Page 27 of The Viscount in her Bedroom
What was wrong with him? he wondered as he walked with Manvil. He had thought himself content with his life, resigned to what fate had given him, confident that he would get by.
And then Miss Shelby arrived, turning up at the wrong times, making him think about her as a woman.
He knew how to get rid of that sort of frustration.
~oOo~
While Lady Wade wrote letters, Louisa wandered to the drawing room to set up easel and watercolors for the afternoon’s entertainment. She was trying to forget the strange conversation she’d had with Lord Wade, where she’d told him about her intimate problems with men at Lady Ralston’s. What woman would talk of such a thing—to a man?
But he’d been a good listener. Perhaps it had eased some of the strain of their relationship. Surely he thought he could begin to trust her, now that she’d revealed something so personal to him.
“Miss Shelby?”
Louisa turned away from the drawing room windows, where she hadn’t even realized she’d been standing. Miss Wade had entered the room.
“Since my grandmother and Simon need neither of us,” Miss Wade said, “would you like to walk the garden with me?”
Louisa smiled warmly. “I would enjoy that very much.”
It was a warm day, almost unseasonably so. They needed only bonnets to protect their faces from the sun. To Louisa’s surprise, this time Miss Wade linked their arms together.
“Your grandmother has so many friends,” Louisa began.
Miss Wade smiled, her hand on her bonnet as she lifted her face to the sun. “Surely you’re not still wondering why she hired you.”
“No, I accept her need to be prepared as she ages. But if you don’t mind my prying, I don’t see you going off to meet with friends like she does.”
Her smile faded and she shrugged. “So many are going into town soon for the Season. They’re busy planning wardrobes. It seems to take so much time.”
“Is there a dressmaker nearby, where perhaps you’ve had your things made?”
Miss Wade frowned. “I haven’t had anything new since before my coming out. And my mother controlled that.”
Louisa sensed no bitterness, but almost…indifference. Surely Miss Wade knew she did not look like the other girls. Did she think she couldn’t? Louisa was trying to frame a subtle suggestion about a new wardrobe, when Miss Wade suddenly brightened.
“Ah, there’s Simon,” she said. “He had cancelled his meetings this morning.”
Louisa looked around, but only saw several gardeners on their hands and knees among the flowers. “I don’t see him.”
“Not here,” Miss Wade said, giggling. “On the lake!”
The garden sloped down subtly, to what was really an enormous pond rather than a lake. Louisa frowned and shielded her eyes, because the bonnet wasn’t helping.
“Is there a path circling the lake that I don’t see?”
“Well, yes, there is one, but that’s not where Simon is. He’s in the boat on the lake.”
The small wooden boat contained only two men, one dark haired, and one light. And the light-haired man was rowing.
Lord Wade moved at an astonishing pace, all on his own strength. She could see him in his shirtsleeves, using both oars, moving rhythmically without faltering. He seemed powerful, unstoppable, and it excited her.
“Is that his valet with him?” Louisa asked, hoping her voice sounded calm and indifferent. So this was what he’d been doing before he’d come to their archery field.
Miss Wade glanced at her. “Yes. Manvil navigates for him.”
“Why did he take up rowing?”
“Because he discovered that he could. I think he felt…lost when he couldn’t ride anymore.” She lowered her voice. “I felt terrible yesterday after I left to see Mr. Reyburn’s horse. That wasn’t fair to Simon.”
