Page 36 of Sacrificing the Untamed Lady Henrietta
Given their shared pleasure at leaving Nightingale behind, it surprised him to find her mood as dark as the October sky when he decided to speak to her.
“You look lovely this morning, Henrietta.”
She arched a fine brow in challenge. “As I indicated yesterday, my Lord, I am not accepting comments from you with regard to my appearance.”
He raised his own dark brow in response. “Comments?”
“Yes, comments.”
“What can you mean by that? It was a compliment.”
“Regardless, I do not accept.”
“I have never heard of such a thing. Why do you refuse to accept my compliment?”
“For reasons I do not wish to discuss with you.”
“Is this to be another rule? For us? I am not to compliment you? In the morning?”
“I only said that I am not accepting comments from you with regard to my appearance. If you wish to make a rule not to compliment me in the morning so be it.”
“Very well. I am not to comment on your appearance. In the morning. In a coach while en route to a seaside holiday.”
She kept her blue eyes steady. “Excellent, my Lord.”
“Since you are partial to rules, I –”
She cut him off. “I am not actually partial to rules, my Lord. In fact, there are many rules in society I find most tedious and worthy to be broken. I simply think ‘tis best to have this one general rule between us.”
“However, this is the second rule you have made since yesterday,” he countered, “which makes my point that you are partial to rules.”
“Second rule?” she queried.
“Yes. May I remind you that we have already established as a general rule that we will oft times agree to disagree.”
As the coach rumbled on, she bit her bottom lip slightly, endearingly so. “Oh. Yes.”
“No matter. I’ve no issue with your rules. I do, however, have a rule of my own to add to our ever-growing list.”
“My Lord?”
“We do not speak of my dead wife. Can we agree to agree on that?”
“As you wish.”
“Very good.”
“I understand such matters are delicate.”
“Yes.”
“Sensitive.”
“Indeed.”
“And clearly a painful subject for you, my Lord, and I have no wish to pry.”
My, but she was persistent. “Henrietta, if you say much more we will inevitably be speaking of her and thus breaking our newest rule.”
