Why couldn’t he just leave them alone? Diana fumed inwardly as they walked along the path, their feet crunching on the gravel. She would have to warn him off, she decided. He could not continue under this illusion that his advances towards her sister were welcome, or even tolerable.
But still he went on. “Perhaps you and your sister could come and call on me,” he said, his voice light and pleasant. “Then you could advise me on what changes would be required in order for you to find the décor acceptable?”
“That will never happen, My Lord,” she whispered, so that only he could hear her. “I promise you, that will never happen.”
Grace turned back to look at them. “You are too slow!” she cried. “I am going to walk ahead to the lake. I cannot wait to see it, in this beautiful weather!”
Before Diana could call out to stop her, Grace had strode on ahead, and Diana knew that she could not now call her back without drawing attention to them. The avenue was busy with members of the ton, promenading and enjoying the fineweather. It was bad enough for them to be seen out with the earl, let alone for anyone to think that anything untoward was going on.
Perhaps this was an opportunity, she thought to herself, as Grace disappeared from view along the path ahead of them. She turned to the earl. “I do not know what your intentions are, My Lord, but I must tell you to stop immediately.”
“My intentions?” the earl said, raising an eyebrow.
“Oh, do not play the innocent with me,” Diana said hotly. “I know all about you, and if you think that I will let my sister entertain any serious thoughts of you, you are deluding yourself.”
“I am not sure what you think you know about me,” the earl replied. “But I have done nothing improper with regard to your sister, and I would thank you to cease your baseless accusations.”
His smile had dropped now, and there was a hardness in his eyes that Diana had not seen before. She felt a little intimidated by him, but she was determined to say what needed to be said.
“I will not let you court her, and I certainly will not allow you to marry her,” Diana said firmly.
He stopped walking, and stood still in the middle of the path. It was a little more secluded now, where they were standing,and Diana looked about her a little anxiously. No one else was around. They were alone amongst the trees.
She felt her heart race as the earl stepped closer, his demeanor now serious. “Tell me, Lady Diana,” he said softly. “What is it that you truly fear?”
Diana swallowed, her breath catching in her throat. “I fear for my sister’s well-being. You have no intention of courting her sincerely, do you?”
The earl took another step closer. “And if I do? What will you do to stop me?”
“I won’t allow it,” she declared, her voice steady despite the fluttering in her chest.
“Is that so?” He leaned in, his breath warm against her ear. “Or is it that you are simply afraid of what may happen if I were to pursue you instead?”
Diana’s heart raced, and she felt the heat of a blush creep up her neck. “How dare you say such a thing! I want nothing to do with you,” she insisted.
He moved even closer, his eyes sparkling with mischief as he observed her reaction. “Perhaps you do not want me to marry your sister,” he whispered, “because the truth of it is that you want me for yourself. Is that the real reason that you protest so much?”
Diana felt hot as he stared at her. How dare he speak to her like this? It was not to be tolerated. Her cheeks burned as she tried to compose herself.
“You are talking nonsense, My Lord,” she said, forcing the words out of her mouth. Something about the way that he was looking at her made her want to turn and run, but her feet remained rooted to the spot. It was as if she could not tear herself away from him.
“I would be lying, Lady Diana, if I said that I did not find you attractive,” the earl said, his voice still low. “But the truth of the matter is that you are too uptight for me. Too precious, too pretentious. You think very highly of yourself, I can tell, and that is not an attractive characteristic in a young lady.”
“How dare you speak to me in that way?” she demanded. “I am shocked that you would say such things to a lady, and one who you hardly know!”
The earl laughed, a rather harsh look in his eyes. “The problem is your character, Lady Diana, don’t you see?”
Her anger flared, and she opened her mouth to retort, but he cut her off with another laugh. “But the fact is that it is far too easy to wind you up. I find it rather entertaining.”
“Entertaining?” she echoed incredulously. “You dare treat my sister’s future as some kind of game?”
“Far from it,” he replied. “I am taking the challenge very seriously indeed.”
Diana could think of nothing to say to him in response. She simply stood and stared at him.
He leaned in even closer, his voice dropping to a whisper that sent shivers down her spine. “I will tell you one thing, though. I will marry your sister. And nothing can stop me. Not even you if you offered yourself instead.”
With a smirk, he stepped back, leaving her breathless and confused, unable to formulate a response. Before she could gather her thoughts, he turned and walked away, clearly intending to catch up with Grace and to exert his charms over her as they stood together at the edge of the lake.
