gentlemen. She just could not seem to avoid doing so. When they had driven over from Oakland, she had been careful to see that Celia shared her barouche with Sir Herbert Fanshawe and Mr. Hart. And she had tried very hard to curb her tongue so that she would not dominate the conversation. She had grabbed at Algie's arm as soon as they reached Singleton Hall so that she would walk with him to the river and Celia would have her choice of two escorts.
She had tried very hard. But somehow, when they finally began to make their way to the picnic site, she had found that Celia was on Algie's arm and she herself had an arm linked through both Sir Herbert's and Mr. Hart's. She must remember to scold Algie for being so shortsighted as to deprive Celia of other escorts. He was being kind, of course. But that was no way to find Celia a husband.
And now the worst had happened. Oh, she must not feel that way, Rachel thought guiltily. If she put aside her own feelings, she would have to admit that Celia and David Gower would make the perfect match. She should be delighted that they were together now, strolling away down the bank. She should not be feeling sick.
Rachel laughed gaily. 'You would all have me full to bursting,' she declared, looking around at her three escorts. 'If each of you brings me a plate of food as you are offering to do, how am I to eat it all? I think I must solve the problem by throwing off my indolence, getting to my feet, and going to the tables myself. Mr. Hart, you may have the pleasure of helping me to my feet. Thank you, sir.' She giggled and swept him a deep curtsy. 'My lord, your arm, please?'
Celia and David Gower were also approaching the tables. Algernon intercepted them and drew Celia's arm through his.
'It is time you cut your birthday cake, Miss Barnes,' he said, 'before all of us have filled ourselves so full with other food that we have no room left.'
'Oh, must I do that?' Celia asked, looking up at him in some alarm. 'Cannot someone else cut the cake?'
'Once you have plunged in the knife, yes,' Algernon said. 'But you must make the first cut. One of the penalties of being the guest of honor, y'know.'
'Oh,' said Celia.
'Come,' Algernon said. 'You may hold on to my arm so that you do not collapse from the strain of so much public attention.' He drew his shoulders back, lifted his chin, and viewed the world along the length of his nose.
Celia laughed. 'I could not feel safer with a whole company of soldiers,' she said. 'Do you suppose it was His Grace of Wellington's nose that frightened the French into submission at Waterloo?'
Algernon threw back his head and barked with laughter. 'What a novel theory,' he said. 'We will have to write a book on military strategy, ma'am. We must call it
Celia laid a finger against her cheek and looked thoughtful.
They were both convulsed with laughter when Lady Edgeley joined them to suggest that it was time for Celia to cut her birthday cake.
David had wandered over to the table when Algernon took Celia's arm. Rachel, turning abruptly from the food, her plate filled to her satisfaction, found herself face-to-face with him. She felt herself flush despite herself.
'Mr. Gower,' she said, 'how do you do? I have been wishing to speak with you.'
His eyebrows rose as his eyes smiled down at her. 'Have you?' he said. 'Shall we take a stroll? The table seems somewhat popular at the moment.'
'I shall wait for you to fill a plate,' Rachel said, but he shook his head and they wandered back to the bank of the river and began to stroll beside it, in the opposite direction from that he had taken with Celia earlier.
'I do believe you are trying to edge me out of a job,' David said when they were clear of the chatter of the largest group of guests. 'When I arrived at the Perkinses' cottage yesterday afternoon, it was to find that my offerings were to take second place to your cakes.'
'Oh.' Rachel flashed him a smile. 'That is what I wished to talk to you about. You were not hurt, were you?'
He grinned. 'Not at all,' he said. 'The cake I was made to sample was quite delicious. And I must say that it is a good thing that the Perkinses have produced five sons and only three daughters. The cottage would have rivaled a London ball for color if there had been any more hair ribbons in evidence.'
Rachel laughed outright. 'Does not the little one look thoroughly comical in hers?' she said. 'She is all hair ribbon and almost no hair. Mrs. Perkins said that she had to almost fight with the child to remove it when she went to bed the night before. It is so easy to delight such children. Three lengths of hair ribbon merely. One would have thought I had brought them a boxful of precious jewels.'
'Oh, but you did,' David said. 'The ribbons are very precious to the girls. Even more so is the fact that they are a personal gift from Lady Rachel Palmer herself.'
'Oh, nonsense,' Rachel said. 'There is nothing so very special about me.'
'There you are wrong,' he said. 'You are the embodiment of beauty and grace and perfection to those children.'
Rachel smiled and offered her plate to him. David shook his head.
'Old Mrs. Perkins was every bit as happy as the children,' he said, his eyes smiling down at her as she bit into a lobster patty. 'I would imagine that there has not been so much excitement in her life for many years, if ever. You had been there, Rachel, with a book. And you had read from it just for her, though everyone else crowded into the room too to listen. Where on earth did you get the inspiration to do something so wonderful? Do you fully realize what a glorious day you created for that old lady?'
'Oh, come,' Rachel said. 'You exaggerate. I merely read to her from the Bible.'
'And she wept telling me about it,' David said. 'What did you read?'
'Ruth's decision to follow Naomi back to Judah,' Rachel said. 'It was the only story of the Bible she could remember. It was read at church a few days after her marriage, apparently, and it suited her feelings at the time.'
'Ah, yes,' David said. 'It is one of the truly beautiful passages of the Old Testament: 'Intreat me not to leave thee, or to return from following after thee: for whither thou goest, I will go.' '
Rachel joined him. ' 'And where thou lodgest, I will lodge: thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God.' '
They smiled at each other. Rachel found suddenly that she could eat no more.
'She said you will read to her again,' David said gently. 'Will you?'
'Yes,' she said. 'I think you were right. There is a great satisfaction in visiting the poorer people and bringing help where one can. Though the benefits do not work all one way. I do not pretend that my visits involve any self- sacrifice. These people are my friends. I gain more happiness from them than I give, I daresay.'
His smile spread slowly from his eyes to his mouth. 'Precisely!' he said. 'Rachel, there are other old people too. I wonder if they would like to be read to as well. In their conversation they love to live in the past. Perhaps the world of the mind and the imagination becomes more attractive when the body becomes weary. Books would provide another activity for their minds.'
'Those children,' Rachel said, frowning. 'They help with the household chores a great deal. I have always noticed that they have very little else to do. Life in all its richness does pass them by, does it not?'
'Perhaps you will have more inspiration,' David said. 'In fact, I have quite decided that you are the angel I have been praying for every day since I came here.'
Rachel looked up at him to find his eyes twinkling. He grinned outright when she smiled.
'Oh,' she said, 'you are making fun of me. But I shall have the last laugh, you know, when I suddenly sprout wings.'
'And a halo,' he said. 'You must not forget the halo.'
'After all,' Rachel said gaily, 'who needs ribbons? I might as well give them all away. How many children are there in this parish, David? Female ones, I mean.'
