“There is quite a splendid view from up here,” Mary said as she turned to look out over the countryside below. “Have you seen?”
“It is one of the reasons why I suggested coming here,” Sarah said. Setting down the blanket she’d been carrying, she came to stand beside Mary. “Look, you can see Thorncliff over there in the distance.”
Turning in the direction that Sarah indicated, Mary searched for the manor until she finally found it. “It looks so small from here.”
Sarah chuckled. “I know. It is hard to believe that there are hundreds of people residing within its walls at present, if one considers all the servants as well.”
Nodding her agreement, Mary turned away from the view and approached the spot where the men were unfolding Sarah’s blanket. Offering them her own, she gave her attention to one of the baskets and, with Sarah’s help, began organizing the plates and the food until everything had been laid out.
“It looks delicious,” Spencer said as he dropped down onto the blanket, seating himself beside Sarah while Belgrave lowered himself next to Mary.
For the next hour, they enjoyed the food that Cook had prepared for them while discussing a subject that Mary found most uncomfortable: marriage. But since Spencer and Sarah had recently had their wedding and Spencer’s sister, the former Lady Newbury, had married the Duke of Stonegate in secret, it was apparently a subject that Sarah was very much interested in.
“What say you, Belgrave?” Spencer suddenly asked. “Do you suppose you might choose to marry any time soon?”
Starting at the question, Mary looked at the gentleman seated at her side, immediately embarrassed on his behalf even though he showed no sign of concern over the question. Instead, he seemed to ponder it quite seriously before eventually saying, “Perhaps. If the right lady comes along, I see no need to delay.”
“Quite right,” Spencer concurred.
Sarah on the other hand offered Mary a very deliberate smile that made Mary want to shrink away into nothingness. Thank God that Belgrave knew of her disinterest in him or this would have been the most awful conversation ever.
When they were done with the food, Sarah said, “Perhaps you would like to enjoy a quiet stroll?” She gave Belgrave a pointed look that made Mary cringe.
To her relief, he merely shrugged and said, “I was actually hoping to use this time away from the masses to discuss an investment that I have in mind with your husband.”
Spencer gulped, the wine he’d been drinking almost spilling from his glass. “Of course,” he said, apparently just as surprised by this statement as his wife was.
“Are you certain?” Sarah asked while Mary quietly prayed for her to stop trying to make a match where there was no match to be made.
“Quite,” Belgrave said, “but if you and Lady Mary would like to go for a stroll, then by all means, do not let me keep you.”
Mary required nothing further to get her on her feet. Addressing Sarah, she said, “Come. Let us leave the men to their financial discussions and take a look at that church you mentioned. I find that I am quite eager to see it.”
Side by side, they wandered away from where the men were sitting. “Am I mistaken, or are you and Belgrave completely disinterested in each other?” Sarah finally asked.
Mary glanced briefly at her friend, noting her curious expression before returning her gaze to the view. “We are friends,” she said, “but there is little chance of us ever being anything more.”
“Why? I can hardly think of anyone more eligible than Belgrave.” There was a brief pause, and then, “Does your disinterest in him have something to do with the gentleman you met at the masquerade?”
A gentle breeze toyed with the grass while Mary considered the question. “Perhaps,” she said, not bothering to hide her smile.
“Then you have discovered his identity?”
Mary scrunched her nose. “No.” When Sarah spoke her surprise, Mary quickly added, “but I have met with him a few times since the night of the ball.”
“Without knowing who he is?”
“I do not expect you to understand,” Mary said, “but there is something about him that draws me. I cannot seem to help it.”
A contemplative pause followed until Sarah quietly asked, “Do you have any clue at all regarding his identity?”
“Not yet,” Mary lied. She’d told her friend enough and would not risk betraying Richard’s trust.
“Just be careful then,” Sarah said as she linked her arm with Mary’s. “I would hate for you to get hurt.”
It was past ten o’clock when Richard heard her footsteps descending the stairs that would lead her toward him. A second passed, and then the glow of her lantern came into view, blending with the light of his own as she entered the small antechamber, beyond which, the gardens of Thorncliff awaited.
The slightest tremor shot through him at the sight of her. She wore her hair up in a complicated style that only a maid would have been able to produce, revealing a pair of delicate earrings that dangled from her lobes. Her gown this evening had been cut from the sheerest white muslin in multiple layers that added an air of ghostliness to her. Over it, she wore a tight spencer jacket that was meant to keep her warm. To Richard’s mind, it only served to draw attention to her shapely figure.
