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waited for his reply, expecting it to be a severe set down. Her companion continued to stare morosely out across the landscape then, like her, he swung inwards.
‘You’re right to ask me. It’s a long story, perhaps one day I shall tell you the whole, but let it suffice to say that we shared a miserable childhood together and if it wasn’t for his help when I was at school I doubt I should have survived; he showed me how to rise above physical abuse and appear indifferent.’
‘And now? You are your own man; I cannot imagine there’s anyone or anything that could put you out of countenance. You are the more formidable. Why do you still associate yourself with him? One day he will do something so wicked he will take you down with him.’
She had gone too far; his eyes narrowed and she waited for the rebuke she richly deserved. Then to her surprise his lips curved into a smile; it was the first time she had smiled directly at her. Her heart skipped. She felt unaccountably breathless and unable to look away. She recovered her equilibrium sufficiently to speak.
‘Do you feel you have to keep Lord Wydale out of mischief?’
He shook his head. ‘No, frankly it’s too late for that. I do my best to protect others from him. I am here to try and undo the wrong he has done to your brother.’ Seeing the look of horror on Eliza’s face he added hastily. ‘Oh, I assure you, he never cheats. He’s known to be the best card player in Town. No one of sense will accept his challenge. He deliberately set out to charm your brother and tricked him into playing.’
‘I see. I’m hoping I can raise enough money from a trust fund to pay this debt. Have you any idea how much my brother signed away?’
‘I have not seen all his vowels, but I believe that they add up to more than thirty thousand guineas.’
This shocking discovery was too much. For the first time in her life she felt her knees buckle and the last thing she remembered was being clasped in the arms of a man she had only known for twenty-four hours, but who had already become something more than a friend.
* * * *
Fletcher caught Eliza easily, her substantial weight nothing to a man of his size. With a muttered curse he lifted her and turned to scan the room for somewhere suitable to put her down. He strode across the room and placed his unconscious burden on the only piece of furniture that was long enough to accommodate her. He pushed a pillow gently under her head, pausing for a moment at her side, drinking in her features like a man parched in a desert.
Why had he not seen her five years before, when she spent a season in London? He had always disliked his abnormal height and build, feeling clumsy around the dainty dresden misses that he came across in the drawing-rooms of society, and knew that he would have felt as comfortable with her then as he did now.
Lying unconscious on the daybed beside him was a young woman who made him a perfect match. She was statuesque, with eyes the colour of cornflowers and hair like new mown hay. She was intelligent and funny and had no more wish to sit around embroidering useless tapestries than he did.
Glancing hastily over his shoulder to see that they were unobserved, he bent his head and stole a fleeting kiss from the sleeping beauty. Only then did he spring to his feet and yank the bell-strap vigorously. The housekeeper appeared with such alacrity he felt she must have been waiting to receive a summons.
‘Miss Fox has swooned, I do not believe she is unwell, but she needs to be attended to. I shall take my leave, I am de trop . Please tell Miss Fox I shall call tomorrow to see how she does.’
Without waiting for the startled woman to reply he stepped past and took his hat from the hall-stand and walked briskly down the long narrow hall and out into the pouring rain. It was only as he stood, marooned under the portico, that he realized he had left his riding coat behind.
He
‘You’re right to ask me. It’s a long story, perhaps one day I shall tell you the whole, but let it suffice to say that we shared a miserable childhood together and if it wasn’t for his help when I was at school I doubt I should have survived; he showed me how to rise above physical abuse and appear indifferent.’
‘And now? You are your own man; I cannot imagine there’s anyone or anything that could put you out of countenance. You are the more formidable. Why do you still associate yourself with him? One day he will do something so wicked he will take you down with him.’
She had gone too far; his eyes narrowed and she waited for the rebuke she richly deserved. Then to her surprise his lips curved into a smile; it was the first time she had smiled directly at her. Her heart skipped. She felt unaccountably breathless and unable to look away. She recovered her equilibrium sufficiently to speak.
‘Do you feel you have to keep Lord Wydale out of mischief?’
He shook his head. ‘No, frankly it’s too late for that. I do my best to protect others from him. I am here to try and undo the wrong he has done to your brother.’ Seeing the look of horror on Eliza’s face he added hastily. ‘Oh, I assure you, he never cheats. He’s known to be the best card player in Town. No one of sense will accept his challenge. He deliberately set out to charm your brother and tricked him into playing.’
‘I see. I’m hoping I can raise enough money from a trust fund to pay this debt. Have you any idea how much my brother signed away?’
‘I have not seen all his vowels, but I believe that they add up to more than thirty thousand guineas.’
This shocking discovery was too much. For the first time in her life she felt her knees buckle and the last thing she remembered was being clasped in the arms of a man she had only known for twenty-four hours, but who had already become something more than a friend.
* * * *
Fletcher caught Eliza easily, her substantial weight nothing to a man of his size. With a muttered curse he lifted her and turned to scan the room for somewhere suitable to put her down. He strode across the room and placed his unconscious burden on the only piece of furniture that was long enough to accommodate her. He pushed a pillow gently under her head, pausing for a moment at her side, drinking in her features like a man parched in a desert.
Why had he not seen her five years before, when she spent a season in London? He had always disliked his abnormal height and build, feeling clumsy around the dainty dresden misses that he came across in the drawing-rooms of society, and knew that he would have felt as comfortable with her then as he did now.
Lying unconscious on the daybed beside him was a young woman who made him a perfect match. She was statuesque, with eyes the colour of cornflowers and hair like new mown hay. She was intelligent and funny and had no more wish to sit around embroidering useless tapestries than he did.
Glancing hastily over his shoulder to see that they were unobserved, he bent his head and stole a fleeting kiss from the sleeping beauty. Only then did he spring to his feet and yank the bell-strap vigorously. The housekeeper appeared with such alacrity he felt she must have been waiting to receive a summons.
‘Miss Fox has swooned, I do not believe she is unwell, but she needs to be attended to. I shall take my leave, I am de trop . Please tell Miss Fox I shall call tomorrow to see how she does.’
Without waiting for the startled woman to reply he stepped past and took his hat from the hall-stand and walked briskly down the long narrow hall and out into the pouring rain. It was only as he stood, marooned under the portico, that he realized he had left his riding coat behind.
He
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