“Uh…it does?”
“Yes. Do you not see it?”
Letitia shook her head. “I must be quite scatter-brained today for I cannot grasp his point at all. I thought I had covered everything necessary to educate the reader in those scenes.”
“Do you have that particular scene, the one with Lady Clarinda, there in your pages?”
“I do. Wait just a moment…” Letitia rustled through her manuscript, easily locating the section in question. “Here.” She stood and walked to Harriet, handing her the pages.
“And you don’t mind if I…”
“Please do.”
Fifteen minutes later, during which time Letitia felt as if she’d lived several lifetimes, Harriet raised her head. “Oh my goodness.” She fanned herself with one hand. “This is quite…exhilarating, I will confess.”
“So what on earth is Lesley talking about, Harry?” Letitia spread her hands wide. “I simply don’t understand.
“Well, as far as I can tell, he is asking for the one thing that isn’t in this scene. Or any of the others as near as I can make out from his letter.”
“And what on earth is that?”
Harriet squared her shoulders and looked Letitia in the eye. “You need to write from experience, Letitia. There is no sense of personal involvement. Your descriptions are certainly erotic in nature, but they are in the abstract.”
Letitia sank down on the front of her desk, her mind whirling. “So, bluntly, you’re telling me he thinks I should go and fuck someone to be able to properly write about it?”
Harriet blushed, but bravely held her ground. “Basically, yes.”
Letitia closed her eyes. “Ohbollocks.”
“Quite.”
*~~*~~*
“Look.” Edmund slowed his horse and pointed across the field to where a couple of deer grazed at the edge of the forest. “I suppose I should be hunting them, but one can’t help but admire their beauty.”
James grinned, stopping his mount next to Edmund’s. “I agree. And yet venison still gets my appetite aroused. An interesting conundrum.”
Both men watched for a few moments, enjoying the chance to simply breathe in the country air. It wasn’t an ingrained habit, but every now and again James would ride over to see if Edmund might like to join him, or vice versa. They were well-matched; both liked to read, had ideas that were similar in some areas and different in others—which made for a lively conversation—and respected each other’s honesty.
It was, James believed, a desirable and appreciative friendship that showed no signs of diminishing, even after Edmund’s new fatherhood experiences, and James’s frequent absences in London.
The deer vanished, and the two men resumed their ride, walking their horses down the lanes until they reached open fields where they could enjoy a hearty gallop. Which was exactly what they did this particular morning, ignoring the clouds that threatened rain later in the day.
Exhilarated, they matched each other’s pace as they rode toward the edge of the field, and finally drew to a halt, allowing the horses to catch their breath.
“You’ve an excellent horse, there, Edmund,” approved James. “I saw one not unlike him at Tattersall’s a couple of months ago.”
“Marchwood’s breakdowns.” Edmund patted his horse’s neck. “This might be the one. I asked Richard to look out for a decent mount, since he’s there in town. He let me know this fellow would be available, and that he might be a good sire for our mares.”
“I agree.” James studied the horse’s points. “Good conformation, and Marchwood was known for his eye when it came to his stud.” He glanced at Edmund. “Forgive me, but he must have come at quite a hefty price…” He hated to ask, but he was as aware of the Ridlington financial situation as anyone. In fact, he’d quietly offered help in the way of a loan, knowing it was the right thing to do.
Edmund and Rosaline had thanked him profusely, but told him his friendship was far more valuable to them than money. And the subject had been closed. James understood…he would have done exactly the same thing himself.
But this horse…he estimated at least five hundred guineas.
Edmund, however, shook his head. “That was my thought, as well. But Richard worked some sort of miracle and managed to purchase him for only a monkey.”
“That’s amazing.”
