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“I have failed you, Your Grace,” Harold stated, bowing his head.
William frowned. “You will have to be more specific than that.”
Harold didn’t lift his head, the picture of contrite. “You ordered me to escort Lady Elizabeth to the carriage we have prepared but she will not comply.”
William sighed heavily, pinching the bridge of his nose. He hadn’t expected this. The Elizabeth he’d brought home was very different from the girl he’d left behind. This new Elizabeth was far too weak to protest, even if she’d been bold enough to state that she intended to stay.
Perhaps I should have taken her seriously.
“Very well,” William sighed. “Where is she now? I will speak to her myself.”
“She is at the stables, Your Grace.”
“The stables?” William echoed, taken by surprise. Elizabeth despised horses. He blinked rapidly, pulling himself back together with a nod. “Thank you. I’ll take care of it.”
Harold didn’t respond with anything but a sweeping bow as William walked by. He continued on his current path, but diverted away from the usual route he would take to go to the gardens and made his way to the stables instead. It was a small section of the estate, even though Brandon Estate was located on the very outskirts of London and so had quite spacious surroundings.
His steps grew quicker the closer he got. Something curled within him, the image of Elizabeth’s determined—albeit a bit frightened—face and her clenched fists stark in his mind. She truly intended to fight him on this. William suddenly felt as if he’d subjected himself to the wiles of a lost puppy who planned on trailing him wherever he went.
The thought should have bothered him more than it actually did.
A fresh summer breeze wafted over his skin the moment he stepped outside and rounded the corner towards the stables. As the building came into view, the heat of the overhead sun bore down on his clothes, bringing dots of sweat to his temple. Stable hands milled around the entrance, carting hay and bringing pitchforks and other tools around. They all looked anxious at the sight of William but when he stepped into the stables and spotted Elizabeth, he could focus on nothing else.
She was simply breathtaking. It seemed impossible—for a lady to have such ethereal beauty, such an innocent countenance, and be able to make his loins twist with such insane need. William lost his ability to breathe properly, to even speak. He stood there, taking in the woman in the plain grey gown as she looked apprehensively at the horse before her.
Slowly, William drew closer. He glanced at the men nearby and jerked his head to the side, a silent order for them to leave. One by one, they filtered out of the stables, leaving William alone with Elizabeth. She was still staring at the hulking beast before her, biting her lip. She had a hand curled to her chest and William could tell that she was mustering up the courage to touch the stallion.
Just when she’d finally gathered the strength to reach her hand out, he spoke, “Why are you still here?”
Elizabeth jumped with a gasp on her lips, her lovely brown eyes filled with surprise. The hand she was about to use to touch the horse was now pressed to her chest as she tried to catch her breath. “William! You frightened me!”
William said nothing. He maintained the distance between them, hoping it would help settle his racing heart. He crossed his arms, waiting for her to explain herself.
Elizabeth licked her lips and took one step away from the horse. The steed was completely unbothered by her presence. “I told you,” she murmured. “I do not plan on leaving. Not after we’ve been apart for so long.”
“You do not have much of a say, Beth,” William growled.
“I don’t?” she challenged, much to his surprise. How she managed to object with a such a fearful and timid sound was something he couldn’t fathom. “Do you plan on picking me up and throwing me into a carriage?”
“If it comes to that,” he combatted easily, watching as her cheeks pinkened. She searched his face, as if trying to see if his threat should be taken seriously. Then she shook her head.
“I won’t let you scare me,” Elizabeth stated. “I know you wouldn’t do such a thing. You are not a brute, even though you are trying so hard to make me think so.”
William let out a rush out of air through his nose, suddenly frustrated beyond words. Most of it was directed towards himself, for feeling such happiness at her words when he knew he shouldn’t.
He didn’t want to deal with this right now. Inheriting the Dukedom was enough stress as it was. William didn’t want to have to think about Elizabeth on top of it all.
But before he could say the words, she said, “Why don’t we go for a ride, William?”
