Chapter 4
Four
Intrigued, according to the Oxford Dictionary:
To excite the curiosity or interest of; to interest so as to puzzle or fascinate.
A week later
Tia stretched and kicked the counterpane off her, yawning as she sat up. Her lady’s maid poured her chocolate while Tia decided what she would wear today.
“I think the primrose day dress, Louise.” It was one of her favorites, with rows of tiny flowers embroidered in the front and back. The neckline was modestly cut, and the band of lace just beneath her bustline accentuated her slim waist. “Can you find some matching ribbon for my hair?”
“Yes, miss,” said the petite maid, her face lined with age, her thick, pale-blonde hair mixed with gray. “I packed all the accessories you might need.”
“What would I do without you, Lou?”
“Let’s hope you’ll never know,” replied the older woman with a maternal smile.
She had been with Tia as a young girl first venturing out into society. And the woman was amazing with hair and putting together colors that Tia would have never thought to try.
“I dreamt about him last night.”
Lou’s eyebrows rose in question. As usual, her maid quietly waited for her to continue.
“We were riding in a field, and he stopped near a copse. We were enjoying the shade—as it was very hot—and he kissed me.” She looked at Lou in the mirror as the older woman brushed Tia’s long red waves.
“Did it frighten you?”
“A bit, but not because he was so bold. His kiss was so different from George’s. It was dizzying and wonderful. In my dream, of course.” She took a sip of chocolate. “Is it brazen of me to dream of a man like that?”
“You cannot control your mind during sleep. Sometimes, dreams tell you what thoughts you have hidden away. Do you like Mr. Page?”
Her smile came unbidden. “I’m intrigued. I’ve only known him a week, but he’s quite charming and full of entertaining stories.” She frowned.
“But?” asked Lou.
“Each time I try to have a conversation with him about something other than the weather, he either turns it to another subject or tells a comical story or a joke which makes me laugh.”
“Heavens, how terrible. What a simkin.”
Tia glanced at Lou in the mirror again. “Mama says his reputation was once quite… colorful. Though he won’t inherit a title, he is very well-known among the opposite sex. What if he’s a rogue and feeding me flim-flam for nefarious purposes?”
Lou chuckled. “Your imagination is running high today, Miss Tia. You are a good judge of character. What does your heart tell you?”
“I believe he’s a good man, but I fear he sees women as creatures to be pampered, incapable of holding an intelligent conversation.” She chewed her bottom lip. “Or the lightheartedness is just his nature, and he doesn’t like to dwell on important matters.”
“A conundrum, to be sure. Neither bodes well for one with your curious character.” Lou gathered the primrose muslin and held it up for Tia. “Sometimes, still waters run deep. There may be more beneath the surface than you realize.”
Tia hoped she was right, for her attraction to Mr. William Page seemed to grow with each day. “We have another week before I return home. Perhaps he’ll reveal another facet of himself.”
They had gathered again on the back lawn for a friendly archery competition.
Tia was mediocre at the sport, but Addie excelled.
The neighbors had arrived, a country squire and his wife and two sons, fifteen and nineteen.
Both young men had dark hair like their father, and a large hook nose like their mother.
The entire clan had a wonderful sense of humor and added to the gaiety of the day’s events.
Simon had won the contest, with Addie placing second. As the group wandered away, she decided to improve her skill and picked up a bow and another arrow.
Tia pulled the string back, bit her lip, and closed one eye.
Her hand trembled slightly as she concentrated on the center circle, hoping she wouldn’t miss the entire tree again.
She felt heat behind her, then a large hand covered hers.
The sun shone through the leaves, casting dappled shadows on their skin.
“May I help?” asked Mr. Page, his words close to her ear, the warmth of his breath sending a shiver down her body.
Her stomach tumbled, and she could only nod.
“Lower your arm a bit for more control,” he said as one arm went under hers, holding the bow steady.
His other hand gently squeezed her hand, containing the arrow.
“Now, look directly into the center of the target.” He pulled her hand back slightly.
“Without moving the bow, just release the arrow in one fluid motion. All of your fingers will move at once, as if one.”
Whoosh! The arrow landed in the circle next to the bull’s eye.
