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She was not immediately obliged to answer him, and she took a few moments, enjoying the piercing warmth tumbling through her. “Thank you, Phineas.”
He cleared his throat again. “We eat at six. Our cook promises a most succulent roast and fish in garlic-buttered crème sauce.” The earl made a kissing sound through the door as if he had topped off his fingers with that kiss.
Smothering a smile, she said, “I will shortly be down.”
Another pause, and she wondered if he had moved on. “Oskar is looking forward to a reacquaintance.”
She laughed as the tension dispelled from her body. “He has a place at the table?”
“Of course. I will see you shortly, Miss Harrington.”
This time she heard the smile in his voice and the faint footsteps as he walked away. Felicity was considered unmarriageable or unsuitable for fine gentlemen with their wealth and connections. Surely if she chose to partake in kisses because she wanted to, there could be no ruination in that. Leaning against the door, Felicity decided that should he ever try to steal a kiss again outside of their negotiated boundary, she just might let him.
Doesshe want me to kiss her?
That question kept knocking its way around Phin’s mind, distracting him from the conversation at dinner. His thoughts lingered on the embarrassment that had reddened her cheeks and the way her gaze had slid away from his before she ran. As if a man could not want her. As if he was not already knotted up inside whenever she smiled at him, or that innately sensual way she tucked a wisp of hair behind her ear. Ears he wanted to nibble on and whisper sweet and filthy things into.
He glanced over where she sat beside Annabelle at the dining table. His fiancée appeared very pretty, garbed in a gown of turquoise muslin trimmed with gold embroidery. Her hair had been caught in a simple chignon, baring the elegance of her neck and throat. Phineas was glad she had refused a new wardrobe with more fashionable gowns. He liked her simplicity; even as he suspected should he array her in rubies and diamonds, she would glow with flawless prettiness. One of his many flaws was a tendency to become bored too quickly, but some instinct warned him Miss Harrington would never bore him. The notion felt certain, and he felt foolish for having it, for what did it matter?
She laughed at something Mary said, and Felicity did it with her whole body. There were no pretensions or covering her mouth with a gloved hand while she tittered. Phineas forced himself to look away from her and attend to his food. He caught his grandmother’s eyes, who looked between them with her eagle eyes. There was a glint of an unidentified emotion in her eyes, but he was pleased to see that she was relaxed and smiling.
“I am truly astonished Oskar has a place at the table,” she said, glancing at the ferret who lay curled on the chair beside him, its belly full.
“You are familiar with the creature?” his grandmother asked with a slight frown.
And Phin knew why she asked, and he almost smiled his triumph. His pet had not left Kent for almost three months.
“Oh yes, the first time I met him, I thought he was a rat and offended his regalness.”
His grandmother’s dubious stare said she believed he had merely told Miss Harrington about Oskar.What a savvy, suspicious, old biddy, he fondly thought.
“How is your father coming on? I suspect he will miss you dreadfully,” his mother said.
Felicity’s fork froze in midair, and guilt clawed at him when her fingers tightened about the utensil. She had informed him on their travel down that her father had passed away and she only had her mother. This must be painful for her, and when she glanced at him, he hoped his gaze communicated his regret. She smiled at him, the course of her mouth tender, the look in her eyes understood and unwounded.
“It is really mama who relies on me most,” she said with a smile. “I am certain she is missing me already, but I promised to write her.”
His grandmother nodded approvingly, and thankfully the conversation moved on to Annabelle’s newest scientific experiment. Their dinner ended, and his grandmother baldly suggested he take Felicity for a walk in the gardens.
He stared at her with narrowed eyes; his mind slowly churning.
“What is it, my boy? You are not liking the idea of showing your fiancée the wonderful grounds?”
“I merely thought of the mosquitoes and her fair skin,” he said tightly, wondering at the suspicions flowering through his veins.
“I like mosquitoes,” his fiancée piped up. “They do not usually bite me.”
His sisters laughed, and though she flushed, Felicity joined them. Even his grandmother smiled and gave her an almost fond look. It occurred to him then his nanna liked that his supposed fiancée wanted to spend time with him. A few minutes after Felicity collected her shawl, they strolled along the eastern side of the estate.
“You seem pensive,” she murmured, casting him a sidelong glance. “I thought today went well, and your grandmother looks lively. I believe you have made her happy, and even as ill-judged as it is, you made the correct decision in bringing me here.”
“I think I did as well. This is the first I am seeing her look so robust and invigorated in a long time. Thank you for agreeing.”
“Oh, it was the five thousand pounds,” she said candidly and with an airy laugh.
“There was that,” he said drily. “I also suspected it was your kindness.”
“Considering it my repayment for an umbrella on a decidedly rainy evening.”
