“You didn’t come down to eavesdrop?”
A blush rose to her cheeks, making her wish she hadn’t let her hood fall back. But she lied, “Of course not.”
“Would you admit it if you did?”
She gritted her teeth. “I’ll admit I wanted to and thought better of it.”
“Well, if you’re curious, your sisters were delightful. Beautiful twins! You should have mentioned that. London will love them this Season—and you, too, now that you’re home from the West Indies.”
She cringed. “I would appreciate your not mentioning that I was in Scotland.”
He grinned. “Of course. I rather like being your confidant, after all. It’s so—intimate.”
She wasn’t even sure if he was teasing this time, but she got back to the subject of last night’s dinner. “Were my sisters perfect ladies?”
“You mean unlike you? Don’t answer! Gads, what a bloody cad I am. It appears I got in the habit, a little too quickly, of not watching my tongue with you. Yes, perfect young debutantes—mostly. Emily lost her composure when she spoke of you, something about a lack of correspondence on your part, and that you didn’t even say goodbye to them, but I’m sure you’ll patch that up once you speak with her. From your clothes I assume you still haven’t?”
She shook her head, so he continued.
“But Charley was certainly fascinated by the pair. I don’t think he’s ever seen twins before.”
“Did he behave to your satisfaction?”
He rolled his eyes. “No, and I’m beginning to think he never will. I don’t have the heart to make him continue playing the role of a commoner when he so obviously abhorred it, so I’ve given him leave to return to his atrocious finery.”
“You trust Charley to stay out of trouble while you are out of the house?”
“Arlo knows to keep him in line. But they are currently engaged in swordplay on the back lawn, evidently a sport that is still popular on the continent, and surprisingly they looked as if they knew what they were doing!”
“If England weren’t so civilized, you gentlemen would still be wearing swords, too. Pistols are so limited in use, when you spend more time loading them than you do firing them.”
“I suppose that’s why you carried two?”
“And had two more in my saddlebags!”
He chuckled as they continued on, with her directing Snow toward the lake and him following her lead. It felt almost like summer rather than late April, the day was so hot and cloudless, so she hoped it would be cooler there next to the water. When they reached the lake, they stopped the horses and he dismounted. He came around to help her down, but she slid off Snow on her own and left her cloak and jacket hooked on the saddle before she found a spot to sit for a few minutes. Lone trees set far apart dotted the grassy landscape they’d ridden past, just as they did the back lawn at Dawton Manor. But there were quite a few trees surrounding the lake and an abundance of spring flowers.
“Pretty, this time of year,” he commented as he sat next to her.
A little amazed, she said, “I wasn’t sure it would be. I’ve never been here before in spring or summer. Mother was a strong believer in a lady’s staying out of the sun. But on cloudy days in the winter our parents used to bring us here to ice skate, even joined us on the ice. It was an idyllic time in our youth.” When everything was as it should have been and her parents still loved each other.
That thought made her sad, which might have been why Monty’s hand reached toward her cheek. She leapt to her feet immediately and moved away to pick a few flowers. He stood up but didn’t follow her.
“I’ll wager you didn’t avoid the sun in Scotland?”
“You would win.”
“But you’ve come home for a Season in London, haven’t you? Are you prepared for it, after being away from your mother all these years?”
“Probably not.”
“I could give you some lessons.”
She glanced back and was struck again by how handsome he was. His hair wasn’t queued today, was loose about his wide shoulders. She had kept the tie she’d taken out of his hair when they’d kissed in that meadow, a memento of her very first kiss that she was going to keep. He’d slipped out of his jacket after he’d dismounted, and without the cravat, his white shirt opened at the neck, he looked like a country lord, reminding her of the casual way her father dressed when he was at home.
They hadn’t parted ways as she’d thought they would, and his pull was very strong when they were alone like this. And he’d done a good job of distracting her from the sadness he’d caught a glimpse of with that attempted caress.
As for lessons from him, she might enjoy that too much, so she said, “And deny my mother that pleasure? Believe me, she thrives on cracking that whip.”
