Mr. Steele did not glance Gwendolyn’s way.
“Would you care to walk a bit with me?” Mrs. Newsome asked.
Her question made Gwendolyn realize she was staring at Mr. Steele’s retreating figure and probably with an anxious expression on her face. Embarrassed to be so discombobulated, she nodded to the kind older lady and tied the ribbons of her bonnet under her chin.
Mrs. Newsome didn’t wait but began walking in the opposite direction Lady Orpington had taken. Gwendolyn hurried to catch her.
Mr. Steele was here.He’d finally arrived... and he was ignoring her. Gwendolyn knew that as clearly as she knew her own name. Even though Lady Orpington had given her a nod, Mr. Steele hadn’t glanced in her direction, not even to say hello. Assuredly Lady Orpington’s nephew Mr. Curran would have done so. It was only the polite thing to do.
In fact, his rudeness incensed Gwendolyn. Yes, he’d said that there was nothing between them, but that wasnot true. She’d caught the wayhe looked at her when he didn’t think she was watching. Granted, they hadn’t been around each other often—
“You can do much better,” Mrs. Newsome said in her perpetually pleasant voice.
“Much better than what?” Gwendolyn grumbled, knowing what she meant.
Apparently Mrs. Newsome understood that as well, because she didn’t explain. Instead she said, “We shall be at Colemore in an hour or so. You will make a good impression. You are a lovely young woman but also a self-possessed one. Very few people can hold their own around my cousin. She is quite imperial.”
“That is true.”
“However, you don’t bow to her. At the same time, you treat her with respect. She thinks highly of you. I do, too.”
Gwendolyn murmured a thank-you. The Lanscarr sisters had been bred to be well-behaved.
And then Mrs. Newsome said, “If you want Nicholas, you need to push him away.”
“That seems counterproductive.”
“Most men are counter-everything. Or at least, that has been my experience. Miss Lanscarr, it is not my place to offer advice, but I feel I must. You wear your heart on your sleeve, and that is not where it belongs. First, Nicholas is—” She paused as if searching for a word, then said, “Well, he might be a good man, but he seems rather feral.”
The description startled Gwendolyn. “What does that mean?”
“It means he believes he doesn’t need anyone. That happens sometimes when people areforced to rely on their own instincts. It is not an uncommon trait amongst men. They become either jaded or too confident in their own opinions. Sometimes both.”
“But feral?”
“Born in the wild. Left to his own devices. Same difference, wouldn’t you agree?” She didn’t wait for an answer but said, “You and Nicholas met before he entered into this arrangement with my cousin. You are not strangers to each other.”
“Why do you say that?”
“The way his expression softened when he saw you sleeping in the coach. If it is any consolation, he’d been looking for you.”
The information was comforting and panic-inducing at the same time. “I was not at my best.”
Mrs. Newsome laughed. “You looked charming.”
“My mouth was open. I was sleeping with my mouth open.”
“Yes, it is very human.” She paused before saying, “But don’t make the mistake of thinking he is the only man for you. Because he has a purpose in mind. Until he gets what he wants, there is no room for anyone in his life.”
Her words echoed Mr. Steele’s warning.
Coming from her, they also made sense. She was telling Gwendolyn to be wise.
And yet every fiber of Gwendolyn’s being rejected them.
“Be careful, Miss Lanscarr. I see our Nicholas’s attraction. He’s handsome and, yes, a touch dangerous. That is an allure, is it not? But he lives on the fringes of Society for a reason. If you pursuehim, you might catch him, and you may regret doing so.”
Gwendolyn studied the ground, noticing the clover growing along the road among the grass. The toe of her walking shoe kicked a gray pebble. She looked over to Mrs. Newsome. “Why are you telling me this?”
