Not everyone, though.
Not that beautiful young woman in the meadow today.
She hadn’t even flinched, either at his tirade or his face.
Who was she?
He shouldn’t care... but what if he did?
Jon stalked down the hall to his study and, once inside, poured a generous glass of brandy and downed it in one gulp. He poured another before plopping down on the chair behind his large oak desk. He should be reviewing estate reports from his other properties, but he had a hard time concentrating, and he gave up trying to work after a few moments.
I hate that I’m still thinking about that young woman. Who is she? And why did she have to look so damn tempting? Not that I care.
An hour later, there was a knock on his study door before Seaford entered, carrying a plate of sandwiches, sweet tarts, and a jug of ale. His valet never said a word, merely put the plate on the table beside the wing chair and left his study as quietly as he’d entered.
Although Jon just wanted to sit and brood about his one enjoyable activity being ruined today, his stomach had other ideas. His cook, Mrs. Bentley, always put together tasty meals for him, and he knew he’d be lost without her, especially since he had no hope of ever hiring another cook from the town, especially with the rumors about him being impossible to please.
Who would want to work for a beast?
He made sure to keep his constant firing of staff confined to his valet. Henry Seaford had been assigned to him as batman at the beginning of the war, and they’d been through many battles together. He genuinely cared for the man who had served him so faithfully and had missed his presence when he was shipped home to England to recover.
When Seaford showed up at his country seat one day, he’d filled a void that Jon hadn’t realized he’d been feeling. His valet was a trusted friend, and once Jon accepted him into his life again, he ensured his valet was paid well. He had to do something for the man who endured his tirades without complaint. When Jon left his country estate for the manor house in Bath, his valet packed up his belongings without any fanfare and accompanied him to Hartley Manor. Jon knew he’d be lost without Seaford and was grateful for his continued service.
He dove into the sandwiches, savoring the tasty treats, and vowed to forget the young woman who’d so rudely crashed into his life, although he wasn’t very successful. He couldn’t rid his brain of the vision of her surrounded by wildflowers. It suited her very well—the flowers were chaotic in their blooming, and she was chaos itself.
Who is she?
She must reside close by, as I didn’t see her mount.
Might he find her in the meadow again?
Not that he cared.
He shook his head to dispel that foolish line of thinking. There was no way a young beauty like her would ever want anything to do with him, even if he did manage to amend his beastly ways. After brooding the afternoon and early evening away, there was only one thing left to do.
Jon raced up the stairs to his bedchamber. “Seaford!”
His startled valet peeked out from the dressing room. It was unusual for Jon to demand his services in the evening, beyond helping to pull off his boots. “My lord, do you require assistance?”
“Yes. Evening wear, now!”
“Evening wear, sir?”
“Are you becoming deaf now in addition to obstinate? I require my evening kit. Now!”
Seaford nodded, and Jon could hear him rummaging about in his dressing room. It had been so long since he’d worn anything besides a linen shirt and breeches that his valet was having a bit of difficulty locating his evening finery.
Jon washed and shaved while Seaford laid out his clothes. He couldn’t stop fidgeting while his valet tied his cravat.
“Hold still, my lord. One last thing to do,” Seaford said, attaching his emerald stick pin to the knot.
“I don’t need that.”
Seaford looked him in the eye. “My lord, you haven’t ventured out in Society for nearly two years. You absolutely need the emerald to remind everyone that you are the Earl of Hartley.”
Jon didn’t say another word, merely nodded at his valet and left the bedchamber.
“I’m so excited togo to the Assembly Room tonight,” Harriet said to the young maid her grandmother had hired to attend her for the summer.
