Chapter Six
WhenMrs. Hopper left, Isabella had a lot to think about.While she didn’t want to imagine that Mr. Claymoore could be anything but an ill-tempered boor, sheknewthat Mrs. Hopper hadn’t lied to her about what happened to Herb. Her emotions when she spoke of the incident was evidence enough.
Restlessand feeling as though the walls were steadily closing in on her, Isabellawent downstairs and decided toacceptMrs. Hopper’s advice and take a walk in the gardens, for it was the only escape that was currently available.
She passed theyew hedge with itsarray of colorful foliage, and although itwas tempting enoughto tarry, she headed for the kitchen gardens. With its mixture of fruit trees, vegetables, and flowers that could be used for herbal remedies, at this time of the year, it was a spectacular sight.Abrilliant display of colors spread out before her,andshe gasped in delight. Shepaused to closeher eyes and exhaled deeply, the rich scents of earth and the various mixturesaround her a heady combination to her senses.
Then, once again, she opened her eyesand walked along the gravel pathway,stoppingwhen she spied a bright red fruit hanging low on one of the tree branches.She bit her lip, but it was just too tempting.She glanced about to make sure no one was lookingthenreached out to pluck the ripe apple. With the item in her grasp, she lifted it to her lips and opened her mouthto takea modest bite. She heard the crisp crunch at the same time her tongue was flooded with a delightful sweetness.
It had been years since Isabella had indulged in such ararefruit. Granted, London was full of fruit sellers eager to hawk their wares, but nothing could compare to a fresh country apple. Her father’s estate had been laden with them, and when she was young, she used to tuck her frock between her legs and climb the trees in order to snag one.She would then happily sit on the branch and munch on it.Her mother had never known about those exploits, thank goodness, or she would have likely had a sound scolding.But then, with her brother at school, she had plenty of time on her own to explorewhenever she had been able to escape her governess.
Isabellahummed a tune as she continuedto meander about the vegetation, stopping to smell a flower or two, or touching their delicatepetals.
After the upset fromthis morning, it truly wasturning out to be a lovely day.
***
Ridge clenched hisjawas he watched Lady Isabellawalkthrough the rows offlowers and herbsin her light blue muslin.With her brilliant red hair glimmering in the sun, it was as if he wasbeholdingthe tempting Eve in the Garden of Eden. Unfortunately,he didn’t feel very much like Adam, but rather the serpent that lurked in the bushes nearby.
But that was the problem, wasn’t it? While he’d tried to tell himself that his outburst that morning had been necessary in reminding the lady of the peril she was in, the truth was,a surge of lust hadswamped him when hepictured herrising out of the sea like Amphitrite.
When she was gone,Mr. Hopper had given him a proper scolding, buthealreadyknewthathe’d beenin thewrong. Itreallywasn’tLady Isabella’sfault that she was stuck in this situation.Granted, she’d married Wistenberry, but she had no idea how far his depravities truly ran. Shehad believedshe was marrying for love.
If nothing else,Ridge had to admit Lady Isabella was takingtheseunusualcircumstances in stride.And he’d be lying if he said that herinitialreaction to everything hadn’t surprised him. As a newly wed spinster, he’d imagined he’d have to deal with her hysterics. With any other lady of theton, he would have had to use the smelling salts several times, but he’d used them once and that was to combat the effects of the ether. She hadn’t turned into a watering pot, and he respected the fact she didn’t have any trouble standing up to him, when grown men were known to shudder at the sight of his eye patch.
While sheprobably wouldn’t appreciate his intrusion on her solitude, Ridge walked out into theclearingto make his presence known.
“Lady Isabella.”
Her head whipped around at his voice,and the serenity that had been on her facehardened, andher knuckles turned white where her hand tightened on theremains of theapplein her grasp. “Mr. Claymoore,”she returned frostily.
Heheld up his hands in mock surrender. “You’re not going to lob that at my head, are you?”
She looked down at the apple and he saw her fingers relax. “I considered it,actually,but then that would just be a waste of a perfectly good fruit.”
His lips twitched,glad that his attempt at humor had been effective,but then he soberedas heslowlywalked toward her, stopping a short distance away.He took a deep breath.“I didn’t come here to causeany moretroublefor you, but toapologizefor earlier. I was…out of line.”
She regarded him steadily, as if trying to decipher whether he was telling the truth. In the end, she inclined her head. “Thank you, Mr. Claymoore.I accept.” She began walking again,and he clasped his hands behind his back and joined her, hoping it would be enough of a deterrentnotto touch her. “I imaginethis is all aratheroddsituation for you as well,” she continued. “As an agent for the Crown, it must be difficult not to chase after Simon on your own, but be forced towaitfor him to come to you.”
“It’s true I’m not used to much inactivity.My last mission was working on a smuggling ship in the guise of One-Eye.”
She paused and turned to him. “Do you truly enjoy that sort of danger every day?”
“If you’re asking if that’s what I intended to do with my life, then the answer is no.” He laughed. “I was a cabin boy on a merchant ship for a time, and while I could have worked my way up the ranks as a sailor, the weeks of inactivity on a stale ocean, waiting for the wind to push us across the water, didn’t appeal to me.”
A delicate furrow appeared between her brows and he wanted to kiss it away.“How did you become an agent?”
RidgeknewLady Isabellawasacquaintedwiththe Duchess of Chiltern, but that didn’t mean shealsoknewabouther brother,TravellAbernathy, and his secretoccupation. So he demurred,“I was approached with the prospect. And accepted.”
Sheappeared to be waitingfor more, but whenhe said nothing, she asked,“That’s it?”
He shrugged. “What else am I supposed to say?”
“I don’t know. I guess something a bit more gallant?”
Ridgelaughed once more and reached out to graspthe low hanging branch of a pear tree.“If you want me to admit that I doallofthis for God and country, then Ihate to disappoint you,butI fear my reasons areratherself-centered. I was looking for something to do,and the opportunity came along.I didn’t become an agent just to be admired or looked upon as some sort ofhero.”
She shook her head.“At least you’re honest,” she murmured. “Which is more than I can say for the majority of men in my acquaintance.”
