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“What?” Mary turns to her with drawn brows.
Ella’s only reply is a stern look of displeasure.
“’Tis Mary, is it?” I ask as she offers her hand with unabashed excitement.
“Yes! And you must be Alasdair Stewart!”
“LordStewart, this is my cousin, Lady Mary Emsworth. Please don’t be offended by her lack of propriety. She doesn’t get out much.” That fiery glare is now on her cousin, and I cannot help but laugh at their familiar banter.
“Very funny, Ella. I get out plenty. I just live by different rules. Nothing wrong with that. Don’t you think,LordStewart?” Mary asks confidently.
“Oh, aye, I can’na disagree. Propriety is’na my strong suit either. Ask Lady Ella. She has corrected my decorum at least once every time I have had the pleasure of being in her company,” I say with a wink.
“How charming the two of you are with your lack of gentility. I shall leave you to it.” And once again, she turns to leave me stranded, nursing another cut from the blade that replaces her tongue.
With a polite nod, I leave Mary—and her knowing smirk—to regroup with her friends while I make sure Ella does not get too far away.
“I did’na come to this sunny little gathering to spend it wi’ yer cousin. I am only here to see you,” I say in a low voice close to her ear, avoiding attention.
Her pace picks up before she finally turns to stand on the far side of a massive potted tree, offering the privacy she has clearly been seeking. “I would appreciate it, Lord Stewart, if you would not offer such fodder to my cousin about any possiblelack of decorumbetween the two of us. You do not know her, and the fact that she hears and sees everything through the eyes of a secret service spy. God forbid what your comment will stir up in her mind. And let me assure you, whatever it is, she will hound me relentlessly about it!”
“How do ye know about secret service spies?” This woman never ceases to amaze me.
“Have you forgotten who my father is? But the more pressing question is, have you missed my point altogether?” Her hands are on her hips now, she’s done that at least once every time I’ve been around her, as well, and the thought makes me smile. “Why are you smiling, Lord Stewart?” she huffs out with exacerbation.
“Because ye are so feisty, and it’s so damned appealing I lose my train of thought.”
“Is that so? Does that mean you didn’t hear a word I said about my cousin and her inexplicable ability to surmise accurate conclusions with very little information? That little morsel you left her with is going to cause me headaches for weeks to come!”
“I apologize for causing ye such distress. ’Tis not something I would have guessed about her—at first glance, anyway—or I would’na have said a word. But now that ye say it, she does have a keen-eyed way about her, aye. Does yer father know she has this talent? Espionage is’na only a man’s occupation. Our female spies are considered our best.”
“Please do not tell her that! From this day forward, watch what you say within earshot of Lady Mary. Now, let us mingle about, away from this corner before my reputation gets ruined.”
“Yes, of course,” I agree, offering her my arm. “Do ye think they will have music and dancing?”
She looks up at me, her blue eyes glowing from the light of the window. “Yes. The music should be starting soon. So, you like to dance?”
“Aye, I do. Did ye forget that I am Scottish, Lady Ella?”
“So dancing is a Scottish trait, is it?”
“Oh, aye. We’ve got a bloody dance for everything.”
“Lord Stewart!”
“Forgive me. I should be more careful with my words.”
“Yes, you should. Especially in the presence of a lady,” she reminds me, trying to force away a smile.
“Can ye ever forgive me?” I ask as we slow our pace through the crowd.
“Hmm…we shall see if you can redeem yourself.” She stops then and turns to face me, her expression coy as she opens her fan to gently cool her chest and throat.
I pause to admire how stunning she is when she’s being playful, but before I can articulate a compliment, Admiral Wilfred Buchanan interrupts with a heavy hand on my shoulder as his baritone voice drowns out the noise of the crowd.
“Captain Stewart! By Jove! I wasn’t sure it was you. I say, it has been that long since I laid eyes upon you. You must fill me in on your exploits. I’ve heard stories, but I need to hear it from the horse’s mouth.” He slowly turns to Ella and acknowledges herandthe fact that we were in the middle of a conversation—one I wish would continue without interruption. “Please forgive me, ma’am. I must speak with the captain, as we have important matters to discuss. I wouldn’t want to bore your sensibilities with the conversations of men.”
Everything about that last comment has my teeth clenching. What he doesn’t realize is that Ella could likely talk circles around him and leave him wondering if he knows as much as he thinks he does.
