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Nathan could only nod, his throat tightening.
She rubbed his shoulder. “Now then, do tell me why it’s ‘Arabella’, now and not Miss Hughs.”
A flush overcame him as he realized his mistake. “We… had time to talk after I found her.”
His mother raised an eyebrow, grinning like a cat cornering a mouse. “And was that last night or this morning? I know about that gamekeeper’s cabin that you always liked to spend time at as a boy whenever you visited Thurmont.” The grin snapped into a frown. “Milton, tell me you did not spend the night with her?”
He felt his blush turned ten shades darker. “Not like that.” Mostly. “We merely sheltered together from the storm.”
“I see.” The look he received in response told him that the woman didn’t believe the answer for a second.
“Everything was most proper,” he lied. “But please, do not say anything. I’ve gotten Arabella to agree to a courtship, and I do not want to force her hand with the threat of ruination.”
The duchess’s eyes lit up. “A courtship, you say?” She smiled triumphantly. “Looks like my first intuition was right after all.”
“Whatever are you talking about?” he asked with a curious smile.
“To be frank, when I first met Felicity’s daughters, it had been the elder Miss Hughs who’d first caught my eye and who I thought might interest you. But then, of course, that mess happened at the end of the night, and I shifted to Miss Caroline. I’m now entirely convinced that the exchange was all your fault. Oh, this is so wonderful,” she continued at a rapid pace. “When are you proposing?”
“We aren’t that far along yet, mother,” he protested lightly.
“Yet,” she repeated. The color had fully returned to her face by now, and he feared she was about to vibrate with excitement.
“Remember, please go along with the tale Thurmont and Derry gives everyone.”
“Yes, yes. That is indeed the wise course of action. Not that I would have said anything, anyway. Oh, I am so happy you found your duchess so quick.”
“We shall see.” He wouldn’t set himself up for disappointment and would keep his expectations reasonable. He sensed that Arabella still didn’t trust him completely, and if that wasn’t addressed soon, everything would come crumbling down around them.
* * *
“Sketching my handsome face, I hope?”
“You wish,” Arabella said with a small laugh as she continued working on the drawing. She surveyed the glimmering lake before bowing her head over the drawing once more. It had been nearly a week since that disastrous ride, and the house party was almost at an end. She’d recovered from her ordeal within a day, much to the relief of Caroline and even her mother, and was able to participate in the remainder of the party. Normally, she would have relished the excuse to stay holed up in her rooms and away from company. Now, however, things were different. Much different.
She smiled as a pair of arms wrapped around her waist, pulling her against a warm chest. Nathan rested his head on her shoulder. “A penny for your thoughts, my dear?”
“Just thinking about this past week”, Arabella replied and continued to sketch in the cage of his arms. Nathan had danced attendance on her at just about every activity, making his intentions more than obvious to everyone else. Caroline had been delighted at the news of the courtship, while her mother had given tight lipped approval. Perhaps the woman was upset that Caroline hadn’t been chosen, or was embarrassed that the child she’d put no faith in was potentially about to secure the match of the season, but Arabella didn’t let the lukewarm reaction bother her. She was far too happy to care.
Nathan was kind, charming, and a wonderful companion. There was a calmness to their courtship, a serene relaxation that was nothing like her awkward, shallow exchanges with Lindsay. Nathan didn’t pile her with meaningless complements, nor fill the silence with inane chatter, but rather proved himself to be a steadfast companion, whose easy conversation and quiet admiration had her eagerly looking forward to every new day with him.
She was half in love already.
“It’s been a marvelous week,” he said. “Though I must state a preference for these dawn meetings of ours.”
“I agree.” Every morning she went to the lake to sketch, and every morning Nathan would conveniently cross paths with her on his morning ride. They’d spend the remainder of the morning lounging by the lake, with him laying on the hill as he watched her draw and, on occasion, crawling over to give her a clandestine kiss or two. Arabella could envision them having this routine forever, and a larger and larger part of her was hoping it would be so.
“Do you have a lake on your estate?” Her heartbeat quickened after asking the question. It was the closest she’d come to a direct acknowledgment of their potential union. Whilst they’d agreed on a courtship in the cabin, Nathan hadn’t brought up the topic for the rest of the week. She appreciated the lack of pressure on his part, but the longer she didn’t have a confirmation, the more her irrational anxieties gained traction. Perhaps she should ask him plainly if he planned to propose, but such a direct action brought on an entirely different host of nerves.
“Not as spectacular as this,” he replied, not taking the admittedly vague hint. “But the countryside is quite beautiful, and we have a wonderful spot to look at the stars. Andrew took me there often as a boy.”
There was a wistful sadness in his voice at the mention of the deceased man, and Arabella knew that now wasn’t the time to bring up her worries. “You’ve never spoken of him in detail to me, or the late duke.” He was silent, and she worried the question had been too presumptuous. “You do not have to tell me about them if I am prying.”
“You weren’t prying.” He disengaged from her and sat down to her left. “I just wasn’t sure where to start at first, but it is something I would like to share with you.” He stared out into the lake before continuing. “I cared for my father, but we didn’t get on well. Andrew had been such a staid, well-behaved boy growing up that when my difficult self came along, he didn’t quite know what to do with me. I wasn’t even an expected child, as mother had struggled to conceive in the ten years after my older brother’s birth. Where Andrew had been easy, studious, and eager to take on his responsibilities, I was a bit of a hellion, being set back from school several times and chafing under the expectations placed upon me.”
“He didn’t understand you,” she noted. Her own father hadn’t even made the attempt, but Arabella wondered if he would even like her were the dour man to try.
“The duke loved me in his own way,” Nathan mused. “He just didn’t know what to do with me and kept his distance. Andrew, however, was different.” He looked away from her again, and she could see the tightening of his throat.
