Page 29 of Her Tiger of a Duke
“It would seem we both have things to learn then,” she suggested. “We both seem to have rather a lot of fears to overcome.”
“I have no intention of changing,” he replied. “My concerns keep me safe, and I would not say that they are necessarily fears. They are facts that I have learned, and in some cases witnessed myself.”
“Even so, it is not a death sentence to swim–”
“Enough,” he said curtly, and Beatrice silenced herself. “I am not in need of changing, Beatrice. When you have fears, it is because you are timid and scared of trying something new. When I experience them, it is because I know completely and utterly that all things do not end well. That is the difference and is precisely why I have no interest in trying any of the things I dislike.”
“All the same, you could at least admit that you are frightened of some things. It will not do to pretend that you are fearless, even if your qualms are justified.”
He did not say another word, and they carried on in silence. Beatrice, not knowing the route, thought that they might walk in a circle and end up where they started, and she was right. When she saw the river again, she tried to continue walking ahead. She did not want to upset Owen further, not after he had been so understanding, but she could not see why he was being so cold toward her for simply stating the truth. Hewasafraid of a great many things, and as far as she was concerned, he had no reason to hide that fact from her.
Not only that, but the temptation to go for a swim was irresistible. After their long, meandering walk, the sun was hot, and the water looked cold. The inclination to plunge into the depths of the river became too much to bear.
“I can prove you wrong,” she muttered, “and I will.”
Without warning, she broke free from his arm and sprinted to the water’s edge. She heard him calling after her, but she ignored him. She had a point to prove, and she knew that once he sawit was perfectly safe, he would have no choice but to change his mind about everything and accept that he too had changes to make.
When she reached the water, she hesitated for a moment. It was most improper, and on the first visit too, but she knew what had to be done. All the children had already vacated the area. The villagers had gone back to their homes. Nobody else was there, and nobody would notice her but her husband.
And so, holding her breath, she leaped into the stream.
CHAPTER 12
In the second between Beatrice leaving the riverbank and her feet hitting the water, Owen saw the most frightening things.
He pictured her landing incorrectly, or hitting her head, and not coming to the surface. He thought of her not being able to swim back somehow, and the current dragging her under no matter how weak it was.
He chased after her, calling her name as she laughed mockingly and bounded away, but he could not catch her in time. She hit the water with a splash, her gown certainly ruined and her head submerged.
He came to a halt at the edge, willing her to surface again. He wanted desperately to dive in after her, but he had not seen where she had gone exactly, and he needed to be certain before he followed her. The few seconds felt like days, but then at last she came up, breathing heavily and laughing at him.
“Do you see?” she asked brightly. “There is no harm to be done.”
“Get out of there,” he ordered, but she did not seem to take him seriously.
“Come now, Owen. I know that you might not think it too wise, but–”
“Get out,” he repeated, and her smile faded.
She remained frozen for a moment, clearly shocked that he had raised his voice at her, but he had not been able to stop himself. She had been willful and directly disobeyed him, and he did not know what she expected to happen. He would not be so inclined to forget everything that had happened simply because she told him to. It was not possible.
Eventually, she swam to the edge and pulled herself out. She laid on her back in the grass and the sun shone gaily upon her. It would not take long for her to dry, but that did not matter to Owen. He wanted to return home, and the wait while she dried was going to be agony.
“Why did you do that?”
“To show you that there is no harm in it. You saw those small children. It is not dangerous.”
“It only takes one wrong move, Beatrice. If those people wish to risk those around them, that is for them to decide. I will not allow that for myself, nor you. Come, we will return home.”
“I can hardly walk through the village like this. Whatever will the people think?”
“You should have considered that before doing something so foolish. You have brought shame upon the both of us, not only yourself.”
He began to walk away, and after a moment he heard her following him. He could hear the water dripping on to the ground, and in the corner of his eye he could see her curls loosened from being wet. He had to return home with her quickly, so that she did not become ill; he was angry with her, but that did not mean he wanted her to suffer at all.
Fortunately, he knew a path that avoided the village. Within ten minutes, they had returned to the carriage and were on their way home again. Owen was furious with his wife, for she had ruined what had been an excellent outing. He had planned to take her to a local inn for dinner, but he could not do so with her in such a state, and so that idea would have to wait. He did not say as much, though because he could see the tears in her eyes and did not want to make her feel worse.
“I did not mean to anger you,” she whispered after they had been traveling in silence for a while. “I just thought that-”
