Page 15 of A Duke's Unwanted Bride
“Few men do.” Cora nodded.
“If you do not want to go home, we will not make you. Though I must be back at Irving before five — the children will be expecting me.” Rowen glanced at the pocket watch she kept on her person. “That gives us a few hours though. So long as the driver turns up soon, we should have plenty of time.”
Adele turned to look around the street once more and spotted the small mousy-haired man. Their eyes met, and she knew that she had been right earlier.
“That dratted manisfollowing me.” She cursed and glanced around again. “Where is the driver?”
The mousy-haired man was moving towards a tethered horse nearby. Adele glanced up into the empty driver’s seat of the carriage and then clambered into it.
“What do you think you are doing?” Cora called to her.
“I am sick of waiting,” Adele shouted over her shoulder, and she flicked the reins, urging the horse into motion. “And I am sick to death of being followed.”
She glanced over her shoulder in time to see the mousey-haired man start to sprint towards his horse.
“Keep your eyes on the road!” Cora gripped the seat so hard that her knuckles were white.
“What do you mean you are sick of being followed?” Rowen’s voice was barely audible above the rush of wind.
“Do we really need to go so fast?” Verity glanced at Cora who had closed her eyes.
“Is there a mousy-haired man behind us? He will be on a grey horse.” Adele clicked the reins again, and the horse sped up.
“Yes.”
Adele let out a stream of curses that would have made a sailor blush.
Rowen yelled. “Why is he following us?”
“I think he is acting under orders.”
“Whose orders?” Rowen asked.
“I have my suspicions.” The carriage jostled, and Cora let out a moan. “I am going to try and lose him. It’s lucky we used the phaeton. He’ll be hard pressed to catch us.”
“He will not need to if we are all dead.” Cora’s face was a delicate shade of green.
“Adele is not going to kill us; where is your sense of adventure?” Verity’s voice was tinged with laughter.
“I believe I left it at the hat shop,” Cora grumbled.
“At least you still have your humour,” Verity replied.
“Hold on!” Adele jerked the reins; moving further from the busy main street, the phaeton tilted dangerously and everyone screamed as they hurtled around a corner.
The wheels touched ground again, and Adele ushered them through a weaving path. The horse galloped, but she dared not look over her shoulder, focusing on weaving this way and that.
She was sick of the Duke’s men dogging her footsteps.
If he wants to know what I am doing, he can jolly well do me the courtesy of visiting me in person.Adele drove the phaeton through the narrow country lanes, turning sharply here and there to shake off the Duke’s man.
“I think you have lost him,” Verity called after a while.
“I cannot see him anywhere. That last corner did the trick,” Rowen added. “You should pull over before Cora faints.”
A groan of ascent came from Cora, and Adele slowed the phaeton to a stop. As luck would have it, they were beside a tearoom. Panting, she turned to face her friends.
“Oh good, we are not dead.” Cora clutched her chest.
