Page 34 of A Match Made On Duchess Square

Would it not be a disaster if he spent the entire house party staring at her instead of the two new prospects she had chosen for him? Nor would he ever give Miss Pointy Nose or Miss Pouty Mouth a second chance if his thoughts were all on her.

Suzanna and her dear friends, Berry and Miranda, hurried out of their homes to bid her a fond farewell, momentarily distracting her from her thoughts.

“Give our love to Fiona,” Berry said, and then squealed in delight before giving her a kiss on the cheek.

“This is so exciting for you,” Miranda remarked with equal enthusiasm. “Do not worry about a thing. All you need to do is have a good time.”

“Open your heart, Gwen,” Suzanna whispered in her ear, and gave her a fierce hug.

Gwendolyn felt another twist to her stomach that was already in a roil. Leaving Duchess Square was surprisingly hard for her to do because this had been a haven for her, and she had built an enjoyable life here with good and loyal friends. Perhaps it had been a hideaway, too. A place where she could retreat from the world while waiting for Andrew to return.

Would he ever come back?

By making this trip, she had resolved to no longer put her life on hold. But moving forward was a frightening proposition because Andrew had been in her life for so long and they had cherished each other so dearly since they were children.

However, it was time for her to open her eyes to new possibilities. If it did not work out…well, she would only be away for the month.

Milbury handed her up into the carriage. She settled on the seat bench beside Jordan. Milbury climbed in next to Robert, and then they were on their way.

Gwendolyn felt a lurching tug to her stomach as the carriage moved away from Duchess Square, as though she were attached by a cord to her home and it was now being stretched taut. She put a hand to her stomach in the hope of calming it as they made their way through the busy London streets.

Since Milbury’s gaze had followed her hand’s movement, he had to know she was unsettled.

He frowned momentarily but said nothing.

Gwendolyn could not meet his gaze yet, so she stared out the window to watch the bustle of carts, carriages, and pedestrians scurrying all around them. The morning had started off sunny, but clouds were beginning to gather on the horizon, growing ominously darker as they rode beyond the city limits.

“Rain,” Milbury muttered, mirroring her thoughts. “Let’s hope it will only be a light shower.”

Indeed, a heavy downpour would significantly slow their progress.

His boys had been captivated by all the activity going on around London. But as they left the noise and crowds behind, there was little to see beyond open roads. There were a few carriages, but mostly just sheep to be seen in acres and acres of meadows, and so they grew restless.

Gwendolyn already knew from past experience that the boys could not sit still even for an hour. Requiring them to sit for eight or ten hours at a stretch was going to be impossible.

As it turned out, Milbury was prepared for traveling with them and knew just when they would reach the limits of their tolerance.

“I have this timed to a science,” he jested the first time they stopped to let them run around an open field along the roadside for a few minutes. “How are you feeling, Gwen? I noticed you had your hand on your stomach when we rode away from Duchess Square.”

She nodded. “Leaving home felt a little daunting, but I am fine now.”

“Are you certain?”

“Well, not really,” she said with a wince. “But I’ll get used to it. I’m glad I am making this trip, even if my body has not yet adjusted to it.”

He grunted. “I think it is your heart that is resisting. That is the organ constantly holding you back.”

They soon resumed their travels.

The carriage horses had to be rested and fed every ten miles or so. There were convenient coaching inns to be found along the highly traveled route where they could stop whenever necessary and also grab refreshments for themselves. Whenever and wherever the horses needed to be tended, that was where and when Milbury’s sons would also be set loose to run around until they had exhausted themselves. While the horses required attention about every four hours, Milbury’s boys needed to be set loose about every two hours.

This proved to be a workable routine.

“You are an expert at this. Your stops seem to have worked out well,” Gwendolyn remarked when they reached a scenic outlook and paused for a short while in the late afternoon.

“So far,” Milbury replied. “It has been a good travel day. Dry, not too hot because of the overcast sky, and a pleasant breeze. We might not be so fortunate tomorrow.”

Gwendolyn followed his gaze to the clouds that continued to darken on the horizon. So far, they had remained ahead of the storm.