Page 9 of Sense and Suitability
A snort of laughter erupted from behind him, but Simon resolutely ignored Ben’s amusement.
“Thank you, Fia.” Simon gave the girl a kiss on the one clean spot on her forehead and stood, turning to Ben. “Youreallydon’t have to stay.”
Ben didn’t take the hint. “I’ve grown accustomed to looking for lost people when I visit you, Ravenscross.” He shrugged a shoulder. “Besides, it’s the most adventure I’ve had all week.”
And to think Simon used to grow bored on nice, quiet days.
Foolish man. Quiet, uneventful days sounded positively divine.
Simon shot Ben a glare before setting off at a clipped pace in the direction Fia had indicated. Fortunately, not a half hour into the walk, Charlotte and her pony came into view as the thirteen-year-old rode back toward home.
With a great deal of effort, Simon curbed his inner fury.
“Did you really have to come looking for me?” she called out as they approached. “I wasn’t even a mile away.”
Her unrepentant response did little to assist his self-control. “How many times have I told you that you cannot leave the house without alerting someone to your whereabouts?”
Her chin came up, those fiery brown eyes narrowing. “I told Fia.”
“Fia is five,” Simon retorted, stepping forward to meet her and the pony. “You must inform an adult, Charlotte. I am responsible for your safety.”
“No one’s safe here,” she shot back. “And I’ve been doing fine on my own while you’ve been away. Someone needed to look after the younger children.”
Her words struck a nerve, their truth undeniable. She had been forced to grow up too quickly. Even with Aunt Agatha’s guidance, theweight of responsibility had fallen far too heavily on Lottie’s young shoulders.
He shouldn’t have gone after Arianna—certainly not for so long. The youngest three had needed him. But well, to be honest, he hadn’t known what to do. Perhaps he’d run away as much out of cowardice in facing his impossible future as to find his ruined sister.
“I am here now,” Simon replied, his tone firm. “And I expect you to inform an adult when you leave the house.”
“I am not a prisoner,” she snapped. “You don’t ask William or Teddy to report their whereabouts.”
“William never leaves the house and Teddy is a grown man,” Simon countered, though not certain if the military had reformed or exacerbated his younger brother’s rambunctious ways. “I’ve already failed by losing one sister, Lottie. Do you wish to cause me to lose a second?”
He hadn’t meant to voice the words. They’d slipped out before he’d even thought them. But he felt them. Every single day he felt them. Arianna’s disappearance haunted him, like so many of the other failings flashing before him.
Charlotte’s defiance faltered, her expression softening just enough to show she’d understood. She was too perceptive by half, her awareness far beyond any other thirteen-year-old’s. He had to be more controlled. More careful. The burden washis. Not hers.
Simon shook his head, needing to shift the subject. “Where were you headed anyway?”
Her chin tilted once more, though the fire in her eyes dimmed slightly. “Lord Hemston’s son has archery lessons on Tuesday afternoons. I’ve watched every one.”
“You ride your pony to watch Lord Hemston’s son’s archery lessons every Tuesday?”
Ben feigned a cough to cover his laugh.
“How else am I to learn? You won’t teach me,” she said with a pointed look.
“I promised to teach you when you got older.” However, he inwardly winced at the unfulfilled pledge.
“You always say that,” she replied coolly, nudging her pony forward. “But it never happens. Someday I shall dress as a boy and join a hunt myself. Then I’ll learn.”
She rode past as if she hadn’t heightened Simon’s concern to near implosion.
“By the way, the sheep are getting out over the back fence into Lord Hemston’s pasture.” She tossed a haughty smile over her shoulder, her dark hair fluttering loose in the breeze. “I thought you’d want to know.”
Lord, help me.He wanted to throttle her.
If Simon’s shoulders could have descended any farther while he stood upright, they would have. He couldn’t continue living life like this—for his own sake as well as for his siblings’.
