Those beautiful eyes continued to stare at him for a moment. Then a frown appeared, followed by a brief averted gaze and a chewed bottom lip. “Mr. Northcott, are you saying you went all the way to London just to seeme?”
Julian winced inwardly at the incredulity in her voice. Given how little time they’d previously spent together, he supposed his admission did sound a little outlandish. “Yes, but you’d already gone by the time I got there.” He cleared his throat. “The truth is, Miss Fairfax, I’ve thought about you often since our brief encounter, though not once did I think I’d actually see you again. Then Josiah, my brother, arrived from London and brought a copy of theHeraldwith him. That’s how I learned about what had occurred at the church and I just… I just felt compelled to see you to offer my assistance should it ever be required. Your neighbor kindly directed me to your solicitor, who told me you were traveling abroad and could not be contacted. I had a feeling there was more to it than that, but I also understood he was protecting your privacy. So, I left my card with him and returned to Highfield, none the wiser.” He laughed softly and shook his head. “Seeing you here is the answer to a question I’d deemed unanswerable. I can still hardly grasp the reality of it.” He gestured with his hand. “But, if all this is in any way discomforting, please say so. The last thing I want is to cause you any additional anguish. You’re not obliged to remain here, and you certainly don’t have to apologize for anything. You’ve done nothing wrong. Nothing at all. If you’d prefer to go home right away, I’ll arrange for someone to escort you.”
She appeared to ponder his words, then, “All that way, just to see me,” she repeated, so quietly he barely heard it.
“Yes.”
A soft sigh escaped her. “That was so incredibly kind of you, Mr. Northcott. I’m very grateful. And no, you have not caused me any additional anguish. Quite the contrary, in fact. I have often thought of you as well, and never believed I’d see you again, either. That’s why seeing you in the gallery today was such a shock. The odds against it must be…”
Julian arched a brow. “Incalculable?”
She smiled. “Unfathomable.”
“Dare I suggest, then, that it was somehow fated? And that being so, might we possibly spend some time together whilst I’m here?”
Her expression sobered. “That must surely depend on certain circumstances, sir.”
“Such as?”
She parted with a soft sigh. “Well, since it appears you know more about me than I know about you, may I ask you some questions?”
“Of course. Anything.”
“You mentioned Highfield earlier. Where, or what, is that?”
“It is my home,” he replied. “Highfield Hall, in Yorkshire.”
“Yorkshire, yes, that’s what I’d understood when we last met.” A pensive frown appeared. “Then, why are you here? What is your connection to Myddleton House?”
“I’m a nephew of the earl. My father is his youngest brother.”
“The earl who lives here?” Eyes widening, Annabelle pressed a hand to the base of her throat. “Lord Hutton?Thatearl?”
Julian barely managed to hide his amusement. “Yes,thatearl.”
“So, Lady Hutton is your aunt.”
“She is indeed. Northcott is our family name.”
“I didn’t know that, or I would probably have made the connection.” She shook her head. “And I cannot help but wonder why the nephew of an earl would show any interest in someone like…”
“In someone like you?” Julian tutted. “Is that what you were about to say, Miss Fairfax? I do hope not.”
“Actually, it was, though I was not about to belittle myself.” Her chin lifted. “I am neither without education nor means, sir, but our social standing is, you must agree, clearly disparate. I am a physician’s daughter, whereas you are—”
“An untitled gentleman who has been bewitched by a physician’s daughter?”
That brought a touch of color to her cheeks. “Bewitched?”
“Totally.”
“Impossible.” She looked at him askance. “You hardly know me.”
“Which clearly supports my claim of bewitchment.” He shrugged. “What other explanation could there be, other than you have somehow cast a spell on me?”
Annabelle Fairfax’s subsequent laughter and the accompanying sparkle in her eyes forged a moment, Julian knew, that would be forever indelible on his memory. In the next moment, however, a concern that had lingered in the back of his mind this entire time pushed itself forward. “I have some questions foryou, Miss Fairfax, if I may.”
“Yes, of course.”
