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Chapter Six
Despite her vehement protests, there lingered a speculative glint in her friend’s eyes. Charity silently groaned. It was the memory of the blasted explicit dream that had coaxed heat to her pale cheeks. I do not like the earl! Yet Charity was aware of the silly pounding of her heart. Where was the earl? She wanted to ask Jenna but would not dare do so now. Charity did not even know why she wanted to know his whereabouts.
Inexplicably, her heart started to thud, her skin felt sensitized, and even her sense of smell had heightened. Glancing up, her gaze collided with that of the earl who was in the process of closing the door behind him.
Oh, God. Why had she never noticed how compelling he was before? Hiding the skipping of her heart and the fluttering in her belly behind a polite smile, she nodded genially to him before standing and dipping into a curtsy. “Your Lordship,” she politely greeted. Oh, the man looked splendid; he had clearly been up for some hours as he was wearing riding clothes, and they showed him off to advantage. The tight buckskins allowed her imagination to picture his musculature far more exactly than his more formal dress did. His face bore a stern expression, but his eyes held a sparkle in their depths.
“Lady Charity,” he said, “a pleasure to see you this morning.”
Jenna’s avid gaze skipped between them, and Charity maintained a pleasant smile while sitting down.
“Did you receive all the letters?” he asked Jenna.
“I am a lady of honor, my lord. I said I would deliver all of them, and I did,” Charity said sweetly.
“Since I am not acquainted with your honor, Lady Charity, I will only rely on the evidence of my own perception.”
She stiffened against the cushions. “You’ve perceived me to be a lady with little honor?”
“Of course not. But I also suspect your contrary nature.”
“I do not—”
Jenna clapped her hands. “How wonderful you are here, Ethan! And yes, Charity did bring them all for me. We burned them.”
“Good. I will pay a call upon Viscount Sallis to impress upon him that there will be no marriage.”
Jenna clasped her hands together, looking worried. “Is it necessary, Ethan?”
The earl’s brow rose inquiringly. “Why would it not be?’
“Can we not simply retire to the country as planned?” Jenna’s face was flushed with evident dismay. “If the viscount approaches me again, perhaps then a conversation would prove necessary.”
Charity felt a rush of sympathy for her friend, suspecting Jenna did not want her brother to learn the degrees of liberty she had allowed the viscount. “I agree with Jenna. Should you approach the viscount, he would be most suspicious and believe you are the one who stole the letters.”
“It hardly matters what Sallis believes,” the earl said drily, his gaze a bit too intent on Charity.
“I would also like to invite Charity to Dorset with us, Ethan,” Jenna said, not looking at either as she poured herself a second cup of tea.
“Dorset?” Charity and Ethan happened to ask at the same time.
Jenna looked up with a bright smile. “Yes, as you know, Charity, I sprained my ankle only a few days ago in a fall. The doctor recommended the brisk country air to help with healing.”
“The country air for a sprain? That seems excessive.”
“It was more than that; I also knocked my head against the door, clumsy of me, I know,” Jenna said with a slight blush. “I’ve been having headaches since. He said the smog of town is not best for recovering. Nor am I to do any dancing or riding for at least two weeks. Hating the idea of being cooped up here without any fun to be had, I begged Ethan for us to retire to our country home for the next two weeks. It just occurred to me how wonderful it would be if you could be a dear friend and accompany me to relieve the tedium of the country!”
There was a pleading look in Jenna’s eyes that softened Charity’s heart. Most of society was in town for the season. Even their close neighbors might be in London. Jenna would have little to do in Dorset, and Charity might take the opportunity to avoid her brother’s boorish attempt at matchmaking.
There was decidedly only one problem. And he was sitting in a wingback chair, as still as a blasted statue, his expression hard and inscrutable as granite. Unable to read the earl, Charity smiled at Jenna. “Dorset sounds lovely.”
“Then please say you will come!”
“A brief stay in the country would allow me to escape some pesky matchmaking efforts by my brother. He is boorish and very determined in his efforts, and I would truly appreciate a break from it all.”
Jenna grinned widely. “How wonderful! You have eased the worries I had in my heart. Mama and Aunt Bess will be so pleased to not hear my infernal grumblings about not having any friends for company.”
They laughed and Charity couldn’t help feeling a flare of anxiousness when the earl stood, his expression carefully composed.
