Page 38 of A Duke's Wicked Secret
“I am very pleased to see this. I think that if that dinner goes well I will ask him for permission to court his daughter,” Theo agreed, unable to hide his jubilation.
“I agree. I cannot think of any reason why you should not ask his permission then. Surely, he will agree to your request. I mean what better match could a father ask for than a duke? And not just any duke. You are an honourable and good man!”
“Thank you, Alexander for your kind words and all of your aid in this endeavour. I shall not forget it. You truly are the most loyal and caring of friends a man could hope to have!”
“Well, I can easily say the same about you, my friend, think nothing of it. It has been my pleasure and great joy to see you find a woman that you have fallen so deeply for and makes you so happy,” Alexander said.
***
Penelope could not remember the last time the morning felt as welcomed. At last, this morning she would see her wonderful Theodore Winterbourne! It had only been a few days, but her heart yearned for him as though it had been years since last she had seen his charming smile and tantalizing blue eyes.
Also, she took the fact that it had been her father’s idea to invite the duke and Mr Davenport to dinner tomorrow night as a very good sign that he was changing his mind about her Theo, but she wanted to hear from him in detail how their times together had gone and how he felt about them.
Penelope dressed quickly and made her way to where Phoenix was awaiting her arrival for their daily ride.
“Guess what, sweet girl?” Penelope whispered in the mare’s soft ear as she fed her a handful of oats. “This morning we will get to see our dear friends, Theo and General, on our ride. Won’t that be wonderful?” Phoenix whinnied softly in response to her, and Penelope took that as her approval of the idea of company on their ride this morning, and so she moved to mount her mare and set off.
Penelope and Phoenix trotted along on the bright late spring morning and Penelope felt as though she could sing as merrily as any of the birds out in full force that day. She knew the place she would find Theo would be near the Evergreen Meadow, where she first ran into him, and she soon found out that her women’s intuition was not wrong, for there he was already waiting for her just outside the meadow.
Penelope could not help thinking to herself,God I had forgotten in the past few days how incredibly handsome he is! Or has he grown even more handsome since last I saw him? He makes me feel as though I could fly!
“Good morning, my lady; you look perfect as always,” Theo said, smiling at her as she neared him.
“Good morning, I was just going to say the same measure of words to you. How have you been the last few days, and please tell me everything about your time with Papa. I have been dying to know every detail of how it all went!” Penelope said, unable to keep to small talk any longer.
Theo chuckled slightly at her eagerness and nerves, and it made him feel better to know he was not the only one that had been living on pins and needles the last few days. “Well, to tell you everything would take more time than I feel that we have, but I will give you the important highlights.”
With that, Theo filled Penelope in on the most pertinent moments of his encounters with the viscount and some of the points where he really felt like the two of them had connected. He ended all this when he said, “I have not asked your father specifically for his approval to court you, but in my heart I feel that when I do, he will not refuse my request.”
“Ahhh, Theo, I must tell you how happy I am! I feel as though a huge weight has been lifted from my shoulders now, and I whole-heartedly agree with you that my father will allow you to court me!”
“I honestly still would not say so out loud until I received his invitation to dinner tomorrow night.”
“I know, this gave me so much hope that he had seen the truth about what an amazing man you are. Thank you so much for being willing to go through all this for me,” Penelope agreed enthusiastically.
“There is no need to thank me. I only did what my heart required me to do, although it was greatly grieved over the time spent apart from you those mornings.”
“I have missed you fiercely since last I saw you and have yearned to be near you!”
“Oh, you did, did you? And just why is that, might I ask?” Theo said in a mischievous tone and with a teasing smile as he pulled his stallion closer to Penelope’s mare so that they were now inches away from each other.
“Oh, I do not know that I can quite put it into words to be truthful with you, my good sir,” Penelope said with equal playfulness in her voice as she cocked her head up to look into his eyes more deeply.
“Well, then, let me see if I can put my finger on it,” Theo replied in a low seductive tone as he placed his thumb under her pointed chin and leaned down to draw her lips to his. Theo kissed her long and hard and showed Penelope that he had missed her just as ardently as she had him.
Penelope moaned gently as he kissed her and felt her heart pound rapidly within her chest. “Did that aid you at all in clearing up the matter, my sweet lady?” Theo asked as he pulled back from her ruby red lips.
Penelope bit her lower lip and swallowed hard in an attempt to clear her mind. “Umm, yes, I believe that was quite clarifying. Though I may need moreaidin a while from now if you are so inclined.”
“I will always be willing to do so, Penelope.”
The way that Theo said ‘Penelope’ sent chills down her spine and a heat of pleasure surging through her innermost places. Penelope smiled bashfully and realised that if she was going to be able to keep from pulling him off his steed right there on the outskirts of this meadow, she had to find a way to get her mind off of how badly she ached for this man!
“Theo, how about we have that rematch race you requested? What do you say, down to the end of the stone wall and back here twice? Whoever returns here for a second time will forever be named the better rider,” Penelope challenged.
“Done, though I must warn you I have no plans of taking it easy on you to save your pride, my sweet lady.”
“You need not worry yourself about that. It is I that will not be giving you an easy go of the title.” Penelope smiled in retort. The pair lined their horses up and readied for the start of their impromptu race.
