“Get your bonnet; we shall take a walk. This house is too small for your vile humors. We shall exercise them from you.”
“I am not a horse, Prue.”
“More of a nag I would say.”
Evie lobbed her toast crust at her sister. Prue caught it with ease and smirked, then popped it into her mouth and made a humming sound. “Father, we are going walking,” she then said rising.
“Lovely day for it,” he said not even glancing out the window. “Have fun.”
The Spencer sisters donned their bonnets, and both took a light shawl, as the weather was not exactly cold, but there was a hint of a breeze, and headed outside.
Arm in arm, they began to wander.
“Are you all right, Evie? We both fell asleep so fast, I did not have a chance to thoroughly discuss exactly what happened with Lord Cavendish?”
“I am well. The man is a nasty individual who tried to scare me, but didn’t succeed,” she lied. In fact, he had succeeded. She’d been terrified, and then Anthony had arrived, and she’d known relief so fierce it had nearly dropped her to her knees right alongside the moaning Lord Cavendish.
“Do you remember when we had that maid, Daphne?” Evie asked Prue.
“Tall, and had a tale for every situation?”
“That’s the one. She taught us that move with our knees if we wanted to ward off a man’s unwanted attentions,” Evie said.
“You didn’t?” Prue slapped her hand to her mouth.
“I did on Lord Cavendish, and it works,” Evie said feeling a great deal better than she had moments ago. Going for a walk was an excellent idea.
“I’m glad you are not to wed him.”
“Me being fake engaged to Lord Hamilton does not solve a great deal, and yet I did not want to wed Cavendish, so at least in that I am relieved.”
“And last night I was suddenly a great deal more popular than I was the night before,” Prue said. “And Mr. Landon is to call on me later today. We are going driving and stopping to see the exhibition in the park. Several aspiring artists will have set up their easels and will have works on display. Christian is quite taken with art, Evie.”
“Christian, is it?”
“That is his name.”
“Very well, I shall come with you,” Evie added.
“I thought to take—”
“I shall come,” she said firmly. “I want to get to know him, if as I suspect you like him very much?”
“I do,” Prue said, and Evie could hear the excitement in her voice. “Very much.”
“Well then. I’m coming with you.”
“You won’t question him thoroughly over everything will you?”
“Of course not.”
“You’ve got your fingers crossed, haven’t you?” Prue said.
“No, and I promise I will sit in the carriage’s corner gazing out the window, saying nothing.”
Prue snorted her disbelief.
They walked, and Evie’s thoughts went to Anthony. She and society believed him a reckless man with dangerous habits, but she now knew there was so much more to him. He could tease and laugh but also be gentle. Then there was the man who had found her last night and saved her. He’d looked savage, and then he’d chased her fears away when his big arms had closed around her.
