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Sabrina wrinkled her nose. “Yes, Jeannie has developed quite an interest in our poor vicar. And so quickly, too.”
Kathleen sighed. “She’s turning out to be as impulsive as I was at her age, and she’s in love with the idea of being in love. Mr. Brown, alas, is quite attractive, too, which doesn’t help.”
“You’ve nothing to fear from David. He is everything a vicar should be, and more.”
“Jeannie’s not the one in danger, I’m afraid.”
Sabrina laughed. “She did rather drag him off, didn’t she? When he so clearly wished to spend time with you.”
“Rats. I was so hoping that wasn’t the case.”
“It is definitely the case.”
“That won’t make life with Jeannie any easier. I’ll have to do what I can to discourage him.” She flapped a hand. “It’s quite ridiculous, since he only met me yesterday, and under less than propitious circumstances.”
Circumstances like her undergarments strewn all over the road and beyond.
“While I’m not the least surprised he finds you attractive,” said Sabrina, “David’s behavior is a bit out of character. He’s quite shy, though he certainly seems eager to spend time with you.”
“I’m a complete scandal. He should be running in the other direction.”
“He doesn’t know you’re a scandal,” Sabrina said in a consoling tone. “Just give it time.”
“Thank you for that vote of confidence,” Kathleen sarcastically replied. “Perhaps I can scatter more of my undergarments along the drive to the house. That might scare him off.”
“Really? I imagine the sight of your frillies did quite the opposite.”
“Bloody hell,” Kathleen couldn’t help muttering.
She’d been surprised that Brown had come calling so quickly, volunteering to take her and Jeannie for a tour in his curricle. Jeannie had responded with enthusiasm, apparently forgetting that Kathleen and carriages did not generally mix.
While she’d been casting about for a polite refusal, Grant had come to her rescue. In a blighting tone, he’d informed Brown that pleasure excursions with young ladies should be kept to a minimum as long as bandits were roaming the countryside. When Graeme had backed up his brother, the vicar had been forced to concede.
When Jeannie had started to argue the issue, Sabrina had tactfully suggested a group stroll to Lochnagar Distillery, which was on the estate and only about a mile from the manor. The recommendation met all the necessary requirements. Brown could visit with the ladies, and the ladies would be safe on estate grounds, escorted by the gentlemen.
Picking up the pace as they rounded a curve in the path, Kathleen breathed a sigh of relief when she spotted Jeannie and the vicar a few hundred yards ahead. Her sister, clinging to Brown’s arm, was chattering away like a magpie. It all looked harmless enough.
“There, nothing to worry about,” said Sabrina. “And I see the terrible twins not far ahead of them, so David is properly chaperoned.”
“I do apologize for foisting my handful of a little sister on you, Sabrina. Truly, I didn’t know what else to do. Jeannie’s really very sweet—just a little lost and lonely right now.”
Kathleen’s throat suddenly constricted. She knew what it meant to feel that sort of loneliness, as if no one understood you. Again, she silently vowed to be there for Jeannie, no matter what.
Sabrina gave her arm a squeeze. “Graeme and I are delighted that you’ve both come to stay with us. And I amespeciallydelighted that little Gus has taken a shine to you. It’s rather a miracle, that.”
“Believe me, I am just as surprised as you are.”
After dinner last night, she had gone—reluctantly, she wasn’t too proud to admit—with Sabrina to the nursery. Her cousin had fed the baby and helped the nursemaid put him to bed. Gus had been fine while his mamma was feeding him, but as soon as she’d gently transferred him to his cradle, he’d kicked up an unholy fuss. He’d wriggled under his little blanket, wailing away until his cheeks turned as red as polished apples.
The nursemaid had suggested rocking him in the cradle but, sadly, that had failed to do the trick. Sabrina had finally picked up her son, but Gus had still continued to fuss. Just when Kathleen had been tempted to sneak from the room, Sabrina had turned and swiftly plunked Gus in her arms. Gulping, she’d clutched the little bundle awkwardly to her chest.
And then, as if a spigot had been closed, Gus had stopped crying. When Kathleen had cautiously eased her grip and peered down at him, he stared back, looking just as amazed as she was.
Kathleen had then spent the next half hour trying to get the little devil to sleep. Every time she tried to hand him over to his mother or put him down in the cradle, his sleepy eyes had popped wide and he’d start to wind himself up again. Resigned to her fate, she’d paced the floor with the baby, whiling the time away by chatting softly with Sabrina. Her cousin had entertained her with mind-boggling stories about her courtship with Graeme, and Kathleen had found herself confessing her frustrations with life in theton. Sabrina had listened with quiet sympathy, not making judgments or offering advice.
It was a far cry from Kathleen’s life in London. Yet last night in that peaceful nursery tucked under the eaves of the old manor house, she’d felt a sort of contentment she’d not had for a very long time.
“I’m not sure Angus is very happy with me, though,” Kathleen added. “He seemed quite put out by my hitherto unknown ability to soothe fractious babies.”
