Page 39 of An Unlikely Debutante

‘Good.’

Far from retreating from the room, as had been Alex’s intention when he’d given his curt reply, Lina almost skipped over to his desk, skirted around the large wooden piece of furniture and perched on the edge just a foot away from him.

‘I have a request,’ she said, her eyes shining.

He waited for her to proceed, feeling his mood lifting a little already. It was difficult to stay gloomy with Lina grinning at him.

‘I have been working very hard these last two and a half weeks,’ she said, pausing as if daring him to contradict her. ‘So much so that I was able to attend a country dance and not cause a scandal.’

Alex felt the smile dance on his lips and quickly fought to maintain his sober expression. ‘That is true,’ he conceded.

‘As a reward, I thought we might take those lovely horses of yours out for a ride.’

Alex glanced out of the window. It was beautifully sunny, the sort of day that was made for riding through the countryside, not sitting in a stuffy study.

‘I do have rather a lot of work to do.’

‘It’ll be waiting for you when we return.’

‘Aunt Lucy should be arriving this evening, there are things that I need to prepare for her stay.’

‘Delegate. You’re good at that.’

‘We need to ensure you are ready for the ball in London.’

‘That’s weeks away and I’ll work doubly hard tomorrow. Give me this one afternoon.’

‘It is a lovely day,’ Alex said and was rewarded by Lina launching herself at him.

‘Be ready to leave in half an hour,’ she instructed. ‘I will sort out everything else.’