As the ladies joked about the commonalities between puppies and babies, Natalie looked on, satisfied with Baby Bear’s success.
And then the gentlemen arrived.
A few were contemptuous of Baby Bear’s tiny proportions. They professed to own great-sized dogs, nearly as large as small horses and other nonsense. Natalie ignored them. Baby Bear had pleasantly livened up the evening and done so without making a single diddle. Meeting her mother’s gaze from across the room, Natalie felt warm inside, for Lady Ravensdale’s expression held an abundance of approval.
An entirely different warmth rushed through her when she caught Garrett Castleton watching her. He lifted one eyebrow and then drifted across the room. In his normal casual manner, he leaned against a nearby sofa. Cradling a glass of brandy, he swirled the warmed liquid absentmindedly, never taking his eyes off her.
“Lord Hawthorne.” Natalie curtseyed in his direction. “Come and make your formal acquaintance of Baby Bear.” Lifting the pup and holding out one paw, she said, “Baby Bear, I’d like to present the Earl of Hawthorne. My lord, may I present Baby Bear, Lord Puppy of Cuteness?”
Garrett made a small bow in lieu of introduction. Lady Natalie’s playful mood charmed him. “Baby Bear looks to havesurvived his swim with no ill effects.” Reaching forward, he let the small dog smell his hand before placing it on the dog’s furry head and kneading the loose skin around its neck. The dog relaxed into Garrett’s touch.
“Oh, he likes you.” And then in a near whisper, “My lord.” Garrett moved his gaze from the dog to this woman. The quality of her voice spun a web of intimacy around the two of them. It evoked emotions he refused to consider.
Sitting beside her this evening had been a revelation. She’d been unguarded and relaxed throughout the meal. And ever so slightly flirtatious. He wanted to know more about her. Heneededto know more about her.
In his business ventures, when uncertain of a proposition, he’d first research all aspects of the transaction.
Perhaps courting Lady Natalie required just such an approach.
“My lady,” he said. “Shall we take this pup outside for a short constitutional?” Glancing toward her mother, he added, “We can stay close to the house—for both of our protection.”
Natalie glowed. It was obvious he’d pleased her by recalling their earlier conversations. He wondered if the other men in her life did not take her seriously? He wondered if any of them had ever actuallylistenedto her.
“Baby Bear would like that very much—as would I.” Grasping a leading string, she set the dog on the carpet and then glanced toward her mother. With her mother’s apparent approval, she then took Garrett’s offered arm, and he led her out an open terrace door.
He appreciated the boundaries set by her family. She deserved to be safeguarded by her father and mother, her brothers. And she ought to be protected once married.
A warm breeze stirred the air. Garrett inhaled deeply. The fresh unspoiled air was one of the greatest arguments for living in the country. He could also smell a hint of Natalie’s subtleperfume. It was difficult to identify the scents it encompassed; it just seemed uniquely her.
She held the leading string with one hand and his arm with the other. Garrett took the string from her. This allowed her to grasp his arm with both hands and lean into him. When Baby Bear began sniffing about suspiciously, Natalie spoke.
“He is shy. He likes to do his business in private.” She gestured to a copse of trees off to the side of the manor. This would lead them farther away from the other guests. These evening walks were becoming a dangerous habit.
Garrett allowed the pup to steer them both.
“He is house-trained already?”
“We’re working on it.” Natalie spoke proudly. “Do you have a dog?”
He had. As a boy, he’d become attached to an unfortunate dog who’d had the audacity to roam onto his father’s estate uninvited.
Upon discovering the animal, his father had drowned it.
“A long time ago,” Garrett answered. “My father did not approve of his bloodline and killed it.” He didn’t mean to be so blunt. Saying the words revived unwanted memories.
Natalie walked, unspeaking, and stopped once they’d reached the trees. Baby Bear was interested in marking several of them one by one. He raised one tiny leg and let out a squirt.
“What did you name him?”
“My dog?” he asked, revisiting that train of thought.
“Yes, your pet.”
Garrett looked off into the distance, across the lawn and at the lake. He wasn’t seeing any of it, though. Instead a memory intruded of a large brown and black mutt. That dog had followed him everywhere! He’d been on the receiving end of unfettered adoration from…“Ben.”
“You named your dog Ben?” she asked with a laugh in her voice.
“Well, at least it was a name!” Garrett looped the leading string around a sturdy branch and then, giving in to impulse, wrapped his arms around her affectionately. “Your poor pet is bound to go through life labelled as the wrong species! And what of when he becomes a wise old dog? He shall forever suffer the indignity of being called Baby!” Garrett took a few steps forward, forcing her to walk backward until she stood pressed against the trunk of a large oak. Releasing her, he raised both his hands and placed them on the bark above her shoulders.
