Like a person possessed, her mouth opened, the words tumbling out. “Kiss me.”
The duke turned, his gaze locking with hers. “I cannot.”
Sleep did not find her easily when Richard extinguished the lights. She tossed and turned, trying to decipher why he had refused her request. Anger and disappointment took turns consuming her, mixed with another feeling she failed to identify.
Her heart hurt with the certainty that he did not want her. He had only been interested in discovering her plan, and now...she was under his care and protection. When they reached Leeds, he would send her back to London without another thought. When had she begun to care for him?
SCANDALOUS ENDEAVORS
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
“Are you notthe least bit curious why I need to get home?” Richard looked at her with one dark brow raised.
Amelia glanced away without so much as shaking her head. Truth be told, she would love to know why he insisted on dragging her across England, but not so badly that she would be willing to speak to him. Maybe she was being a tad childish. She did not want to marry him, so why should she care if he kissed her or not?Because he makes my body feel alive, I miss him when he leaves me alone, and my composure shatters easily in his presence.She blinked her eyes and took a deep breath as she pushed the thoughts away.
“Yes, I suppose I would like to know what the emergency is.” She pulled Ruby’s reins, bringing the horse to a slow gait. He slowed his mount as well before he regarded her. His eyes seemed darker now, and a look of worry overtook his features, a deep frown creasing his handsome face.
“There has been an accident at my shipyard. One of the ships got destroyed and several of my workers are injured. Two died.” He turned his attention back to the road.
“I...my condolences.” She should have known he would not drag her off without good cause. She had been acting the perfect brat with no regard for him. “Your Grace, Richard, I am truly sorry for being so resistant and making things harder on you. But I must ask why we are traveling by horse when you own a shipyard? Would you not arrive faster by ship or rail?” She smiled with sincerity and hoped her question did not cause him undue stress.
“Our horses move faster and can travel straighter. As for ships, I build them, I do not sail them.” He pushed Thunder back into a fast gallop.
Nudging Ruby with her heels, she urged the horse to catch up as she leaned down close to its neck. The sound of hoof beats pounded the road and filled the air around them as they raced across the terrain. When she slowed her horse to a walk, he followed suit, and the rhythm of hammering hooves faded, replaced with the sound of their laughter.
The baritone of his deep chuckle invaded her senses, causing her spirits to soar. She focused on him, a genuine look of delight upon her face. “I won.”
“I let you win.” His teasing voice caused a fresh laugh to bubble up in her.
“Sounds like you are challenging me to another race. You say when, and once I win, you must reward me.” She could not hold back her whimsical laughter when one of his dark brows shot up quizzically.
“My lady, I find you quite perplexing. You are a puzzle I intend to solve.”
She giggled and moved her focus elsewhere.
Dark smoke billowed across the horizon, a thick haze stomping out the sun’s rays. She pointed into the distance. “Take a gander, there near the horizon. What do you suppose it is?”
He turned his head in the direction she indicated. “Looks like a fire.”
“What shall we do? It is in our path. What if we cannot continue past it? What if someone is hurt? It may--”
“There is but one way to know. We must continue on. If it presents a danger to us, we will change our course.” He grinned at her reassuringly. “More likely than not, it is a structure burning, and you are correct, people may need our help.”
She nodded in agreement before racing down the dirt road next to him. Curiosity drove her as she listened to the melodic sound of horseshoes beating the hard dirt road beneath them. Her eyes stayed focused on the black swirling smoke that beckoned for her to come nearer as her pulse hammered in her veins. After what seemed like hours, the full situation unveiled itself when a burning cottage came into view.
She swallowed past the lump in her throat. A frantic woman clad in a plain dress and covered in soot screamed from the side yard of the inferno. Her unbound hair hung down her back with pieces sticking up all over her head. Behind her, flames leaped into the air, bursting through the roof in an eerie orange and amber dance.
“Me son is still inside! Oh lord, please help my baby,” the woman bellowed as she slid to the ground, burying her blackened face against the lush green grass.
Her cries vibrated through Amelia, propelling her into action. She slid down from Ruby’s saddle and went to the woman’s side, resting a comforting hand on her shoulder. The grass felt cool beneath her skirts while the air burned her face. She glanced back at the horses. Richard had already dismounted. She could not see him anywhere. Frantically, she continued searching, trying desperately to locate him and focus through the woman’s blood-curdling screams. Panic gripped her heart when she saw him disappearing into the hellish cottage. She pushed it away, turning her focus to the disheveled woman.
“Come away from the fire, miss. The duke has gone in to rescue your son. It will do no good to have you out here getting hurt,” Amelia cajoled the woman as she tried to guide the distraught mother up from the ground.
The woman made no effort to move. “My baby, oh my precious son.”
Amelia wrapped her arms around the woman and tugged upward. “You must trust his grace; he’ll save your baby. Now be strong for your son and stand up.”
With a bit more tugging, the woman rose and allowed Amelia to guide her away from the cottage. Once they reached a safer location near the meadow’s edge, Amelia allowed the soot-covered woman to collapse back onto the ground. Again she positioned herself next to the woman, placing an arm about her shaking shoulders. Amelia’s attention left the woman as her stare riveted on the blazing scene. The woman’s cries faded into the background as Amelia’s thoughts focused on Richard.
