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Richard ran his hand through his hair, which had him spraying water onto Isabel. She squealed and shied away from him.
“Richard!”
“Forgive me; I thought I was drying off.” Richard shook his head, sending more water everywhere. “Is that any better?”
“No, it isn’t, you oaf!” Isabel ducked away, laughing. “My dress is already wet. I don’t want to get anything else wet. Mother’s going to wonder what I was doing.”
“At least it’s just the skirt and not all of your dress.” Richard gestured at himself. “You’re not as bad as I am.”
“Do you think your father will be surprised if you return home like that?”
“Probably not. He knows me too well by now.” Richard shifted his jacket to his other arm. It was getting wet just being draped over him. “I was coming by to see you, actually. See how my friend is getting on.”
“Oh.” Isabel’s smile faded a little. She bit her lip. “That’s ... that’s very sweet of you, Richard.”
“You didn’t think I would come and see you. I might be terrible at correspondence, but I’m good at seeing people in person.” Richard gave a lopsided shrug. “For the most part. When it comes to those closest to me, that’s my preferred way of contact.”
“I see.”
“So, how are you?”
“I ... well …” Isabel cleared her throat and adjusted the hold on her hat. “Can we talk while we walk back to the house? I want to get this little one inside and dried off.”
“Of course.” Richard glanced down at the cream-coloured coat on the ground. “Yours, I take it?”
“Yes? Would you mind?”
“Of course not.” Richard leaned over and scooped up the coat. “It’s going to be a little damp by the time you get back, I’m afraid. Unless I manage to dry off in between now and reaching the front door.”
“I don’t think you would be allowed on the furniture, anyway.” Isabel giggled. “The servants would have a fit if you sat down.”
“You make me sound like a dog.” Richard groaned. He fell into step beside her. “But don’t worry about me coming inside and dripping on everything. I’ll take my leave and head home.”
“Are you sure?”
“Even if I’m a welcomed guest, I think my current state would be pushing the boundaries a little.”
“Oh.”
Was that a look of disappointment that flashed across her face? Richard wasn’t sure. He couldn’t read emotions very well on other people, especially women. When he had been in Europe and the ladies had been drawn to him, he had been terrible at realizing what they wanted. By the time Richard figured out they wanted something more than conversation, they had moved on. He had been lucky a few times, but they were far and few between.
He just didn’t know the language of ladies. It was far too complicated.
They headed up the slope and through the trees. Isabel was a little more timid than him, checking her footing each time before she went up, holding onto her hat with both hands. Soon, her confidence grew, and she was keeping up with him.
Richard half-expected her to do a repeat of when they had been walking on Dartmoor as children. Isabel had been very sure-footed, but the more confident she got, the less she worried about where her feet were going. She had almost fallen into a hidden crevasse in the rocks, and Richard had to yank her away from the edge. She just didn’t look where she was going.
That didn’t appear to have changed, for the most part.
“How was Europe?” Isabel asked, looking over her shoulder at Richard. The movement had her long hair swaying. “Was it as beautiful as you thought it would be?”
“It was, and then some. We travelled across seven countries, at least. I know we stayed in each of those seven countries for a time, just soaking up the atmosphere and documenting everything. And we’ve still got more than a dozen countries to explore.”
“Do you think you’ll go again?”
“Possibly.” Richard caught up with her, catching her elbow and helping her over some tree roots that snagged on her skirts. “Or maybe we’ll go to different countries. I like the sound of the Slavic countries. Or Scandinavia. Maybe I’ll even go further afield and enter the Middle East.”
Isabel stared at him.
