Chapter 19 #2
“Where did you find her?” Harriet asked as she deftly avoided Daisy careening into her leg. “She is delightful.”
“It was Alaric’s doing.” Catherine gestured toward Alaric, who was attempting to wrangle Daisy into his arms. “He found her after a storm and nursed her back to health before giving her to Oliver.”
Catherine heard both Harriet and Louisa make noises of awe, and even Fiona appeared impressed. Fiona leaned forward. “You nursed the puppy yourself, Your Grace?”
“I did.” Alaric shrugged as he scooped Daisy into his arms and handed her back to Oliver.
“Why?”
“I did not know if she would survive. I wanted to spare Oliver the heartbreak of her loss.” Alaric gestured to the small dog.
“Not many men would invite the chaos of a puppy into the house voluntarily.”
“Oliver asked me for a dog, and well, within days, I found her. Who am I to stand in the way of destiny?”
Catherine rubbed a hand across her chest, swallowing around a lump in her throat. Why do I feel like this?
As the conversation went on, Catherine let it wash over her. Alaric was the embodiment of charm and good humor. He was curious and complimentary. He even succeeded in making Fiona laugh.
She felt a tension she had not realized was there leave her body. Catherine glanced at Oliver, curling her finger into her palm to avoid ruffling his hair as he drew on his slate. She saw him hesitate as he finished, and moved to sit beside him, gently taking his hand in hers.
“Would you like to play hide and seek, Oliver?” Harriet had moved to sit beside them, her voice gentle and quiet. “It is a lovely day.”
Oliver looked at Catherine and then toward the doorway. He grabbed his slate and drew several rectangles.
“I have told Mrs. Langley that you may have a break from lessons today.” Catherine smiled at him.
“Did someone say hide and seek?” Fiona looked toward them.
“We were just suggesting that Oliver might like to play.” Catherine gestured to the outside.
“I could use a reason to stretch my legs.” Louisa stood up and stretched. “Shall we play in teams? We can have two seekers, and the rest can hide?”
Oliver nodded, then gestured to himself and, cautiously, to Fiona, tilting his head.
“Would you like to be on a team, Oliver?” Fiona smiled at him. “You and I finding everyone else? And of course, Daisy, too.”
Oliver’s eyes brightened, and he stood up, looking around the room expectantly. Catherine’s eyes drifted to Alaric. Would he join in the fun?
“And what will you do, Your Grace?”
“I thought I would join you,” Alaric replied as though it was obvious. “Though I suspect you will have a rather difficult time trying to find me.”
“That sounds suspiciously like a challenge, Your Grace.” Fiona’s eyes danced. “And I think Oliver and I are up to the task.”
Beside her, Oliver nodded, and Catherine felt her heart soar. “We should, at the very least, set boundaries. I think everything from here until the maze should give us plenty of space.”
“Excellent.” Fiona clapped her hands together. “Do you know how to count, Oliver?”
He nodded and held up ten fingers, opening and closing them ten times. Catherine added, “I think counting to a hundred is plenty of time for us all to hide.”
Oliver slipped his hand inside Fiona’s, and Daisy began barking excitedly. Catherine waited for them to turn around, and then she raced away.
She saw Louisa and Harriet turn left and head into the gardens toward the orangery. Catherine knew from experience that it would be Oliver’s first place to look, mostly because Daisy loved it.
“The maze? No, that is too obvious.” Catherine muttered, briskly walking through the gardens. “The e astern glasshouse will be a horrid temperature, and I do not fancy climbing a tree.”
She looked up and spotted a familiar ivy-covered wall. It was at the outer boundaries and had collapsed in parts, providing perfect places to hide. She ran toward it, slipping behind the wall and tucking herself into an ivy-covered corner.
She was just congratulating herself on a job well done when she heard footsteps. They were too heavy to be either Oliver’s or Fiona’s.
A moment later, Alaric appeared. His head was turned so that he was looking over his shoulder. He took a step toward Catherine, and she cleared her throat.
“It seems we both had the same thought.” Alaric gestured toward the small space where Catherine was hiding.
“Apparently.” Catherine straightened. “I did briefly consider the maze but…”
“It would be too obvious.” Alaric smiled. “I discounted the gardener’s shed for the same reason.”
“I do not think there is space for us both to hide.” Catherine gave him a pointed look. “And as I was here first, you can be the one to find an alternate spot.”
“And risk being caught? I think not.” Alaric’s eyes danced. “I do not intend to lose this game.”
“Nor do I,” Catherine retorted. “Fiona will never let me hear the end of it if I am the first person caught.”
“And I suspect my impression on her would drop if I were caught so quickly.” Alaric tilted his head toward Catherine, the smile fading into a more serious look. “I want your friends to think well of me.”
“Why?”
