As Harred watched his brother race past the othercarriages, he felt the familiar urge to apologize for William’s behavior.
Lady Octavia must have sensed this because she said, “Don’t you dare apologize for him. You did nothing wrong.”
“But William managed to ruin our carriage ride.”
“It isn’t ruined,” she asserted. “I have rather enjoyed myself until now and I choose not to let Lord William’s behavior disrupt our outing.”
Harred was utterly taken aback. Lady Octavia was not bothered by William’s outburst and even took it in stride. How could he not care for her? She was unlike any young woman he had known before. She let her uniqueness shine and now he was unable to look away.
Octavia knew that Lord William’s outburst had dampened their outing but she refused to let him ruin it entirely. Lord William had some audacity. Not once had he asked her what she wanted. He only told her whathewanted. She had made it abundantly clear that she had no intention of taking him on as a suitor.
If Lord William persisted in pursuing her, she was fearful that Fredrick would call him out. But what could she say that would deter the pesky lord? He was so absorbed in his own desires that he was paying no heed to what she had already told him.
She glanced over at Lord Kendal. He hadn’t said much since they had left Hyde Park and traveled back to her townhouse. She wished they could go back to the easy conversation that had flowed between them before Lord William had so rudely interrupted them.
Knowing their time was short, Octavia said, “Pardon my language, but your brother is a jackanapes.”
Lord Kendal chuckled and some of the tension left his expression. “Yes, he is,” he agreed. “But my brother has only gotten worse since our parents died.”
“I am most fortunate to have two attentive,veryprotective brothers,” Octavia said.
“You are,” he responded. “And they are two of the best men that I know.”
The curricle came to a stop in front of her townhouse and a footman exited through the main door to collect the reins.
Lord Kendal stepped down from the curricle and came around the other side to assist her onto the pavement. “Thank you,” he said.
“For what?” she asked.
“You have managed to brighten my mood just by being yourself,” he replied. “Whereas interacting with William tends to put me into a foul mood.”
“I can see why. He is rather unpleasant.”
“That he is,” Lord Kendal readily agreed.
Carson held the door open and stood to the side to allow them entry.
Once they were in the entry hall, Lord Kendal dropped his arm and smiled. “I had an enjoyable time. Thank you.”
Octavia found that she wasn’t quite ready to say goodbye to him. But what could she say that would keep him here longer?
Fredrick’s voice came from the top of the stairs. “Perfect timing,” he declared. “Mother is asking for you…” he hesitated, “and your husband.”
With a nervous glance at Lord Kendal, Octavia said, “I do not think we are ready for that. We hardly know one another. What if she sees through us?”
Lord Kendal placed a hand on her sleeve. “We can do this,” he encouraged. “We will just have to work together.”
Octavia didn’t know why his words were so comforting,but they were. And, most importantly, she believed them. “All right. If you are sure?”
“I am,” Lord Kendal replied, removing his hand.
Fredrick waved them towards the stairs. “Come along, then,” he encouraged. “You don’t want to keep Mother waiting for too long.”
Lord Kendal offered his arm and she accepted it. “I do not want you to worry. When I was younger, I would put on skits for my parents and they told me that I was quite believable,” he shared.
Octavia smiled. “How old were you?”
“Six or so,” he replied.
