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CHAPTER 36
Edward discarded his coat without breaking stride. He took the slope in two leaping bounds, hit the coping that surrounded the pond, and dove for the water. There was no way to tell how deep it was, but he had watched Harriet’s body hit the water and sink beneath the surface, dragged down by her dress. Weeds clutched at his arms and legs as he speared into the water. Pulling with powerful arms, Edward propelled himself to the spot he had seen Harriet hit the water. Something brushed his fingers that was not slimy floral matter. It felt like fabric.
The water was dark from the vegetation floating on its surface. He could see almost nothing but, kicking closer to the ephemeral feel of something man-made, Edward was rewarded with a handful of cloth. Undoubtedly a dress. Hauling it into his arms, he held Harriet about the waist as he kicked the two of them to the surface. She had recovered consciousness as her face touched the air. She began coughing, then kicking and struggling violently. Edward hung on, reaching for the stones that encircled the pool and holding on with one hand.
“Don’t panic. You’re fine. You fell into the water. I’ve got you,” he said soothingly.
Rain was making the surface of the pool dance and heave. It was as wet out of the pool as it was in. Edward heaved Harriet unceremoniously up, pushing on her bottom until she had rolled over the coping stones onto the grass. Then he heaved himself out beside her. Harriet lay there coughing for a moment and clutching at her head, where a bump was rising.
“Let me help you up,” Edward said. “We need to get you inside and get that bump looked at by a physician.”
He reached for her but she brushed his hands away.
“No. I can stand on my own,” she protested.
“I doubt it but suit yourself,” Edward said, getting up wearily.
Harriet made it to her knees before a dizzy spell saw her wavering. Edward caught her under the arms and held her up.
“This is insane. You’ve hit your head. I will carry you back to the house…”
“No! I won’t let everyone see me like this. There are enough rumors about us already,” Harriet snapped.
“Are you surprised?” Edward said testily. “After our engagement has been publicly announced!”
“Not by me!” Harriet yelled, then winced, clutching at her head.
Edward had woken with enough hangovers to empathize with her pain.
“I believe you. If you are willing to believe me. What you saw in there…”
“Was none of my concern. We are not engaged and never will be. Marrying Eleanor will save Erdington so I welcome it,” Harriet said, pushing herself to her feet unsteadily.
“Will you listen to me!” Edward said. “She kissed me. Out of the blue and without encouragement. There is nothing between us. Nor will there ever be.”
Harriet looked at him frowning.
“Would I have chased you through half the house and gardens if I were intending to marry your cousin?” Edward said.
“I suppose you would not care what I thought in that instance,” Harriet admitted.
“Exactly. Now, do you suppose we can get out of this rain?”
“Not to the house though,” Harriet insisted. “There is a place nearby.”
She took a step and her legs folded beneath her. Edward caught her and she clung to him for a moment. Then she took another step, wavered, and took another. Edward supported her and they made their way around the pool and across an overgrown lawn. Sheltered behind a thick mass of trees and undergrowth was a wooden structure that stood on a jumble of stones. The pond emptied beside the house, tumbling over a waterfall to a larger pool beneath.
“This used to be the Swiss Cottage,” Harriet explained as she negotiated the path to the front door, completely invisible beneath runaway growth. Except, apparently, to her. “My grandfather had it built. He loved everything European. French, Italian, German, Swiss. This was his escape, though he died before it was finished.”
She led him inside. The floors were bare boards and the walls paneled in wood, also bare. Doors to either side opened into empty, unfurnished rooms, each with a cold, dark fireplace. Ahead was a staircase, painted green. Harriet put her hand on the banister and took one step, then fainted. Edward caught her as she fell back, sweeping her up into her arms. Considering his options, he began to walk up the stairs, hoping to find a more hospitable room where Harriet could rest.
On the next floor was a balcony, separated from the rest of the house by a waist-high wooden wall, above which were windows that looked out through the balcony to woods beyond. He saw that blankets and cushions had been piled at one end of the balcony and, opening the door to it with a kick, he stepped outside. Lowering Harriet to the blankets, he put several cushions beneath her head, then smoothed wet hair back from her brow. Where his gentle fingers brushed the bump, Harriet winced and opened her eyes. Edward knelt beside her. Below them, the sound of tumbling water rose along with the smell of a rain-soaked woodland.
“Someone has made this into quite the nest,” Edward commented.
Harriet smiled. “Me. The house has never been furnished, but I love this spot, looking out over the pool. It’s so peaceful. And no one else knows about it. The whole house has been forgotten.”
Edward sat beside her, his back to the wood panels. The air tasted fresh and green as he breathed in, wiping moisture from his face. The pool looked dark and enigmatic. The trees beyond were a thousand shades of green and were sighing in the wind that had sprung up with the rain. Erdington Manor felt a long way off. Edward could imagine himself in a forest cottage, miles from anywhere. Possibly in the heart of some Alpine forest.