“They are important to you,” Alaric replied simply. “So they are important to me.”
“I...” Catherine began, but the sound of barking and Fiona saying, “Find them, Daisy, find them!” stopped her words short.
Alaric’s eyes widened, and Catherine pulled him toward her just as a dart of fur darted through the opening. Her heart pounded in her chest, and the warmth of Alaric’s skin burned against her. She could feel his breath whispering through her hair.
His arms were on either side of her, rigid with tension. Catherine’s mouth was dry, and the smell of cedar and amber was dizzying, making her head spin. Every breath caused her to brush against Alaric, the feeling sending jolts across her body.
She looked into his eyes. They were dark and magnetic. Catherine licked her lips, unsure if the steady pounding she felt was his heart or hers.
Alaric’s lips parted. He was so close that Catherine could see the faint stubble on his jaw. She reached up a hand, her fingers grazing his cheeks before she knew what she was doing. She heard his intake of breath.
“Catherine.” His voice was strained, so quiet she could barely hear it.
She swallowed as Alaric reached toward her face, his fingertips brushing against her skin, and yet the touch sent fire through her body. She gasped.
His breath tickled her skin. His body pressed against hers. Catherine felt a shiver run through her. They were too close.
“You have a leaf in your hair,” Alaric said softly as he plucked the leaf from her hair and stepped back.
Catherine let out a breath, still leaning against the wall. Her legs were shaking, and the world was still spinning. Sound returned in a whir of noise. Alaric was moving away from her. “I will find somewhere else to hide.”
Catherine opened her mouth, not sure what she was going to say. She had taken half a step toward him when a twig cracked beneath her foot.
“And what do we have here?” Fiona’s voice sounded from the other side of the wall.
A moment later, Oliver, Daisy, Fiona, Louisa, and Harriet all appeared. As soon as Catherine saw her friends’ looks, her cheeks went a shade of scarlet.
She watched an oblivious Oliver run up to Alaric and tug on his hand, grinning broadly. Alaric returned the smile, and Catherine felt something inside her shatter. She wrapped her arms around herself.
The village church bells chimed, and Catherine started. How is it already 5 o’clock? “We should get ready for dinner.”
As she approached Oliver, Alaric waved her off, though he did not quite look at her. “I will take Oliver back to the house. You should spend time with your friends.”
“Thank you.” Catherine wished her voice were not so hoarse.
“It is my pleasure.” Alaric inclined his head and walked back toward the house with Oliver beside him.
There was a moment of silence, and then all three of Catherine’s friends rounded on her.
“What was that you were saying earlier?” Fiona arched an eyebrow at her.
“I think she said they were merely friends.” Harriet nudged Louisa, who laughed.
“Friends who hide in dark corners together,” Louisa added.
“It is not like that. I came here to hide, and Alaric happened to find me, and he was just about to leave when I heard Fiona, and I had no wish to be caught and…” Catherine trailed off as she remembered the way she had pulled Alaric toward her, the way his body had felt.
Her ears burned as if his arms were still around her. Her stomach twisted and churned.
“Of course, it was completely innocent.” Fiona rolled her eyes. “That is why your cheeks are so red they would put roses to shame.”
“They are not!” Catherine rubbed her cheeks self-consciously. “Well, maybe a little.”
“You do not have to be shy, Kitty.” Louisa gently nudged her. “You would not be the first woman to go weak at the knees for a tall, dashing man.”
“I am not… I... it is not like that! This is a marriage in name only; that is all there is to it.” Catherine shook her head. “I am not even going to stay here.”
“Why not?” Harriet asked. “You seem perfectly content to me. In truth, I am not sure I have ever seen you so confident or happy.”
“And you always say that you would rather live in the countryside than in the city,” Fiona added. “You could stay here with Oliver and the Duke.”
“That was not the agreement. We...”
“Kitty, with all due respect, the man who made that agreement with you does not seem like the same man we have met today.” Louisa frowned.
“And that is the problem. I have no idea if this is the real Alaric or just some product of the accident!” Catherine’s voice rose, and she took a deep breath, forcing herself to speak more quietly. “There is every chance that he will get his memories back and return to the man he was. And then...”
“He might not.” Harriet took her hand and gently squeezed it. “Perhaps this is the real man.”
Catherine closed her eyes. “I cannot take that risk.”
“Cannot or will not?” Fiona asked.
“It does not matter. Either way, I have made up my mind.” Catherine sighed. “Besides, even if I wanted to stay, which I do not, he has not even asked me. If he had wanted me here, he would have told me.”
She tried to keep her voice light as if she did not really care, but as the words left her lips, a dagger twisted in her chest. He had not asked her to stay; he would not ask her to stay.
And even though she would not admit it to her friends, Catherine wanted him to.