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“Is something wrong, Alex?”
He turned to her with a smile that lit up his face. A swarm of butterflies let loose in her stomach again and her heart did double time, almost making her dizzy. It must have shown on her face because Alex frowned and immediately walked up to her, taking her arm. “Are you well? Do you wish to return to your bedchamber?”
She shook her head but grasped his arm to steady herself. “I don’t understand what happened to me. This was the strangest day. I never sleep that long.”
Alex looked as if he was about to say something, then changed his mind. “You have been under stress for the last couple of days. Your body most likely needed extra rest.”
Because she worked with Rayne at the clinic, and sometimes for hours and hours at a time, she didn’t believe what he said. He looked as though he was hiding something, but he smiled again and said, “I think a stroll in the fresh air might be helpful.”
They decided to stroll the path to the wooded area instead of walking the gardens again. “I’m sure you will be happy when this entire thing is over, and you can return to your life.” Alex looked at her with a slight smile on his face.
“Actually, despite what has happened so far, I believe this has been a nice change for me.” She kicked a small pebble in her path. “I have come to realize that, despite my sister and her family, and of course my daughter, my life is lonely, or—” She looked up at him, not sure what to say.
What she wanted to say was that she had enjoyed his company so much she was beginning to realize that not all men were like Milton. She’d been so very adamant about never wanting a man’s attention again, and now, with Alex, she had begun to think that perhaps she was, truly, too young to just spend the rest of her life attending to patients and raising Annalise. And Annalise would love to be the big sister to siblings.
He wrapped his hand around hers where it rested on his arm. “I am guessing you had an unhappy experience with marriage. You are a remarkable woman, Natalie, and once again I’d like to put forth that we seem well suited, and I believe we should explore that when we return home. I know I was a tad forceful when I mentioned before about the possibility of turning this into a real engagement. That is, I think my wording was not right, or the time wasn’t right …”
She grinned at him. His wording was a bit hesitant, and she had the feeling he was struggling to say what she’d been thinking herself.
“Lord St. John, are you asking if you may court me?”
He breathed out a sigh of relief. “Yes, Mrs. Shaw, that is precisely what I am trying to say in my awkward way.”
They strolled for a few minutes, and she said, “I think I would like that.”
He turned so they were facing each other. “I know I would definitely like that.” He reached out and cupped her cheeks and lowered his mouth.
Whatever hesitation on her part, because of the way Milton had treated her, was lost in the sensations throughout her body that this unexpected kiss did to her.
Alex touched her lips with his tongue, and she opened to allow him in. The velvet of his tongue and the smell of mint and brandy on his breath warmed her and, for some reason, made her feel wanted and safe. He pulled her closer until she was flush against his body. She felt all his muscles and heat through both of their clothes.
“My goodness, Lord St. John, how improper you two are.” The loud words had them pulling apart. Alex wrapped his arm around her waist as they faced Miss Walsh and her mother, Mrs. Walsh.
CHAPTER9
Bloody hell.
There was both good and bad with Mildred and her mother catching him and Natalie kissing. Hopefully it reaffirmed his insistence to Mildred that he had no intention of breaking his betrothal and then marrying her. On the other hand, most likely the wicked gossips would spend a great deal of time spreading this news. Unless they are smart enough to realize that would be to their detriment, if the resumption of the erstwhile engagement was their goal.
“Good afternoon, Mrs. Walsh, Miss Walsh. What a surprise to see you here in the wooded area instead of the garden, which is a much more pleasant place to stroll and enjoy the weather.”
Mildred raised her chin. “We may walk wherever we please, Alex.”
He gave a slight bow. “Then enjoy your stroll, ladies.” With those words he took Natalie’s hand in his and they walked away.
He couldn’t prove it, of course, but there was a good chance they’d followed them. For what purpose he couldn’t imagine.
Alex had spent time with Natalie’s maid, Mary, who mentioned that earlier—when she’d brought the tainted chocolate to her mistress—she’d left the cup of chocolate for a few minutes when she’d been summoned by Mildred’s maid to assist her with something. Now he had no doubt in his mind that Mildred was behind the adding of laudanum to Natalie’s drink.
If he thought for one minute she had hoped to add enough to kill her, he would leave with Natalie immediately, regardless of it being his cousin’s wedding. He had no way of knowing if he would be able to keep a close eye on Natalie until the wedding ended. As much as he tried to keep himself from thinking about it, in a mere few days she had become very important to him.
* * *
The wedding dayhad finally arrived and, with all the attention Alex had received from Mildred as well as her mother, he was more than ready to get the affair over with and on the road back home, with Natalie safe in the carriage with him.
It seemed whenever he turned around either Mildred or Mrs. Walsh were there, speaking with him, ignoring Natalie who was at his side, or acknowledging her by making snide remarks.
Natalie had held her chin up and smiled each time an insult was hurled in her direction. It was a great ploy since that seemed to annoy the two women more than if Natalie had responded in kind. However, it brought him close to wishing the two harridans were men so he could throttle them.
