“I wholeheartedly agree,” he said and offered her his arm, hoping it was the correct thing to do. For a moment, their glances locked. And then, under the watchful eyes of her parents, she wrapped her arm under his.
Chapter Thirteen
Matthew intended to get Purity away from the rest of her family as swiftly as possible before they decided to join in. He liked them, but he hadn’t had a moment alone with her all day.
To his dismay, Quinn intercepted them after they were only a few yards away from those still seated. Matthew had just leaned down to tell her about his modest country manor in Surrey when his friend bounded up like a puppy with a young lady in tow.
“There you are, old sport, and the lovely Lady Purity. May I introduce Miss Moffett lately from Derwentwater in Keswick, who is here with her aunt and uncle? They are sponsoring her for the Season.”
And with that, Purity took Miss blasted Moffett under her wing and walked ahead, leaving Matthew and Quinn to stroll behind.
“You meddlesome toad,” Matthew said quietly.
Quinn laughed. “Come along, now, Foxy. You can’t walk off with a Diamond under her parents’ nose. With four of us, especially if the ladies stroll together, I don’t think anyone will look at us twice.”
“Icouldwalk away with her, and Idid. We have been stuck like a flock of birds all day, and I was looking forward to someprivate conversation. As long as we are within sight, no one minded a bit.”
“Sorry, old chap. My mistake. I thought I was keeping you from another dreadful misstep. In any case, as soon as we get around the grove, then Miss Moffett and I shall part company with you and your lady.”
“I don’t recognize her at all from the Diamonds’ dinner party.”
“Because she wasn’t at the party. I couldn’t find the lady I was looking for,” he added.
Quinn appeared unbothered by losing one woman, having quickly gained another.
“I just learned at the picnic that these gardens were designed by Capability Brown to create serene pleasure,” Quinn said. “Hence, what else should one do here but pleasure each other? Miss Moffet and I are heading toward the hedges with the fountain in the middle.”
“How wonderful for you,” Matthew snapped. “So, you weren’t looking to keep me from committing a scandalous slip but simply getting your latest prey away from her keepers.”
“Something like that,” Quinn said. “And your lady has done a capital job of helping me, too.”
They passed by a thicket, and then Quinn sprinted ahead. “Ladies, this isn’t a footrace, is it? You are walking too quickly for me. Regardless, I should now like to reclaim my hold upon Miss Moffett for the remainder of our promenade.”
With that, he took hold of Miss Moffett’s arm and strode away toward the hedges, leaving Purity frowning after them.
“I hope her aunt and uncle know she is alone with Lord Quinn. I feel responsible, as if I ought to continue to provide some sort of protection.”
Glancing back the way they had come, she sighed. “What can her relations be thinking, letting a country girl go off with a stranger?”
Matthew was glad she didn’t put their relationship on the same footing. After a moment, Purity shrugged.
“Some would say I am worrying overmuch about things that are plainly not my concern, nor in my control.”
She tapped her chin, looking fetching, and he wanted to take her in his arms and ask to hear her deepest thoughts. He didn’t have to. With her next words, he knew.
“Yet it is in my power to protect this young lady from ruin. Come along, Foxford.”
She strode after the pair who had already disappeared.
Shaking his head, Matthew followed. Instead of a moment alone with her, they were going to play chaperone to his idiot friend, who most certainly wouldn’t welcome the interference.
Soon, they were in the hedgerows, too. Quinn being his usual reckless self was moving at a fast clip into the densest part, making it hard to catch up. But Purity was equally determined to save Miss Moffett. She was like winged Nike, hurrying through the shrubberies until they reached the fountain.
“There you are,” she declared, stopping so sharply that Matthew plummeted into the back of her, sending her sprawling with a cry of alarm.
She caught herself on the edge of the marble fountain’s base, which hit her shins an instant before she planted her palms on its broad ledge and rose. Directly in front of her, in the middle of a small moat was the ten-foot statue of a naked warrior with long, muscular legs, a curved, long shield indicating his Roman nationality, and a long, thick—
“Oh, my!” Purity exclaimed as she stared at the appendage.
