Page 70 of The Moonstone Marquess
Not that Cormac needed a team of supporters to help him woo Phoebe. It just irked him that Richard was not gentleman enough to step aside and leave the field clear for him.
Well, he would not have stepped aside either had Richard seen Phoebe first. Cormac knew he wanted her the moment he set eyes on her. He would have sprung on her like a lion on a gazelle.
Richard’s efforts to gain her notice were tame in comparison.
Chloe took the girls outdoors and set out their sketchbooks and drawing pencils on the wrought-iron table. He and Richard followed them out while Phoebe discussed what was to be had for their evening meal with Mrs. Hawke.
She soon joined them. “They’ll draw quietly for a while now. Chloe will watch them, not that they really need to be watched. They are such sweet, obedient girls.”
Cormac laughed. “Sorry, I cannot get over how different they are from boys. I was a devil’s spawn at that age.”
She shook her head and smiled. “Not so different. From what I hear of your brother, he was an angel. Perhaps girls are able to sit quietly for longer periods and entertain themselves without spilling blood. But I’m sure we can be hellions, too. You were exceptionally difficult as a child, but I think you would have been the same whether you had been born a boy or a girl.”
“Perhaps.”
“No question about it,” she said. “Perhaps as adorable as Imogen, but never as well behaved. More of an evil Imogen, if you can imagine such a thing.”
Richard thought her comment incredibly witty.
Cormac stopped himself from gnashing his teeth again.
“Would you care to take a walk around our garden and grounds?” Phoebe suggested to them both.
“A delightful idea,” Richard said, and immediately offered his arm.
She was standing to the left of Cormac.
He had no arm to offer her.
A stab of pain tore through him.
He silently admonished himself, knowing he was making too much of Richard’s attention toward Phoebe.
“At Burness’s suggestion, I am going to organize an expedition to Egypt, or perhaps to Mesopotamia,” Richard said. “I also imagine spending time in Italy and Greece. Perhaps I shall let a villa in Sorrento for a few months on the way down. It overlooks the Bay of Naples. I hear it is beautiful there. I would do the same on my return, take a villa on one of the Greek isles. Which country do you think I ought to explore, Lady Phoebe? Egypt or Mesopotamia? Or should I be ambitious and attempt an expedition to both?”
“That would be quite a long trip no matter where you set your archeological explorations,” she replied. “I’m sure your choice will become clearer once you speak to the Fellows in the Royal Society. Or perhaps the British Museum will commission you for a special project. One could spend a lifetime in any of those countries, and I am including Italy and Greece in this as well. They are all so rich in ancient history. Are you that determined to remain away from England?”
“I think the length of my absence would depend on my travel companions.”
She nodded. “I expect you’ll have several like-minded explorers who will be eager to join you.”
“Yes, one or two Fellows in the Royal Society might. I would also hope to bring along someone more…permanent. It is my hope that I will be married by the time we are ready to undertake our expedition.”
“That is quite a journey for a new wife. But I think you will find several young ladies currently on the Marriage Mart who will enjoy such an adventure.”
“I am told you are quite adventurous, Lady Phoebe.”
She paused to stare at him. “I am not afraid of adventure, but my home is here in Moonstone Landing. I cannot see myself going elsewhere.”
“Not even with your husband?”
“Well, I would have to be deeply in love with a man before I would ever consider such a thing,” she said. “But if I did love him that deeply, I suppose I would go to the outer edges of the world if this was what it took for us to be together.”
Richard smiled broadly. “That is most promising.”
She shook her head. “No, it is not. I would not leap at any offer of marriage, even if my heart knew he was the only man for me.”
Cormac knew she was talking about him. Surely Richard had to understand her meaning.
