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I sound like an idiot.
I am one. Ugh.
He's staring at me.
"Where are you headed?"
I swallow, feeling like I've been caught doing something wrong. I nod down the path.
"Walking, to see the vineyards, and eat my lunch. Lady Madeline is in a lesson," I add the last few words hurriedly, in case he thinks I've stuffed his daughter into a closet and locked the door.
"It's a nice day for that, but make sure next time you tell someone where you're going," he says, and I bite the inside of my cheek.
"I have my phone on me," I say, "if anyone needs to get ahold of me." I pat my pocket. He looks like he wants to say something, but doesn't, and it's that piercing gaze of his— it's so cold. It slips over me like a sheet of rainwater, making me need to shiver.
"Madeline doesn't travel much, but when she does, you'll be with her, and over time, certain bad actors will come to know who you are," his words are clipped, stern. "Don't make yourself a target. Always tell someone where you're going, preferably Mrs. Harris."
My cheeks must be pink, from embarrassment and surprise.
"I'm sorry," I say and he cuts me off with a shake of his head.
"Never-mind. Next time, make sure you leave word. Alright?" His thumb taps on the steering wheel of the ATV.
"Of course, your grace, I'm sorry. Next time, I will tell someone," I stumble over the words.
"Apology accepted. Enjoy your walk." He nods in parting and I manage a clumsy curtsey. The ATV turns around, engine rumbling along and he starts to drive back the way he went.
Did he…
Did he come all the way out here, to find me?
His back is straight and stern as he drives away. A lump forms in my throat and I swallow around it, trying to make it go away.
Oh my god. Mrs. Harris is going to kill me. The duke himself came to find me, like I was a lost puppy that had gotten out.
She's going tomurderme.
Awkward, and uncomfortable, I find a place to sit on the side of the road and eat my sandwich, not really in the mood to go for more of a walk after that.
As time passes and logic starts to sink in, none of it makes sense.
Why did the duke come looking for me? Why not justcall? Why not send a footman, or a gardener? Someone beneath him, if he was so concerned? A man of his position wouldn't trouble himself looking for a servant, not ever. Not unless…
Unless he was actually concerned enough, that he felt driven to look for himself.
My hand goes still around my sandwich and I set it down in my lap, not able to take another bite.
Why, out of all people who actually mattered to him, would the duke be concerned about me?
I can't eat. I have to get back to the house, and beg forgiveness from Mrs. Harris and promise not to make any more disturbances in the duke's day.
I jog back, confused and terrified of what I'll find when I get there. My phone has been silent, with no messages, so if she's upset, she can't be too angry.
At least, I can hope that's why the radio silence.
I nearly skid into the servant's hall, and one of the footmen is playing cards on the table, solitaire. He looks up at me and raises an eyebrow.
Oh shit.
