“This is going to be so much fun!”Penelope cried, and Jenny stifled her groan.He was too big beside her, too warm.He smelled of leather and winter and peppermint, three delicious scents that were determined to overset her, and the bells on the horses’ harnesses was a cheery warning.Here lies danger.
It was with great relief that she realized they weren’t driving down to the edge of the great lake that abutted Pawlfrey House, but instead took off on a narrow road into the woods, the smooth ride exhilarating.She didn’t think she’d ever been in a horse-drawn sleigh before, and the sensation was almost like that of flying.She suspected Brat was an excellent whip—he handled the horses smoothly, with no jerks, stops, or starts, and in no time at all, they had reached a clearing with a small pond, this one clearly frozen.
No sooner had he stopped the sleigh than she tried to climb down, but the hem of her dress caught on something, and she was trapped.“Are you in a particular hurry?”Brat murmured, releasing her full skirt from the spot that had trapped her.
“She’s excited about skating, stoopid,” Hortensia announced, scrambling out of the back of the sleigh with more enthusiasm than grace, followed by an equally energetic Penelope.“You’ll show her what to do, won’t you, Brat?”
“I have every intention of teaching Mrs.Lancaster any number of things.”
She was getting to hate the sound of “Mrs.”In his drawling tone.He put a peculiar emphasis on it, as if her widowed state meant something to him, and she was afraid she knew what that was.She needed to make it clear that she had no interest in dalliance, no matter how attractive he was.
She almost tripped when she landed on the ground, but somehow Brat had gotten around the sleigh to be there to catch her, and his hands were solid and secure on her arms.She wanted to moan.The sooner this benighted afternoon was over, the better she’d be.She’d cry off from dinner as well—absence would hardly make the heart grow fonder in Brat’s case.In fact, his heart had nothing to do with it—he was toying with her out of sheer mischief, and she resented it.Unfortunately, she couldn’t show it.
The skates were new and shiny, all metal with leather straps, and they looked very dangerous.The twins seemed to have no trouble putting them on, and she picked up the extra pair with extreme caution, staring at them unhappily.
“I think I’ll just watch,” she said, setting them down in the snow.
“I think you’ll skate,” Brat said, gliding up to her.He’d already put his own skates on while she’d been concentrating on the twins, and he moved on the ice as if he had wings.Before she realized what he’d intended, he’d skated over to her and knelt in the cold, wet snow.His hand on her ankle was such a shock she tried to yank it away, but he held tight.
“I’m merely going to fasten your skates,” he said softly.“Not molest you.There’s too big an audience for that.”
“I don’t want…” But the one skate was already on, firmly fastened, and he’d picked up her other ankle, holding it firmly.
“Don’t be such a spoilsport, Jenny!”Horry called out as she set out across the pond.“You’ll love it.”
“Jenny?”he echoed, an interested expression on his face.“They call you by your given name.”
“Just when their parents aren’t around.”
“Then I’ll call you Jenny too.It suits you.”Before she could protest, he pulled her to her feet, balanced on the thin blades, and she felt herself begin to slip.
“I can’t…” she began, but he’d drawn her out onto the ice, one arm around her waist, holding her up.
It was a bizarre feeling, being so close to a strong, male body.He was taller than Josiah, and leaner, so there was no reason she should suddenly be filled with longing for everything she had lost.He wasn’t her husband.
“You’re doing it, Jenny!”Penelope shouted out excitedly as she made a little loop on the ice.“Isn’t it wonderful?”
Her feet were barely touching the ice.She was being supported by Brat’s strong arm and she wanted to cry.
“Bend your knees a little,” he said in her ear as he moved her over the ice.“It’ll help you keep your balance.”
She tried, ignoring the fact that no gentleman should ever mention the word “knees” in a lady’s presence, and felt a modicum of stability as she moved.And then, without warning, he released her, holding only her hand as she continued to glide across the surface.
Everything went well for a good minute.And then she started to wobble, and she panicked, trying to get the skates under her again, and she went down on her backside, sliding across the ice straight in Brat’s direction.
He didn’t move out of the way.He watched her come, an enigmatic expression on his face, and she crashed into his long legs, sending him tumbling onto the ice beside her.
She couldn’t help it, she laughed.And then he laughed, stretching out on the ice, and the twins skated over, staring down at them with curious expressions on their faces.
“Are you two hurt?”Horry asked worriedly.
Brat de Malheur managed to pull himself up.“Only our dignity.”
“Jenny doesn’t have any dignity,” Penelope said.“At least, not when our parents aren’t around.”
He looked at her as she struggled to sit up.“No dignity?How encouraging.”And he rose to his feet, not slipping at all, and reached out a hand to her.
She shook her head.“I believe I’ll crawl to solid ground.”
