“Wait till you see Ardraigh Hall’s,” Leith told her, shutting the door. “The wilderness there is remote, but the park should suit you and the children.”
“Wilderness?”
“The acreage between the formal gardens and the deer park. I’ll show you myself.”
“So, you’re coming with us?” she asked, nearly holding her breath till he answered.
“Aye,” he said.
Their return to Ardraigh Hall was exactly in reverse—Nurse riding with the baggage in a lead coach while Juliet and Leith accompanied the children in the rear. This time, however, Cole sat upon his father’s lap while Bella sat on hers, safe from the coach’s swaying and dipping. Juliet felt a bit anxious as the spring wind whipped the conveyance, threatening to topple them. Closing her eyes, she sent a prayer heavenward for safety, then gave thanks it was only a few miles more.
“Are you well?” Leith asked, concern tightening his features.
“I am now.” She smiled at him and braced herself as another gust of wind shoved them. The brazier at her feet had never been more welcome. Would she ever adjust to Scotland’s weather? At his continued regard of her, she added, “I was just remembering my mother, who died on a windy winter’s day.”
He held her eyes for a second longer, and she wondered his thoughts. Would small revelations like these build some sort of bridge between them? Soon Father would leave. Loveday also. Juliet despaired of being alone with this man unless she knew him better.
When Bella held out her arms to her father, he raised his brow, but he took her from Juliet and passed her Cole, who held tight to his hobby horse. Bella locked her arms about Leith, standing in his lap and kissing him with enough vigor to dislodge his cocked hat.
“Who’s been teaching them such tricks?” he half growled at Juliet.
“By tricks, if you mean a show of affection, then I am guilty,” she said, retrieving the hat.
“I even caught them kissing the cat.”
“Have you never kissed a cat?” She caught the barest glimmer of a smile in his eyes as she said, “Then your education is quite lacking.”
“Kitty?” Bella asked, looking about.
“Kitty is coming with Aunt Loveday in a special carrier,” Juliet told her. “Hobbes would be meowing quite loudly by now if he were here.”
“Da?” Bella said, bringing his hand to the leather shutter to raise it so she could see out.
He obliged, looking at the windswept landscape pulsating with new life. Juliet did the same, her eyes drawn to the twin towers that were let to the Romany. Smoke spiraled upward, hazing the green fields about them.
She thought of Havilah. Did he?
Rather, did he think of her often?
“I’m excited for Father to join us,” she said. Loveday had decided to stay in the city on account of Niall. Perhaps Juliet’s talk with her about him had done some good. “Will your brothers and Lyrica be joining us at Ardraigh Hall?”
He cleared his throat. “All three estates border each other, so we often go back and forth.”
“Are we there yet?” Bella chirped as she began kicking her legs against the seat in a flurry of quilted petticoats. Cole began squirming beside Juliet, clearly done with riding, so she dug in her pocket for some marzipan fruit Cook had made.
Raising his cane to tap on the ceiling, Leith instructed the coachman to use the west entrance. “You’ll get a better view of the park and gardens that way,” he said to Juliet.
“Go over the bridge?” Cole asked, chewing on the marzipan.
“Not today,” Leith answered as they left the main road for the back of Buchanan land.
Raising the window shade higher, Juliet took in the rolling landscape as her mind stretched beyond the James River to make room for her new view. An Eden-like park soon to be awash with bluebells bordered the house on two sides. Black swans floated on a vast lake that rippled in the wind. From the back, the house looked more castle on the rise, and she felt she’d stepped into a fairy tale.
“Home, Da?” Bella asked, looking back at Leith as he held her up to the window.
“Aye, home,” he answered. “And glad of it.”
Ardraigh Hall seemed more home to Juliet too with Royal Vale’s servants about her. She embraced them, realizing Hosea had grown taller and Rilla more lean while the others seemed unchanged—all but Sage, their former coachman, whose remaining hair was now snow white. All were anxious to share their experiences aboard ship.
