She took a step past him, and he grasped her arm, stopping her. When her teary eyes looked up at him, his heart wrenched. He understood her fear, but he was sure she felt as he did – that their kiss had only accomplished one thing. Indeed, he needed to see her again. And soon.
“What are you doing tomorrow?”
She blinked as if dazed. “I don’t really know.”
“I would love to see you again. Perhaps I’ll call on you, or...”
“Or?”
“Or maybe we should meet some place private.”
She smiled once again, and his heart lightened. “That does sound more intriguing.”
“I’ll send you a note and let you know.”
Her pretty face brightened mere moments before she pulled away from him and continued moving out of the thicket of trees and toward the manor. As he promised, he watched her until she was nearly at the house. Thankfully, nobody spotted her – that he could see, anyway. With a light heart, he hurried toward the waiting coaches until he spotted the hackney. Simon stood by the door, waiting to assist Collin inside.
He stopped in front of Simon and narrowed his gaze on the man. “Do I have your word, as a gentleman, that you will not gossip about Miss Featherstone and what you witnessed this evening?”
The driver lifted his chin and pulled his shoulders back. “She and her family are my friends. I wouldn’t hurt Miss Featherstone for all the money in the world. She is a caring woman with a huge heart, and I’d do anything to protect her reputation.”
Collin nodded. “Then I’d better not hear anything about what happened tonight.”
The man’s mouth tightened. “It won’t be from my lips.”
“Splendid.” Collin opened the hackney door and climbed inside.
Kentwood sat on the bench with his face pressed against the wall of the vehicle. The man’s eyes were closed and drool slid from his mouth.How pathetic!
Collin rolled his eyes. If only he could convince his friend to stop drinking so much. One of these days, the drink would kill Kentwood. Collin was certain of it.
Purposely, Collin slammed the door. Kentwood jerked to a sitting position. One side of his hair stood up higher from where it had been flattened against the vehicle’s wall. He blinked as if trying to gain his bearings. When his expression registered with recognition, he chuckled and relaxed back in his seat.
“Ah, Hanover. I’m glad to see you’ve finally come.”
Stretching his legs in front of him, Collin relaxed on his seat and linked his fingers together, resting them across his middle. “I cannot believe you had thedriverfetch me.”
Lloyd shrugged. “I couldn’t see you inside the ballroom. I figured you found a woman to seduce and had taken her out back.”
“And what if I had? You could have waited, but no. You’d rather send the driver to find me.”
“There is no need to get riled. Besides, I probably did you a favor.”
Collin tilted his head, shooting a scowl at his friend. “Afavor? Pray, how does your alcohol induced mind think you’ve done me a favor?”
“Because she was trying to trap you into marriage.” Kentwood touched his fingers to his head. “The women nowadays are cunning, I tell you. They see wealthy, titled men, and they create ways to get us into a compromising position just so their overeager fathers could find us and force us to marry the wenches.”
Addie’s pretty face popped into his mind, and he sighed with content. There was no way Addie would try to trap him. But she was definitely captivated with kissing him tonight, and her innocence was what had enthralled him. And, it was his idea to go for that stroll, not hers.
“Well, I can assure you that entrapment wasn’t on the mind of the woman I was with. It was my idea to find someplace private.”
“That’s good to know. You’re most fortunate you found someone before that Featherstone girl caught you.”
Collin hitched a silent breath. If his friend said anything to degrade her in any way, Collin would toss the inebriated man out of the hackney. “Why do you think Miss Featherstone was trying to catch me?”
“Was it not obvious the other night while at her home? She’s infatuated with you, and I saw her and her family at the ball. Their out-of-date gowns made them stand out, pitifully so.”
Gnashing his teeth, Collin sat up straighter and fisted his hands. “You should not judge them by what they wear. I found Miss Featherstone and her family to be quite charming... after I had given them a chance. I’ll admit, I was rather upset that our plans had gone awry that day, what with the carriage breaking down, but visiting with Miss Featherstone and her family had relaxed me. I quite enjoyed myself.”
Releasing a disgusting groan, Kentwood shook his head. “Oh, don’t tell me she has already gotten you in her clutches. I thought you were wiser than to fall for her scheming plans.”
Anger climbed higher inside Collin. “I will forgive you because you are foxed and you do not know what you’re talking about, but I warn you, you’re treading on thin ice. Take my advice and close your eyes and return to your drunken dreams. You’re tempting my patience with this topic, and I assure you I will win.”
Kentwood stared at Collin for the longest time before shrugging and closing his eyes. “I shall let it rest, but don’t come crying to me when she traps you into marriage.”
Exhaling slowly, Collin tried to ease his temper. There was no reasoning with his foxed friend. By now, Collin knew how to spot a woman who was looking for a titled man with a hefty bank account. Addie was nothing like those other women. From what he could tell about the adorable Miss Featherstone, she was more interested in learning about passion.
Collin grinned. And he was definitely interested in becoming her teacher.
