Page 49 of His Accidental Duchess

For a few moments, the three of them lay in silence, taking in the view. The sky stretched out above them, velvet blue and impossibly deep, the stars twinkling into view one by one. The moon, a silvery sliver, hung above the dark trees that flanked the sky, and a cool breeze raked through the grounds, leaving a rustling, shivering sound in its wake.

“Do you know anything about stars, Anna?” Kitty asked, at last, sounding drowsy.

“I’m afraid not,” Anna admitted. “My father was an avid astronomer, but I could never make sense of it. I love to look at the sky, though. When I was a child, I used to go out and lie on the grass like this, and try and make patterns out of the stars.”

“Patterns?”

“Mhm. It was like a game. I’d see the shapes of houses, or animals, or even the faces of people I knew. As I grew older, I could make out entire pictures, very elaborate. I’d trace them in my mind, and I can even remember some of them now. And then, when I went out the next night, it was as if all my pictures had been wiped out, the sky blank, and I could start again with new stars and new pictures. Not…” she added after a brief pause and some reflection, “not that theywerenew stars, of course. It just seemed to me that they were. Strangely enough, out of all my pictures, I never managed to pick out any real constellations.”

Kitty sighed. “That’s a pity. But I bet your pictures were more interesting than the constellations.”

“They were,” Anna admitted. “Much more interesting.”

“Ah, I think I see your problem, Anna,” Theodore said, his voice low and gravelly. It sent a strange shiver down Anna’s spine. His voice seemed to be attached to something twisted up in her gut, giving the thread a powerful tug every time he spoke.

“Do you, indeed?” she managed, instead of telling him that his voice was the most fascinating thing she’d ever heard.

“I do. You are looking in the wrong place. Here, Kitty, look. Do you see that one star just about the peak of that oak tree?”

“Yes, Papa, I see it! It’s very bright.”

Theodore rolled onto his side, propping himself up on his elbow. He used his free hand to point.

“You’re right, it is very bright—the brightest in the whole sky, in fact. That is the Pole Star. Some call it the North Star, orPolaris.Do you know why it’s called that? It’s because that star always points due north. Sailors use the stars to navigate, and the Pole Star is a very important part of that. So, remember, if you ever get lost, find due north. To do that, you can find the Pole Star.”

Kitty nodded somberly. “What do the sailors do if it’s cloudy?”

Theodore missed a beat. “They pray that it clears up.”

Anna stifled a chuckle at that.

Abruptly, Kitty sat up and let out a long, theatrical yawn. “Do you know, I’meverso tired.”

Anna scrambled up into a sitting position, feeling silly lying on a picnic blanket with Theodore without his daughter between them.

“I think,” Kitty continued, shooting them both long, pointed looks, “that I will go to bed. You two can stay out here, and maybe you’ll be less shy in the morning! Watch the stars some more, and tell me all about them tomorrow!”

Before Anna could say a word, Kitty bounced to her feet and went running over to where Martha sat. The nursemaid was ready for her, on her feet, and she took her hand with a grin and towed the little girl away towards the house, both of them chattering and laughing.

The noise faded away, leaving Anna and Theodore in perfect silence.

Theodore flopped back onto the blanket with a sigh, his arm resting over his eyes.

“My daughter, ladies and gentlemen,” he muttered.

“She’s… she’s quite a character,” Anna admitted.

He moved his arm, turning to look at her. She couldn’tquiteread his expression in the dark and found herself wishing that he could.

“Do you like her?”

The question took her by surprise. “Of course, I like her. Kitty is such a sweet girl. Some children might be quite opposed to the idea of a stepmother, but she’s been nothing but delightful to me.”

He nodded, swallowing hard. She could track the movement of his throat. For a moment, she imagined herself leaning overand pressing her lips to the side of his throat, feeling the rough stubble there, feeling the pulse under his skin.

Clearing her throat, Anna determinedly looked away.

“I shouldn’t have said what I did about Henry,” Theodore said abruptly.

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