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Michel and Adele exchanged worried glances.
Adele mimed slitting her throat.“Vous êtes à la guillotine,”she whispered to Mari.
“I’m not going to the guillotine, dear.”
“You’ll be dismissed and that’s sure,” Michel whispered.
“Dismissed?” replied Mari, bending closer to the boy and putting her hands on his shoulders. “I’mneverdismissed. You’ll see. Don’t worry about a thing.”
She honestly didn’t think the duke would go that far. She trusted him not to throw her out. But he did have an ominous expression on his face.
She’d humiliated him in front of his friends.
Michel’s smile fell away. “I hope you’re right. We didn’t mean to get you into trouble.”
Mrs. Fairfield appeared on the steps. “Did you have a nice outing?” she asked.
Then she saw the duke’s face.
“Whatever is the matter, my dear?” she whispered to Mari.
“I’ll explain everything later.”
They followed Banksford into the house. In the entranceway, Michel turned troubled eyes on his father. “Are you cross with us, Father?”
“No, I’m not cross.” He ruffled Michel’s hair. “Why don’t you and Adele see if Miss Martin made any pastries?”
“The most delicious smells have been issuing from the kitchens all day,” said Mrs. Fairfield.
The children cast doubtful glances at Mari, but the promise of French pastries was more than they could withstand. They left with Mrs. Fairfield.
Mari began to back slowly out of the room. Perhaps if she just quietly went about her business he’d forget about her and she would live to see another day.
“And just where do you think you’re going, Miss Perkins?”
Damnation.
“You and I are going for a ride,” he growled.
Chapter 12
“Baa,” said Mari.
“Did you just bleat, Miss Perkins?”
“Yes. Because you’re herding me like I was a sheep.”
“Get in the carriage.”
“Where are you taking me?”
“Just get in.” He helped her step up into his curricle, setting her down a little too forcefully on the peach velvet upholstery.
She swished her skirts into place.
He landed beside her with a thud that shook the entire frame of the curricle, and took up the reins from his groom, who had been holding the spirited pair of brown bays at the ready.
They set off from the mews at such a fast clip that Mari had to hold on to her bonnet with one hand, and the edge of the curricle with the other.
