Page 19 of Never a Bride
“Now?”
“Now.”
“No longer in such a hurry to leave me?” he responded in a low voice, rising and walking toward her, the dark mystery of the night enveloping him like a cloak.
He didnotintrigue her, and she would not allow herself to be intimidated.
“You are changing the subject. Show me proof.” She blushed with embarrassment at so obvious a challenge.
He cleared his throat and struck a pose, one hand on his hip, the other raised to the sky.
She held back a giggle.
“My lady,” he began slowly, “is like the moon, calling to me with mystery, clothing herself in dark garments that glitter with diamonds.”
She felt a little catch in her breath, and her knees went weak at the deep currents of his voice. He was a sorcerer, an actor, and he would enthrall her if she was not careful.
He lowered his voice and drew nearer, and still she could not move away.
“I am but the earth, ever apart from her, a mortal to her goddess, mud to her dark seas, dirt to her glow, an ant to her flower—”
“An ant?” she interrupted, almost happy to be amused rather than experience the puzzling emotions she’d first felt with his words. “Surely I have never heard a poet compare himself to an ant.”
He shook his head solemnly. “Only talented poets understand the implications.”
“I thought the point of poets was toexplainthings with words.”
“I’ll leave such judgments to the critics, my lady, as I bid you good night. Shall I walk you back to your house? And if it is dark inside, I could walk you to your room.”
Oh, he was too amusing—and for a moment, she wished their meeting didn’t have to end. “No, that will be quite enough for one evening, Sir Alexander.”
“Call me Alex. And does that mean there will be other evenings?”
Shaking her head, she turned and hurried away.
~oOo~
Emmeline was wearing her night rail and dressing gown when there was a sudden knock on her door. The latch lifted and Blythe peered inside.
“Emmy? Might I come in?”
She gave her sister a tired smile. “Of course you can. Come tell me all about Lord Seabrook.”
Blythe took Emmeline’s hands and pulled her to sit down on the bed. “There is nothing much to say, for our fathers never left us alone, although I did enjoy the intriguing looks he gave me. But I can wait no longer—tell me what happened!”
“Nothing much,” Emmeline said with a sigh, unable to meet her gaze.
“Nothing? But Father took the duke and his son out to the stables! I tried to stop them, but Father kept insisting that he’d had enough singing for one evening.”
Emmeline smiled and squeezed her sister’s hands. “I guess even your beautiful voice can’t keep a man away from horses.”
“Can I assume Father didn’t find Alex?”
“You assume correctly. Not that it wasn’t close.” She regretted the last sentence immediately.
“Close? What do you mean?”
“I…I had to pull Sir Alexander into a stall to hide.”
