Her words broke off there and Adrian could see by the way her mouth set into a grim line that she was annoyed with herself.
She had said too much, given away more than she meant to do. While she might have been chagrined, Adrian was intrigued. This somewhat unguarded moment had made him more curious. She didn’t seem to be used to deception.
Why does she think she must play at pretending? Her act did not fool me initially, and she must know it is futile to persist now.
“I can only speak for myself and what I know,” she went on, as she hurried along the path.
The basket in her hands made a gentle thumping noise as it bounced off her side in a continuous rhythm.
As they careened around a slight bend in the road, she pivoted and looked at him again. “Let me warn you, sir, that I am very dull company.”
“Dull?” He laughed softly.
He could not follow her line of thinking. This walk he had happily tripped upon with this enigmatic young woman had provided him with the most excitement he had experienced in days. The cloud of foul humor that hung about him moments ago while in the inn meeting with the tradesman dissipated and he saw nothing but her bright, pale face and heard little other than the thump of the basket and the melodic sound of her voice.
“I highly doubt that is the case,” he said. “So, let me guess. The basket you’re carrying, does it contain medicine for the vicar?”
She faltered. Perhaps he had guessed right, and she did not expect it. The woman, who was evidently a newcomer to the village, could not understand that he, as the Duke, knew all the goings-on in the area.
Carefully, she patted the sides of the basket. “My errands should not concern you, sir,” she protested before giving him a quick, sideways glance.
“Should they not? Errands make the world go round,” he replied smoothly infusing his words with a touch of amiability that was often absent from his tone. “But do they always make one so… captivating?”
“You are much too direct, sir,” she said softly. Her footsteps faltered, and as she nearly tripped her cheeks flushed a delicate pink shade that Adrian thought made her look even more becoming.
He reached out to steady her, but she jerked away hastily. As she righted herself, the young lady tried to glare at him, but failed in looking stern.
“Forgive my directness, then,” he amended. “I am only caught off guard by your beauty.”
“I appreciate your compliments, sir,” she said, as she exhaled softly. “However, it is already nighttime, and it would be best if we parted ways now.”
She was no longer attempting to hide the fact that she was a lady, or at least someone well educated from London.
“So soon?” he teased. “Without even telling me your name?”
Her mouth pursed tightly, indicating that even his gentle prompting was not enough to convince her to say more.
He laughed lightly. “You must break a great many hearts.”
The young woman rolled her eyes, but the hint of a blush and a smile drew him in further.
She looked young, perhaps nineteen or twenty. Somehow, though, he suspected that she was not quite as carefree as many young women her age.
Before he could press any further, something wet struck his cheek.
A droplet. He groaned softly.
Then, another droplet fell.
Rain fell harder, dotting the path with wet patches.
Adrian glanced at the mysterious young woman and gestured toward a nearby stone archway.
“Seems the heavens have chosen this moment to interrupt ourtete-a-tete,” he murmured. “Shall we seek shelter here?”
As expected, she hesitated. Her eyes were wild, darting left and right as if looking for a means to escape.
Am I so very frightening?
