He burst out laughing. “You seem to have positioned yourself right inside the entrance, minx. And for that, I am truly grateful.”
She grinned back at him, then gestured down the path. “Lead the way, milord.”
He affected a cocky pose. “Of course, my dear. A gentleman would never get lost. Or become a ghost in a haunted castle. Everyone knows it’s females who cannot maneuver labyrinths, bless their pretty little heads. Feel free to leap into my arms any time you become overwhelmed from the terror of it all.”
“Astonish me with your manly sense of direction.” She clutched her chest as she fell into step beside him. “I shall endeavor to limit my maidenly swoons.”
“Swooning into my arms is perfectly acceptable behavior,” he assured her. “Please do not limit any fits of the vapors on my account. I am ever at your disposal.”
“Oh?” She pressed the back of her wrist to her forehead. “Have you sequestered a vial of smelling salts in your waistcoat?”
“Alas, I have not!” He affected a thunderstruck expression. “I shall be forced to cradle you in my arms for as long as necessary. Iama gentleman, of course.”
“Of course,” she murmured, trying to hide her smile. “One could not possibly interpret otherwise.”
“Are you feeling faint?” he asked hopefully. “Should I take you into my arms now as a preventative measure?”
“We’ve barely been strolling for a quarter hour. I can persevere a few moments longer. Do check back with me if this outing causes me to miss nuncheon. I shall either feel faint… or furious.”
“Never fear, pet. You are by the side of an experienced gentleman. I have several fond remembrances of your homicidal tendencies when deprived of a timely meal, and have taken steps to prevent disaster.” He patted his handkerchief pocket and whispered, “Scones nicked from the kitchen.”
She fluttered her hand atop her heart. “A true hero. You have thought of everything. Your competence astounds at every turn.”
He nodded sagely. “I am also adept at backgammon and Latin verb conjugation. Should the need arise.”
She shook her head with a laugh. This was the Daniel she remembered. The clever, silly, self-aware lad who charmed her effortlessly every time he opened his mouth.
It would not do to tie herself into knots all over again. He was no longer the boy he once was. He was a man now. A rakish viscount with little time for one such as her under ordinary circumstances. There were too many parties to attend. Too many flirtatious young ladies to seduce. Daniel had changed. She should focus on that.
“You must miss London dreadfully,” she said as he led her round the same corner spiral for the third time in a row.
“Monstrously,” he agreed.
Her heart fell. She knew better—had justremindedherself, for heaven’s sake—and still the admission that he’d rather be elsewhere stung as deep as ever.
“It’s Ravenwood,” he continued. “If there’s anyone in the House of Lords whose opinions I respect without question, that man is the Duke of Ravenwood. He’s arranged a convocation to discuss and approve preventative measures to curb burgeoning unrest from those who fear modern advances in weaving technology, and I’ll miss the whole affair because it’s the same day as the will reading.”
“Convocation?” she echoed in surprise. Somehow, she’d expected his homesickness more properly attributed to being too far from fawning debutantes than from a desire to return to Parliament. “Modern advances in weaving technology?”
Daniel nodded, his eyes shining. “Spinning frames, stocking frames, power looms… The textile industry is on the cusp of an exciting new horizon. Or teetering on the brink of national disaster, depending on whom one asks.”
Rebecca’s heart twisted. The boy she remembered had changed even more than she’d thought. He didn’t miss his gentlemen’s clubs or his drunken doxies. He missed the House of Lords. Planning England’s future. Being a respected and integral member of Parliamentary process.
Drat the man. She glanced away. Daniel’s obvious passion for betteringeveryone’slives only endeared him to her all the more.
Positively unfair.
He let out a shout and dashed toward an opening in the hedgerows. “Come look! I found the folly!”
A smile curved her lips as she joined him at the break in the hedges. It had only taken just over an hour.
In the center of a small grove, an octagonal stone base supported a tall, white, six-column wooden folly with a moss-covered cupola.
It looked beautiful and romantic and abandoned. Rebecca loved to sit inside whenever she felt lonely. Close her eyes in order to listen to the chirping of the birds, and pretend the world was as serene and uncomplicated as it seemed in those moments.
“Come with me.” Daniel grabbed her hand and pulled her toward the stone steps leading up to the folly.
Rebecca should have pulled her trembling fingers from his grasp.No touching. She knew better.
