I suggest you do the same.”
He set her down on the floor. “I won’t tell anyone we were together,” he said. “You needn’t worry about your reputation.”
“I’m not worried about my reputation.”
“No, I suppose a spinster has no need to worry about such things,” he agreed. “After all, what could happen to you? You don’t wish to marry anyway, so what difference does it make if no man wants you?”
“You have such a fixation with the fact that I am a spinster,” she marveled. “How can that be a fact of such interest to you—to anyone? Why do you care?”
“I don’t believe I ever said that I cared.”
“But if you didn’t, you wouldn’t bring it up anywhere near as often as you do,” she pointed out. “Sometimes I think you find it to be the most interesting thing about me.”
“That’s certainly not true,” he said. “I can tell you that right now.”
“Then why? Why do you bring it up so much?”
“I think one of the most interesting things about you is how stubborn you are and how independent,” he explained. “I think you wish to be a spinster because of those qualities. You don’t want to marry, and it makes me want to understand you better—to know more about you. That’s why I ask you those questions. It’s not because I’m fascinated with the fact that you are a spinster. It’s because I’m interested in the reason why.”
“But you don’t approve of my reasons,” she said. “You said it yourself. Waiting for love is foolhardy. That’s what you think, isn’t it?”
“I believe that the best reason to marry is that one has found the right person, yes.”
