“Felicity?” There was a gentle yet stern insistence in his voice. He was obviously unwilling to let the subject go.
“I suppose because my sisters are all so stunning, both in beauty and personality. I am the shy mouse. Always have been.” His slightest squeeze of her gloved hand encouraged her to continue. She shrugged again. “My hair is more of a soft brown than their shimmering gold, and my figure is a great deal more generous.” She didn’t like this line of conversation, but supposed it was necessary to make him understand. “I do not feel sorry for myself, though. I am simply being honest.” She huffed a wry laugh. “And others have reinforced my opinion over the years. Playmates sometimes taunted me for being the timid one until my sisters pummeled them. Modistes clucked their tongues about seams that stretched too quickly. And after I unwillingly stumbled into Society, behind my back, gentlemen mocked me as the cull of the litter—until they had too much drink, and then they mocked me to my face.” She fortified herself with a deep breath. “The kitchen is my safe space. My world. There, I am accepted and enjoy creating scrumptious treats to make people happy.”
She dared to glance at him, hoping she hadn’t shared too much. The look he gave her melted her heart. His hazel eyes had turned more green than brown, and they flashed with a fire she didn’t understand.
“I wish I had been there to defend you from every fool who ever caused you pain.”
His protectiveness warmed through her like a delicious sip of hot chocolate. “Everyone has pain,” she said, “and as you can see, I survived quite well. I have always been blessed with a loving family. Many are not so fortunate.”
He shifted against her with a heavy sigh that escaped him as a low growl. “You are stunning, my lady. Perhaps even more so because you do not see it for yourself. You have the soulful eyes of a delicate,watchful creature of the woods, their brilliant sapphire deep and dark, filled with mystery. Your silken curls shimmer like old gold that has been guarded from the light of day by those who know how to treasure it. And your figure…” His words trailed off, and he rumbled with an almost sensuous groan. “It would not be fitting for me to tell you all that I wish to say about your luscious figure.”
“Oh my.” She wished she had brought her fan. She was suddenly quite warm. “Perhaps we should speak of something else?”
“Indeed, we should.” He chuckled. “For both our sakes.” He patted her hand again. “What shall we talk about? Ask me anything you wish to know.” He glanced down at her with a tensed expression. “I know there is much about me and my situation that is most concerning, not only to you but to your brother.”
While she hated to pry or cause him unease, shewascurious, but didn’t exactly know how to go about asking. “Were you close to your uncle?”
“As a child, yes.” Drake stared off into the distance, his eyes narrowing. “As an adult saddled with the results of his selfish choices, I wish I had never met the man.”
The angry vehemence in his tone made her wish she hadn’t inquired. “You have done your best, I am sure.”
“The merchants in this village would tell you that my best has not been good enough.” He rolled his shoulders as if resettling the weight of his problems to a more bearable position. “The estate fell short of satisfying the entirety of the legal debts, and, fool that I was, I used everything I had to attempt to settle the rest, thereby ruining myself in the process. All that remains is the land I inherited from my father, upon which sits Wakefield Manor.”
“Legal debts?” she repeated, feeling slightly confused. “Were their illegal debts as well?”
His strong jaw flexed as though he clenched his teeth. “Yes, my lady. Gambling debts with unscrupulous moneylenders. Moneylenderswho would just as readily take what they are owed in blood if coin is not available.”
Fear for him filled her. “Are you in danger?” He took longer to answer than she liked. “Drake—are you in danger? Will these moneylenders come for you since your uncle is dead?”
He gave her a smile that seemed a bit too tight and forced. “I am quite safe, my lady. Never fear.” He pulled in a deep breath and let it ease out. “What else would you like to know?”
“You were happier before you became an earl, weren’t you?” She had noted the way his tone had changed when he spoke about inheriting his father’s land. Pride was there, along with the determination to protect it.
“I was content, and life was simpler.”
“Simpler is often best,” she said, “like cress-and-butter sandwiches. Remember?”
“Indeed.” He nodded at an approaching couple who seemed to eye them in disbelief. “They appear to be shocked you deigned to be seen with me. We shall be the gossip of the village.”
She couldn’t help but laugh. “They could be shocked because you deigned to be seen withme.”
He grinned. “Perhaps we twocullsare a proper match after all.”
“Thetonare harsh critics, and dislike to be proven wrong.” She idly twirled her parasol on her shoulder, holding her chin higher as another couple ogled them. “I am sure they are surprised to see me promenading with a gentleman. Usually, when my sisters drag me out of the kitchens and force me to take some fresh air, I enjoy the green with them.”
“You do not like fresh air?” he teased.
“Not when it comes with the expectations of others.” She had another question that she simply had to ask. “Have you enjoyed the green with many other ladies?”
Behind them, Merry was suddenly stricken with a coughing spell,making them pause.
“Are you unwell?” Felicity asked her sister, knowing full well that Merry, with her keen sense of hearing, had overheard her question about Drake’s promenade partners.
“I believe I swallowed a bug,” Merry said with unconvincing innocence. “I am quite over it now, though. I was able to rid myself of the beastly thing.”
“Thank goodness for that.” Felicity gave her a pointed look that she knew Merry would understand. When she turned back to Drake, she caught his grin before he could hide it. “What?”
“Are you jealous, my lady?”
