Page 30 of A Wallflower's Wassail Punch
CHAPTER13
24 December 1820
Andrew woke with an energy he hadn’t felt in years.And with little rest.Who needed sleep?
Life has a way of providing what one needs.You only have to pay attention and not let it slip through your fingers.Agnes’s words had been echoing in his head all night.
He threw back the counterpane and dressed in his riding clothes.Bowman was just knocking at his door as he pulled on his Hessians.
“Am I late?”asked Bowman, surprised to see his employer up and dressed.
“No, I couldn’t sleep, so I thought I’d just get up and start my day.I have much to do.”He slid his arms into the riding jacket his valet held up.“I want to meet Nettie, er, Lady Annette for an early morning ride.Then I must speak with Beecham.”
“I see.Any reason for the urgency?”he asked, taking out the clothes Andrew would need after his ride.
“Let’s just say Aggie found a way to put my mind at ease.If Beecham doesn’t mind my courting his daughter, then I’m pursuing her with all the enthusiasm of a hound after a fox.”Andrew opened the door but paused at Bowman’s words.
“Perhaps a bit more finesse than the average hound?”
Andrew chuckled as he took the stairs two at a time.At the landing, he paused.What if Nettie decided to skip the morning ride?He continued on with undiminished optimism.Then he’d work off some of this extra energy before breakfast.
Halfway down the path, he saw the same young lad leading Domino from the stable.The mare was saddled, and Andrew sighed with relief.“Could you saddle mine too, Joseph?”
The stable boy grinned and nodded, returning to the stable once Nettie’s horse was secured to the tethering ring.
“I was hoping you would join me.”Her throaty voice washed over him.
“I was hoping the same,” he said, turning to greet her.She was wearing the same dark-gray riding habit with the claret fur-lined cape to protect against the cold morning air.“I wanted to talk to you.”
“We’re in unison with our thoughts, then.I wanted to talk to you.”She smiled at the stable boy as he returned with Fortunate.“Thank you, Joey.”
She led the mare to the mounting block, and Andrew held the rein while she mounted, a graceful movement that allowed him to admire her form.She leaned over and patted the horse’s neck.“Shall we take the same route?”
“Anywhere your heart desires,” he said.As long as it includes me.
They started at a walk, Joey far enough behind so he couldn’t hear their conversation.“Have you ever met someone and knew, in that moment, you liked them?”Andrew grimaced at his awkward opening.
“I have.Many times, actually.I tend to believe a person’s first impression is authentic.”She tipped her head to study him.“I liked you right away.”
His heart hammered.Maybe it hadn’t been such a feeble beginning.“My pulse raced the first time I saw you on the landing, leaning over the banister while I stood in the entryway.You smiled at me, and I was mesmerized.”
She blushed.“I was attracted to you that first day.May I ask you a question?”
He wanted to finish his little speech, but he found it hard to deny her.“Anything.”
“How old are you?”
His heart plummeted.The age difference concerned her.“I’m forty-two.Is it a problem?”
“No.I thought you were older.Being the same age as my father, and being his friend, worried me.If he would disapprove, if you would think me too young.How old is your daughter?”she asked.
“Phoebe is nineteen, presents herself as a woman of the world, and is certain she knows so much more than her father.”He laughed.“She’s as strong-willed as her papa and just as outspoken.”
“I’m not much older than she is.Does that bother you?”Lady Annette asked in a cautious tone.“Or what she might think?”
“I love Phoebe with all my heart.There’s nothing I wouldn’t do for her.I’ve raised a compassionate, clever girl who wants her father to be happy.She wouldn’t deny me a wife of my own choosing.”He stared at Nettie’s profile, marveling at her beauty, her kind nature, her intelligence—his luck at finding her.“Would you count me as one of your suitors?Allow me to court you?”
Her smile lit up his world.“If we are to consider courtship, there is one other thing to determine first.Shall we have a gallop and lose our chaperon?”With that, she dug her heels into the mare and took off at a canter across the field.
