“I think I will go downstairs and check to see if your trunk has arrived.” He strode across the room to the door.
“But Miles, what about food? Aren’t you hungry, too?”
He glanced back at her. The cotton of her nightgown had turned diaphanous as she stood in front of the fire. He gulped. He had to get out of here before he did something he would surely regret. “I’ll just get something downstairs.” Then he beat a hasty retreat from the room.
Chapter Fifteen
Miles settled ontoa barstool. Without a word, the barkeep slid him a pewter cup of ale and walked away to help another customer. Miles stared down into the pale frothy liquid, wishing it was a glass of brandy. Perhaps they only served one thing? He shrugged and took a large gulp. It was terrible, but it soothed his parched throat. He should just go back to Marbury and leave Susanna to her own devices. She was trouble on several levels. How the hell had he become her babysitter?
He took another long draught and sighed. He knew that he wasn’t going to leave her to travel across the county with the bloody circus. She was a lady and his friend, and he wouldn’t abandon her.
“That stuff is shit.” A hand clapped him on the shoulder. Miles turned and found George Maddox behind him. The man grinned down at him. “We’ve got several excellent bottles of whisky at our table. Come join us, Lord Hawksridge.”
Miles threw down a coin and happily left his ale on the counter as he followed Maddox to a long table in the dining room. It was filled with performers from the show. He didn’t recognize many faces, the only people he knew were Colonel Hadley and his wife.
Maddox pulled out a chair for him and then sat down in one next Mrs. Maddox. “Everyone this is Lord Hawksridge. Lady Ashby’s…what exactly are you?”
“Her bodyguard,” someone called out.
“No,” a second voice called out. “He’s her husband.”
“No, he’s not.” A third voice. Did everyone have an opinion? “She ain’t married.”
“A friend,” Miles replied. Then he turned to the table at large. “It’s nice to meet you all.”
Maddox poured him two fingers of whisky and handed it to him. Miles tipped his glass up and drained it in one gulp. The table erupted in applause and Maddox poured him another healthy dose.
“Lord Hawksridge what are you doing here? Come to catch the show?” Maddox asked.
“Come to fetch her home. Her friends are worried.” He frowned into his glass.
A blond man from across the table chuckled. “And how’s that going?”
Miles didn’t bother to answer, just drained his glass. Conversation flowed around him and his glass never stayed empty. Around the table were a mix of men and women, the camaraderie was potent, the storytelling and teasing ribald. Susanna would be put out to know she missed out on the fun. But the dining room of a posting inn was no place for an earl’s daughter.
The whisky quieted his whirling thoughts and a plate of roast beef and potatoes had been set in front of him at one point in the evening. The food tasted excellent and he conversed with Colonel Hadley about a horse he was considering purchasing while he ate. As evening wore on, Mrs. Hadley lay her head against her husband’s shoulder and yawned.
The colonel turned his head and placed a kiss on her hair. “Ready for bed, darling?”
She nodded. “I’m afraid so. This baby is draining the life from me.”
Mrs. Maddox leaned over and patted her arm. “That’s to be expected dear. Get some sleep. We leave at dawn tomorrow.”
“Good night, everyone,” Hadley said to the table at large as he gathered his wife close.
Miles nodded. “Good night, Colonel, Mrs. Hadley.”
Several of the others seem to take the cue and got up to head upstairs. Miles once again brooded into his glass. Susanna’s lithe form naked behind that screen was branded in his mind. Her gentle curves outlined by the firelight behind her was beyond tempting. Maybe he should sleep in the barn with the servants. Miles snorted. Damn it, he had paid for the room, he was going to sleep in it, even if meant sleeping on the floor. He just needed to wait until he was certain she would be asleep.
“Another pour, Lord Hawksridge?” Mr. Maddox asked.
Miles nodded. “Thanks. Where does your tour take you this month?”
“Next is Salisbury, Dorchester, then from Weymouth Bay we will come back up to Brighton by boat and perform for the king on the twenty-fourth.”
“And what acts do you bring on tour? I can’t imagine that the full scope of your show can be taken on the road,” Miles asked.
“We bring a pared-down version to be sure,” Mrs. Maddox said. “The main attraction is the riding, so to keep it lighthearted, we cut out the Battle of Waterloo. Then our acrobats Giorgio and Julia perform on the tightrope.” She gestured to the blond man across the table and the petite woman next to him. They were in conversation with others but paused to smile over at them. “They are a brother and sister act from Budapest. We scooped them up last year while travelling the continent.”
