“Perhaps they expect it from dukes,” Nellie said.
He cocked an eyebrow. “Shall we return to the horses? Anywhere we can gallop?”
She pointed. “There’s a straight run through the trees.” It was extremely doubtful that she could beat him on Clover, but she would like to. She often galloped her mare here and knew every inch of the ground.
“Right. I want to see what Thor can do.”
They mounted and trotted their horses over to a long stretch of grass bordered by trees. Nellie nudged Clover into a canter while Charles urged Thor forward. The stallion took off like the wind. Clover was a lazy horse but stirred up by the stallion, was soon not far behind him.
Ahead of them, a raven rose from the grass with a sharp cry. Thor suddenly began to sidle and buck. As Charles fought him, Nellie urged her horse on. Clover reached Charles and galloped past him. Nellie was unable to resist casting a mischievous grin in his direction.
Charles settled the thoroughbred down and came thundering after her.
Nellie leaned forward. “Go, Clover!” She reached the end of the gallop where a thick copse of trees blocked the way and reined in, beating Charles by a whisker.
Charles pulled Thor up. “Enjoy your good fortune, Nellie. It will be the last time you beat me on this horse,” he said, amusement in his eyes.
She lifted an eyebrow. “Can you be so sure?”
He chuckled. “He’s a bit flighty, but a splendid animal.” He edged Thor alongside her mare. “We have some fine mounts at Shewsbury Park. You can have your pick.”
Nellie murmured a thank you. She repressed a shudder. They would ride to hounds there.
“Tell me Thor’s history while we ride,” he said. “If he’s not ridden often, your father might agree to sell him to me.”
Trotting their horses through the trees, Nellie told him all she knew about the stallion, which wasn’t a great deal. He listened without comment. She couldn’t deny Charles looked good in the saddle. In fact, he made most of the men she’d met seem less virile. Of course, it was his self-assured manner. A duke would have his wishes fulfilled with no more than a look. No one would ever dare refuse him. He’d been confident she wouldn’t either. Uneasy, she caught her lip between her teeth. If she allowed him to bend her to his will, she would be miserable. Her spine tingled. While it would never be a love match, it might not be the dull marriage she had feared.
*
Charles drew inbehind Nellie’s mare when the bushes narrowed the path. She was a woman of strong opinions. She’d flashed those beguiling eyes at him as if daring him to disagree with her. Her aversion to foxhunting posed a few problems, which he would deal with later. He approved of the teasing laughter in her eyes when she’d ridden past him.
It appeared that she enjoyed gentle sparring as much as he did. He approved of her bottom, too, as he assisted her back onto her horse, and how she’d felt in his arms. Her full lips when he’d kissed her had been sweet and soft. He would have liked to kiss her more deeply, to hear her sigh and respond to him. He’d seen enough to know she would, and in that moment, knew at least in this, they would be good together. Physical attraction certainly made marriage more agreeable.
He and Dountry had already agreed on a satisfactory settlement. All in all, not a bad decision. The ledgers balanced, and all parties were satisfied or would be in the near future. He smiled slightly at his unintended double entendre and drew his horse alongside hers. “Let’s visit those Herdwicks, shall we, Nellie?”
“As you wish, Charles.” He caught her smile as she turned her horse’s head and led the way.
It surprised him how much he enjoyed his given name on her lips.Intimate.He allowed himself to dwell for a moment on the pleasure they would experience together.
The sheep were as expected. The lambs cavorted on the grass. He’d suggested they come to give them more time together, and it confirmed his opinion. Nellie was amusing, poised, and intelligent. He liked how confident she was. No clinging vine. She wouldn’t impinge too much on his life or make outrageous demands on him. While involved with her own duties, the charity work, and so on, she would fit seamlessly into the routine of his days, while he continued to pursue his interests.
When they returned to the house from the stables, four ladies who were ambling along the garden paths paused to watch them.
“We are being observed,” Nellie said in an undertone. “My father did try to keep the possibility of an announcement quiet, but these things have a way of slipping out.” She smiled. “The servants are worse gossips than we are.”
“It hardly matters now,” he said. “Everyone will soon know.”
He saw her chest rise and fall sharply.
“Let’s give them something to talk about.” He took her hand in a firm grasp, and they climbed the steps to the terrace. He smiled down at her as a ripple of conversation floated toward them on the breeze.
As his duchess, she would attract attention wherever they went. He considered her a good choice. He knew of several successful marriages where love was not the glue that kept a couple together, but rather friendship and understanding. He preferred that to the explosive love matches, which burned out fast and messily, or worse, faded into indifference.
He and Nellie parted in the hall. He would wash and change before they told Dountry.
Charles ascended the stairs to his bedchamber. So he was to marry. He had made up his mind to marry Nellie at first sight, which was unlike him. He usually gave a good deal of thought to a matter before proceeding. He forced his mind back to the time when his older brother, Michael, had rallied and enjoyed a brief period of good health. Hopeful talk of his marrying Nellie’s sister, Marian, to secure an heir had been revived.
At that time, Charles had become informally engaged to Drusilla. Although no announcement had been posted in theMorning Post, it was common knowledge amongst theton. When it appeared, Charles would not be next in line, his prospects were suddenly diminished in the eyes of Drusilla’s father. He decided the Marquess of Thorburn, whose lands joined his own, was the better prospect. Charles had thought Drusilla would fight for him, but she did not. He had struggled with the loss of hope, and his dreams and been bitterly angry and hurt. Then he’d watched his brother grow ever paler and sicker. Michael slipped away without fuss, and the family plunged into mourning for a beloved brother and son. Not long afterward, their father, his heart broken, sickened and joined Michael in the Shewsbury vault.
