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William’s behavior must be at fault in some way. It was the only explanation that held any merit.
Pippa passed the road that led into Camden Court, quickening her steps so she would not be seen, and continued on toward Ravenwood Cottage. Surely she could visit on the guise of... something neighborly...and deliver a quick, stern warning to leave Lily alone if there was no attachment already. William would hardly be able to look Pippa in the eye and admit to his feelings for Lily without some degree of discomfort. The man was falsely flirting with one of them.
She pulled up short on the fork in the path and turned her back on the trail that led into the Blakemore’s small grove. Pippa looked out over the gray sky and choppy, dark waves. She’d been so offended by Lily’s revelation, but why? Surely it would not have hurt so deeply if Pippa had not believed William to be authentic in his interactions with her.
The turmoil in the ocean reflected the churning of her stomach, and Pippa shut her eyes against the image before her. She had never been the type given to bouts of jealousy, and these feelings for William were every bit as new and foreign as they were dreadful and exciting. Pressing her palm to her midsection, Pippa drew in a clean, salty breath and released it through her nose. She opened her eyes, ready to return home and leave her confrontation with William to another day.
“Miss Sheffield,” William called, approaching from the path that led to his house.
Or perhaps she would have that confrontation now.
William’s coat was missing, his shirtsleeves rolled up and cravat dangerously loosened, revealing his tanned forearms and throat. Was the man desperate to make this difficult for her?
“Miss Sheffield?” he asked, the question lacing his words and drawing confusion on his brow. “Is something amiss?”
“Of course not,” she said brightly. Though her bonnet ribbons would soon be a crumpled mess if she clutched them any tighter.
He lifted an eyebrow. He’d seen through her false assurance. “Now I know something is most definitely not right. What is it?”
“Nothing.” Goodness, must her voice sound so high and unnatural?
He opened his mouth as though he meant to speak but closed it again without uttering a word. Resting his hands on his waist, William looked past her. “I was going down to the cove for a bit. Would you care to join me?”
Pippa swallowed hard. This was the opportunity she needed to question him and warn him away from Lily, so why was she having such difficulty forming the words? She supposed it was easier to feign bravado when alone and fuming, but faced with the object of her anger was a whole different thing entirely. It was difficult to think straight when he had a habit of sending her heart into frantic turmoil.
“For a few minutes, perhaps,” she finally said, as though she were a busy woman and hadn’t planned on going down to the cove already on her own. They turned for the path down to the beach, and William did not offer her his arm, for which she was grateful. She could hardly recall exactly why she was angry with the man, and she was certain that all reason and sense would flee were he to touch her again.
They traveled down to the beach in silence and the steep walls of earth rose around them, cocooning them in the palm of the beach in a false sense of privacy. Pippa hadn’t considered the inappropriateness of being alone with William on the beach, and the intimacy of walking the secluded stretch of sand made her pulse pound.
What had she been thinking coming down here with him? What had he been thinking to ask it of her?
“You seem troubled,” he said. But she did not wish to speak of the things which bothered her. Not yet.
“Do you come down here often?” Pippa asked, needing for him to speak about the mundane. Anything to break the spell.
He looked sheepish. “I do. Is that allowed? I hadn’t thought to ask permission from your brother-in-law.”
“It is not our land, actually. You are more than welcome on this beach.”
“I must admit that I expected to meet you here with more frequency. It has been disappointing, to say the least.”
Warmth blossomed in Pippa’s chest, and she beat it down, forcing herself to remember Lily. This man was not sincere. His handsome grin was not meant for her alone.
“I’m not sure why my presence would matter.” Oh, good heavens. Now she most certainly sounded as though she were begging him to compliment and reassure her. She spoke again quickly. “I only mean that surely you do not come down here with the express purpose of meeting me.”
“I would disagree with you but my mother taught me to be more polite.”
Pippa stopped walking and faced him, shaking her head. She could not believe the gumption of this man to be so blatant in his flirtations just minutes after leaving Lily’s presence and giving her the same treatment. “You do realize that Lily Burke is my closest friend, do you not?”
William looked startled. “Yes. Well, I had assumed you were close to her, at least.”
She scoffed. “And still you persist?”
The wind increased, whipping her skirts about her legs as the clouds darkened and the water turned a deep gray.
“What exactly are you referring to, Pippa? In what way am I persisting?”
“My Christian name!” she said, as though this were the very proof she needed. “Your generous flirtations. You cannot honestly believe that I would pursue a man who has given my dearest friend reason to believe herself falling in love.”
