Page 11 of His Runaway Duchess

Now, where was that part of the grounds that Alex raved about? Some ugly, little building that had been there for decades, one that he kept sketching. Sketching!

That was something Edward was never permitted to do. Gentlemen, his father had said more than once, enjoyed hunting, cards, whiskey, and not much else. Learning to dance was a necessary evil, but never to be enjoyed or practiced more than absolutely necessary. Art, painting, and music were out of the question, as was reading novels.

Edward wondered what his father would think of his grandson, who was already proficient with watercolors, loved to dance, and was learning the pianoforte. He would be ashamed, of course.

Am I ashamed?

Edward prayed and prayed that the answer would be no.

The ground sloped sharply up towards the folly, silhouetted high on the hill and half-buried in trees. After the heavy rain they’d had that day, the ground was slippery and muddy. Edward lost his footing more than once.

Not for the first time, he felt a prickle of fear.

Where has Alex gone? He’s never been gone for so long before. He could have slid down somewhere and broken his neck. He could have gotten lost. With the rain, the rivers would have swelled. If he got swept away…

Edward cut off that thought, panic swelling inside him. He imagined fishing Alex’s bloated, unblinking corpse out of the river in a week, looking down at his only son and knowing that everything washisfault. Knowing that his son was dead and nothing would bring him back. No chance to apologize. No hopes of ever seeing eye to eye in the future.

Edward cupped a hand around his mouth and bellowed into the growing gloom.

“Alexander! Alex! Where are you?”

A rustling came from further up the hill. He squinted, shading his eyes.

“Here, Papa!”

Edward nearly dropped the lantern. He ran up the slope, losing his footing and finding it necessary to slap a hand on the ground to steady himself.

When he was about halfway up, he saw them.

Thembeing his son, hand in hand with a strange, almost ghostly woman. They were picking their way down the hill, which was steep and slippery enough to make for very hard going.

Alex beamed, releasing the woman’s hand and stumbling across the hill towards his father.

Edward could have wept. He didn’t, of course, because gentlemen did not do that, either. Instead, he set the lantern firmly down on a nearby rock and grabbed Alex’s shoulders with both hands.

“What were you thinking of?” he snapped. “The entire household is out looking for you! Have you any idea of the worry you have put us all through?”

The smile faded from Alex’s face. He jerked his shoulders out of his father’s grip.

“I’m sorry,” he muttered. “I should have left a note for Mrs. Trench.”

“You should not have snuck out at all. Come, we must return at once.” Edward straightened up, picking up the lantern again, and extended his hand towards his son.

Alex didn’t take it. Instead, he turned and looked at the woman.

“What about my new friend, Papa?”

Edward looked properly at the woman for the first time. She was not, upon closer inspection, a ghost. She was younger than he’d imagined, twenty-one or twenty-two, and was in quite a shocking state. Her hair hung loose and was wet and matted. Her ice-blue gown was so filthy that he could barely tell that it was blue at all. The skirt was torn in several places, and she appeared to have lain on her back in the mud for some time, judging by the back of her dress.

But even the grime and untidiness did not quite hide how pretty she was. She had a smooth, pale, oval face, with strong eyebrows, thick dark hair, and a pair of very large, vivid green eyes. A rare color, in fact. She was looking at him with an intense, unwavering expression.

“Your friend?” he echoed. “I think not.”

He turned to walk away, but Alex tugged at his sleeve. “Papa, I told her she should stay the night.”

Edward blinked down at his son. “I beg your pardon?”

Alex flushed. “She’s gotten lost, and she’s very wet and cold. She was kind to me and said she would walk me home. I said she could stay with us.”

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