“I’m unsure why everyone seeks to praise him so readily. He could make this entire stay much easier if he just gave his blessing. Then we could all relax. Doesn’t he think of poor Mary, fretting about whether she will be able to marry again?”
“I’m sure he has plenty to think about, things that we cannot fathom. Dukes are different from us, Charlotte. They have estates to manage, responsibilities to bear, honor to maintain.”
“Even so, I believe he could be kinder to Mary.”
“Perhaps you should say something to him then.” Agatha chuckled at the notion. “My dear, look around us. It is a beautiful day, and we are on a beautiful estate. Everything will work out for the best. I know I’m not as sharp as I used to be, but you can’t deny my wisdom.”
“Of course, Grandmother. I shall keep what you say in mind. Although we are not here for me. We are here for Mary. The point of this visit is to ensure that she gets married. Anything else is entirely secondary.”
Charlotte felt that she had to say this in order to prevent Agatha from interfering. Charlotte’s heart sank at the thought ofAgatha hinting at marriage to the Duke after everything that had transpired. It would simply be asking for trouble.
“Do you mind if we rest at that bench for a while? My knees are beginning to ache. Don’t get old if you can help it, Charlotte.”
Charlotte led Agatha to a small bench. They settled on it. Agatha sighed deeply. Charlotte opened her notebook and began making notes of the various flowers. She made rough sketches first and then added some descriptive notes. Agatha watched intently.
“You remind me so much of them. It’s said that parents live on through their children, and I’m glad that yours live on through you. It’s such a shame they are not here to see you now.” Agatha’s words became heavy with tiredness. She leaned back and closed her eyes.
“I think about them often,” Charlotte said. “Everything I am, everything I do, is because of them. And I can’t even thank them for it.” She paused for a moment and looked up toward the sky. “Sometimes I even wish I had said something back then, that I had been able to dissuade them from going on that expedition. Things would be different if they were here. They could help us understand. They could?—”
She paused when she heard Agatha snoring. The woman’s eyes were closed, and she breathed deeply. Charlotte couldn’t help but smile. She tilted Agatha’s hat slightly to protect her face from the sun.
Charlotte remained on the bench for a while, continuing her research. She was familiar with most of the plants as they had been gathered from the English countryside, but she was surprised by the sight of more exotic specimens. Some of these she had only read about in books.
It seemed that, as well as collecting a vast collection of books in his library, the Duke had also amassed plants in his gardens. Did he appreciate nature, or had someone else curated this collection of plants?
Charlotte eventually grew tired of sitting. Agatha was sleeping soundly, and the gardens seemed quite safe. The path meandered around and split off in various directions, inviting exploration.
“I’ll be back shortly,” she whispered to Agatha. The woman did not stir.
With her notebook in hand, Charlotte walked along the path, pausing whenever she saw something that caught her interest. There were plants of all different colors and scents. Insects buzzed around, and bees crawled along flowers, their bodies dusted with pollen.
Charlotte stretched out her finger and allowed a caterpillar to crawl across it. She giggled at the tickling sensation and then watched as the caterpillar moved along a leaf. Life must have been so easy for the caterpillar, she thought. It did not need to worry about etiquette or scandal, and certainly did not have to concern itself with bothersome dukes.
The only saving grace was that Nathaniel made it clear he did not want to speak about the kiss. She hoped this meant that he was putting it out of his mind and would not even use it as a black mark against the family.
He had asked her to keep her distance, and she was more than happy to keep to the terms of that arrangement. If she did this, she hoped that he would come to realize she had no desire to marry him at all.
She shuddered at the thought and moved on, walking beneath shadows, pinching leathery leaves, feeling a sense of contentment that had been absent so far.
But then she heard a loud rustling sound. She turned, trying to gauge the origin of the noise. At first, she thought it might have been a strong wind, but there was no accompanying gale. Then, she saw a bush tremble.
“Oh!” she gasped when a dark shadow emerged from the bush. It was a furry blur, all limbs and jaws and claws. Loud, raw barks shattered the air as a huge dog came barreling toward her, saliva dripping from its mouth, its jagged white teeth visible with a pink tongue lolling out.
It looked hungry, and it was coming straight for her.
Charlotte didn’t have any time to react other than to brace herself for the impact. She clutched her notebook close to her chest, seeking to protect this above everything else. Then, sheclamped her eyes shut and turned her body, fearing that she would soon feel savage teeth sinking through her flesh.
Chapter Eleven
Nathaniel walked through the garden. Brutus bounded ahead of him, his fur sleek in the sun. The day was temperate and calm. He breathed deeply, feeling relaxed with every breath. The gardens always had this effect on him. There were a few moments when he stopped to cup a flower, leaning toward it. He watched a bee dance in the air.
Brutus was distracted by a butterfly. He reared back on his hind legs and swiped at it with his paw, but the butterfly was too nimble. It fluttered away at an angle. Nathaniel smirked, for it was clear the butterfly was teasing Brutus.
It would rush in close to the dog, and then quickly dart away. Brutus’ limbs were too cumbersome to catch the butterfly. The winged creature was beautiful, but it tormented the dog.
It brought a certain guest to mind, although Nathaniel was trying to think of Charlotte as little as possible. It frustrated himthat even on a quiet walk such as this, she could still find a way to creep into his mind.
The woman was insidious.