“I’ve never been so close before.” She turned in her excitement and found herself nose to chin with Mr. Page. She looked up, then fisted her hand. She longed to reach up and touch his bottom lip.
“Nor have I,” he murmured, his hazel eyes dancing with flecks of gold.
His breath smelled of mint, and his nearness was intoxicating. Her head felt light, like the time she tried her father’s brandy. “Th-thank you for your instruction,” she whispered, mesmerized by the way his eyes went from green to greenish brown.
“I’m at your service,” he said.
His head seemed lower now, closer to hers. If she tipped her chin just a bit, their lips would—
“Enough namby-pamby over there,” called Simon with a grin. “This is a chaperoned activity.”
Both of them jumped apart, and she fervently prayed her face was not as red as Mr. Page’s. Then he grinned, and Tia thought he must have been an adorable but infuriating boy.
The group returned to the house for tea, thirsty after the archery competition. As Tia was about to ascend the portico, Mr. Page stopped her. “May I show you something? It won’t take long.”
She hesitated, but Mr. Page stood before her, so handsome in his robin egg-blue waistcoat, his honey-colored hair smoothed back with curls rebelling along his collar. His smile was irresistible. “If it will only take a few minutes.”
They walked around the manor, to a large oak tree on the side of the house. There were several branches hanging low above their heads, and he pointed to a nest in the crook of one of the limbs. Then he whistled in a perfect imitation of a bird. And he received a returning chirp.
Tia gasped. “Do it again.”
He did, and the response came once more. “There are babies in the nest. Would you like to see?”
Tia nodded and looked up, wondering how she would see into the nest so far above her head.
Suddenly, his strong hands gripped her waist, and her feet left the ground.
She clutched his forearms for balance, feeling the strength beneath her fingers.
A small brownish creature flew higher into the branches, perched and watching them suspiciously.
She knew being in this position with Mr. Page was inappropriate, but the tiny birds with their beaks open, searching for food, were irresistible.
“Their eyes are still closed. They’re adorable. ”
Mr. Page loosened his grip, and his hands slid along her sides as her toes reached for the grass beneath them. Her heart raced as he turned her body toward his. When she gazed into his eyes, he lowered his head and brushed his lips across hers.
Barely a touch, more of a whisper of a kiss, but it turned her world upside down. Something fierce and pleasurable slammed through her core, and her breath grew rapid. She gripped his upper arms, tight and muscled, his biceps stretching the white linen. Her knees grew wobbly.
Mr. Page pulled her against his length, holding her up, and kissed her again.
She barely had time to catch her breath before his mouth covered hers.
Urgency, need, desire sizzled in his kiss, his lips soft and yielding.
One hand roamed her back, the other gripped her hip and kept her tightly against him.
Heat bloomed low in her belly, and her last coherent thought was, George never kissed me like this.
When he raised his head, his forehead still touching hers, he said, “I’ve been wanting to do that since the day I arrived.”
“Why?”
He leaned back and laughed. A deep, throaty laugh. “Because you are stunning, with your ruby-red hair and sinful brown eyes. My life’s goal has become making you smile and hearing your laugh.”
She blinked. Another annoying blush. Tia cursed herself for her inexperience. She’d had the most extraordinary kiss of her life, and that was her response? Was this flummery, or was he solemn in his statement?
He kissed the top of her head and held out his arm.
“If we don’t return soon, they’ll send out a rescue party.
” His hand reached out and covered her fingers as they settled on his sleeve.
“I will not be the rogue who causes your ruin. But I will be looking for any opportunity to sneak another kiss.”
Her smile grew. She took in a deep breath and decided to enjoy this new emotion that fluttered inside her stomach. How would she silence the thudding of her heart when they entered the drawing room? She was sure when Addie or Meg took one look at her, they would know.
Do I really care? Tia was bursting to tell someone, to figure out what she was feeling. Besides happiness. And passion. And giddy happiness. Wait, she thought, I said that already.
A peal of laughter erupted. When Mr. Page held the door for her, she leaned up on her tiptoes and kissed his cheek.
It was a spontaneous action, and the expression on his face was oh, so satisfying.
Tia tried to hold back the smirk, the sense of power that wrapped itself around her when his eyes darkened, and he drew in a sharp breath.
Not a humorous word sprang from his lips.