Chapter Five #2
“Actually, I am enjoying talking with Her Grace,” her sister replied. “Not many adults take me seriously.”
“They should,” the duchess encouraged. “You are not spouting things off the top of your head, my lady. It is obvious you have read quite a bit about the war and are most knowledgeable.”
“Mark my words,” her sister said. “The recent battle at Vimeiro will result in the rise of Wellington’s prominence.
I believe he has the vision to lead England to victory over the Little General.
It may take a few years, but if I were a gentleman and could place bets, my money would be on Wellington. ”
“Go ahead, Reddington,” his mother urged. “We will be fine without your company. Just try to be back in time for tea.”
“Yes, Mama.” The duke stood. “Shall we go down to the stables, my lady?”
He offered her his arm, and she wasn’t surprised to find it hard as a rock. Though lean, he looked very strong, and she supposed he knew how to handle himself with pistols, swords, and fists.
As they left the house and went down to the stables, she asked, “Were you afraid when you stood up to Hugo’s bullies? After all, he said it was a group of boys who terrorized him, and you were only one person against them.”
“Though that was many years ago, I do not recall being afraid. I only know I saw a wrong—and I had to make things right.” He hesitated. “It is something you will learn about me. Injustice of any kind angers me. I cannot sit back and allow it to occur.”
“Well, I doubt we will come to know each other well, but it is nice to know this about you, Your Grace.”
He halted. “Why do you say that?”
She frowned. “I am not certain what you are asking me.”
“You will be here for almost two months, Lady Verina. Surely, we will get to know something of one another during that time.”
“Yes, I suppose that is possible. However, over the next two months, how often will we truly encounter one another? It is not as if we will see each other in the local village when we are running errands or stopping for tea. I am sure you will come to see Hugo a few times. He may also come to visit you, but Justina and I would not be with him.”
His gaze bored into her, causing a delicious chill to race along her spine. “I think we will see one another more than you think, my lady. I do hope you will come to know something of me.”
She smiled. “Well, I have learned that injustice causes you to act bravely. Even brashly.”
He chuckled. “There is that.”
He began walking again, and they reached the stables.
“I did not mean to make fun of you, Your Grace. I actually admire you for standing up for Hugo—and any other unfair behavior which you witness. As a duke, you have a responsibility to society. You are a man others look up to. If you act, so will they. That is how great your influence is.”
“I do not see myself as some grand crusader, Lady Verina. But I do have causes which I work for. Wrongs that I try to right. Perhaps you would like to hear about that sometime.”
He held her gaze for a long moment. Something passed between them as he did, something Verina would later ponder and have no answer for. It seemed as if he opened up a piece of his soul and handed it to her. Why, she couldn’t say, only that she believed he trusted her.
And she trusted him, as well.
“Good day, Higgins,” he greeted as a man stepped from the stables. “This is Lady Verina, and she rides quite well. Have horses saddled for us both. I am going to take her about Redfield.”
“Aye, Your Grace.”
They did not speak while the groom was gone, but the silence was anything but uncomfortable. This was something new to Verina, and she would think on this later.
Higgins returned, leading two horses by the reins. “I thought Sunshine would suit Lady Verina.”
“I agree. She’s feisty but friendly.” He stepped to her. “Allow me.”
His hands went about her waist, spanning it because they were so large.
The first time he had helped her into the saddle, Verina had gone breathless.
The same happened this time. It was as if she did not want him to release her.
She longed for his hands to remain on her waist, while she put hers on his shoulders.
And she desperately wanted a kiss from him.
“Madness,” she said under her breath.
Why was this man stirring things within her? True, she had very little experience being around men, other than the ones in her family. Why did this duke cause her heart to palpitate and her insides to flutter?
Verina reminded herself that this man was a duke, far above her station.
According to Hugo, His Grace was also one who bored easily.
With her limited experience, she would never hold his interest for long, so she had no reason to daydream about him.
He was Hugo’s friend. That was why he was being kind to her and her family.
When next Season came, he might greet her pleasantly and then walk past her.
If it were true that he sought a bride, he would look to a lady who was beautiful and sophisticated, not a simple country girl such as herself.
She watched him mount his horse and leaned low. Whispering in her horse’s ear, she said, “Sunshine, do not let me down today. Be one with me.”
The horse nickered as if she understood Verina.
“This way,” the duke said, turning his mount.
Verina followed, forcing herself to keep her focus on riding—and not on his broad shoulders and beautiful posture.
He took her about Redfield, and she asked a few questions as they went. He answered them thoroughly, treating her respectfully and not as some featherhead, which she appreciated.
When they had seen a good portion of his estate, they began trotting back to the stables. The trot became a canter, and then they began racing one another, galloping across a large meadow. They went so fast, she felt a few locks of her hair loosening, flying in the wind.
She reached the stable yard seconds before him, drawing on Sunshine’s reins to bring the horse to a halt. Laughing, she slid from the saddle and stroked the horse’s neck.
“You flew as the wind, Sunshine. Thank you.”
Verina kissed the horse’s nose and turned, finding the duke standing next to her.
“You kissed a horse?” he asked, looking perplexed.
“Sunshine helped me outrun you,” she explained. “It was my way of thanking her.”
The look he gave her was heated. “And what would it take for me to win a kiss from you, my lady?”
His question flummoxed her. She turned away, knowing her face flamed, not from exertion, but from his flirtatious words. Verina took the reins and led Sunshine into the stables, where a groom met her.
“I’ll take Sunshine for you, my lady,” the boy said cheerfully.
“Thank you.”
Higgins took the duke’s horse and asked her, “How was your ride, my lady?”
“Sunshine proved to be the perfect companion,” she declared, adding, “Better than human ones.”
Verina started toward the house, the duke falling into step with her.
“I am sorry if I offended you, my lady,” he apologized.
She stopped and faced him. “I have never kissed a man before, Your Grace. I am also not one to play games. If I kissed you, it would be because I wanted to so badly that my teeth ached.”
Verina began marching toward the house again, hoping he would leave her in peace.
“Let me know when you have a toothache then,” he called after her.
Disgust filled her. The Duke of Reddington might have a strong sense of justice, but she believed it to be inappropriate to ask for a kiss. She did not answer him because she had nothing to say to him.
All she wanted to do now was return to Merrifield.