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“I thought we might remain for our picnic, after all. Would that be agreeable to you, Miss Parker? If you are too shaken, we can return to Langston House.” He could not gauge Rose’s reaction, for he could no longer see her face.
After a moment, she gave a slight nod. “If that’s your will, My Lord, then I’m happy to be of service.”
“Would you be amenable to dining with Hudson and me?” He knew Mrs. Whittaker would have exploded if she were to hear him make such a suggestion.
Rose took a sharp intake of breath, which Dorian could feel through his chest, as though he were taking the breath with her. “Are you sure that is proper, My Lord? Won’t I be in trouble?”
“With whom?” He brought the horse to a halt a short distance from the carriage, so as not to awaken the sleeping driver. He wished to savor these last moments of nearness with Rose, for he did not know if he would ever dare to be so close to her again.
“Mrs. Whittaker, or Lord Bentley, or… I don’t know, My Lord.”
“Do not worry yourself on my account!” Hudson’s voice cut through the air. The scoundrel had evidently been listening in to the conversation. “I would be delighted to have some charming company for a picnic, for once. The Captain is pleasant enough, do not mistake me, but he does have a tendency to sour the port with his sullen stare.”
Dorian scowled at his friend.
“You see! There it is!” Hudson cried gleefully. “The milk will surely be cottage cheese by the time we unpack, having sensed that his ill humor is nearby.”
Rose chuckled, and the scowl instantly softened upon Dorian’s brow. It was the sound that he had longed to hear whenever he passed by the laundry and the sound that often evaded him. Although, he felt marginally annoyed that Hudson had been the one to get her to laugh so wholeheartedly instead of him.
“I will help you down, Miss Parker.” Dorian swung his leg back over the horse and slid easily to the ground. He lifted his hands in readiness to hold her, already thinking of the curvature of her waist and the way her body molded to his palms. He had managed to show enough restraint during their previous lifts, though there had been a moment where he had lost control of his breath, his mind too overwhelmed by the feel of her to concentrate on taking in air.
She turned on the horse’s back and reached out to brace against his shoulders. Her hands seemed to cling on more intently, her gaze locked with his as his palms moved into place, as though they were taking part in some frowned-upon Viennese dance that encouraged the fleeting touch between gentlemen and ladies.
He swallowed the clot in his throat as he lifted her down to the ground, reluctant to move his hands away. But propriety got the better of him, and he released his hold. However, he continued to stand there, staring at her, not knowing whether to bow or offer his arm or thank her. It would have been simpler if she were a lady of station, for his peerage education would have come into play. With her, however, he was completely at sea.
“What do you say we spread out a blanket and fill our bellies with the cook’s delicious treats?” Hudson saved the day, dissipating the tension with his casual manner.
Dorian breathed a soft sigh of relief. “Excellent, Hudson. If you fetch the blankets, then Miss Parker and I can arrange the baskets.”
Rose shook her head. “That would not be right, My Lords. The two of you should enjoy the scenery while I prepare everything. That’s why I was brought along, so I wouldn’t feel as though I were doing my duty if I allowed you to do it, in my stead.”
“As you prefer, Miss Parker. I certainly will not complain at being allowed to laze at my leisure, while I am tended to by the prettiest maid in Langston House,” Hudson replied, with a taunting wink to Dorian.
Hudson, you are coming exceedingly close to being pushed off this cliff!Dorian bit his tongue, choosing to show his chagrin on his face as he shot his friend a dark look. But Hudson merely laughed, as he was wont to do, and beckoned for Dorian to come and sit with him on the cliff’s edge.
It also surprised him to hear Rose laugh again. “Everyone knows that Georgie is the fairest maid at Langston House, though I thank you for the flattery, even if I suspect you do not believe what you say.”
Hudson looked stunned. “My charm must be failing me in my advancing years. I have never had a maid be so blunt in their retort.” A grin tugged at his lips. “I have to say, it is rather refreshing!”
“Then, perhaps you should heed my warning that you are not to use your ‘charms’ on any of the maids at Langston House,” Dorian chided, as he went to his friend and sat down on the cliff edge. “Let that be a lesson to you.”
Hudson smiled and gazed out at the crystalline sparkle of the sea beyond. “She really is something, Captain,” he said, his voice low. “I have never seen you smile so often, as you have done the entire way here and upon the ride up to the cliff peak.”
“I enjoy the seaside. Why should I not smile?” Dorian replied, trying to feign nonchalance.
Hudson shrugged. “Perhaps I am mistaken. Perhaps it is the seaside that infatuates you. Or, perhaps, it is the young lady whom you called ‘Rose’ when you lunged to save her.”
“Pardon?” Dorian frowned, for he did not know what his friend was referring to.
“When she slipped and almost fell, and you caught her in your arms like the gallant hero that you are, you called her by her name.” Hudson cast him a knowing glance. “Do you not remember?”
Shock rippled through Dorian’s chest, as he realized that Hudson was right. He had, indeed, called Rose by her name when he had saved her from plummeting to her death. And he had cried out with such desperation that he was almost ashamed of the emotion that had risen in his voice.
Perhaps she did not hear… Perhaps she was too preoccupied with the danger to pay attention to what I said.His stomach roiled with anxiety, for there were few things more intimate upon this Earth than calling one another by their given name. Only one person had ever called him ‘Dorian’ in his life, and she had probably cursed it when they were torn away from one another. Even his mother and father had referred to him as ‘Son’ or ‘Darling.’ Never his name.
“My Lords, luncheon is prepared,” Rose announced a few minutes later. Behind them, blankets had been laid out with jars of preserves holding down the edges against the mischievous breeze. Two large baskets had been arranged in the center, while two sets of plates and cutlery and glasses were evenly spaced. Dorian noticed there was a third set, jumbled together at the farthest corner of the blanket. A sign of Rose’s self-consciousness toward the idea of dining with them.
Why must you be so endearing?He sighed as he got to his feet and walked the short distance to their picnicking site. Bathed in the warm summer sunlight, with the wind whipping her hair into a frenzy and nipping roses into her cheeks, he did not know if he had ever seen her look more spirited and beautiful. As though she, too, had learned something valuable up on that cliff peak.
Do not think of me as your savior, Rose, for I am but a charlatan who makes promises that he cannot keep. I am no gallant hero. One day, a time will come when I am not there to catch you at the right moment… and you will come to hate me, just as “she” did. And you will know that I truly am the wretch people once whispered that I was, when I inevitably fail you.
In his world, history had a nasty habit of repeating itself. If he could not control his fledgling feelings for Rose, he knew he stood to lose whatever fragments of his heart he had left. And yet… he did not know how to stop the sickness of Rose that had already lodged itself within his blood, infiltrating every vein until he could not rest easy without hearing her voice.
In truth, he did not know if he could. Perhaps, some things could not be stopped. Like the tow of the perilous currents that lurked below the surface of the sea, one did not know they would be pulled under until it was too late.
