They felt so good, those unconstrained giggles. She couldn’t help herself; the giggles led into peals of uncontrollable laughter.
It proved infectious. Colin joined in, and Ford and Jason, and finally Kendra, until they were all laughing simply because everyone else was laughing. One by one they stopped, dwindling into occasional chuckles, all except Amy. She clutched the harpsichord to keep from doubling over as she laughed and laughed. She didn’t even know why, anymore.
Her sides hurt, and tears ran down her face.
Ford put a hand on her shoulder. “She thinks you’re funny, Colin.”
Amy blushed, but Colin just smiled. “I appreciate a girl who appreciates my jokes.”
Amy’s face heated even more. “I’ll—I’ll be right back,” she hiccuped between bursts of giggles.
She had to gain control of herself.
Leaving the room, she wove her way through the corridor, laughing, and down the stairs, leaning against the wall at intervals. They must think I’m drunk, she thought—but she knew better. She was merely giddy from close proximity to Colin, intensified by a feeling of well-being, surrounded by laughing people who loved one another.
Maybe her family hadn’t shouted, but they hadn’t laughed together much either.
The laughter made her feel slightly sick, and she hugged her stomach and aching ribs. At the foot of the staircase, she gazed through tear-blurred eyes at the tall wooden front doors. The quadrangle beyond enticed her, the crisp night air exactly what she needed. She stumbled through the entrance hall and out the doors, laughing all the way, nearly tripped down the steps outside, and fell into a heap on the damp grass.
As her giggles diminished, she took delicious breaths of cold air deep into her lungs. At last she sat up, wiping the tears from her cheeks between hiccups. Placing her hands behind her on the grass, she leaned back and gazed up at the sky, enjoying the feel of the frigid air on her hot face.
Colin came into the quadrangle and crouched down beside her.
“The family elected me to check on you,” he said wryly. “Better now?”
“Uh-huh.” She watched a dark cloud creep slowly across the moon. “I’m sorry. I guess I made a fool of myself.” She hiccuped, more loudly than she would have liked. “Excuse me.”
“No excuses necessary,” Colin declared chivalrously. “And you made no fool of yourself, either. To the contrary, we’re all pleased to see you’ve recovered your spirits.”
Silent, Amy continued watching the clouds gather, dark shapes against the starlit sky. She hiccuped again.
“I’ll take you to Dover tomorrow,” Colin said quietly beside her. “I’m sorry Jason hasn’t found the time to do it.”
Suddenly, the air seemed cold instead of refreshing. She shivered and sat up straight, folding her legs beneath her. “It wasn’t a problem. I’ve been fine here.”
His family’s faint laughter drifted through a window. She felt a stab of pain at the thought of leaving them all; she was even growing used to their inevitable arguments. But it was only by chance that she’d been afforded the luxury of being a part of them for a while, and her time was up.
She shivered again.
“Are you cold?” he asked.
“A little bit.”
He moved closer and put an arm around her shoulders, drawing her against him. “You’ll catch your death out here. We should go back inside.”
His heat seeped through the fabric of her dress, warming her all over. She wouldn’t have moved an inch for the world. “In a minute,” she stalled.
He squeezed her shoulder. “How is your hand?”
“Fine.” She spoke softly, fearing he might pull away. “It healed weeks ago.”
Colin took her hand to examine it in the moonlight. “Mmm,” he murmured, running his warm palm over the back. “So it did.”
More laughter sounded from above. Quite suddenly, his fingers came around and laced through hers, and then, to her complete surprise, he brought their joined hands to his lips and held them there.
Amy bit her lip and closed her eyes. When she felt Colin move around to kneel in front of her, she opened them to find his only inches away.
“How are you, Amy?” he asked in hushed tones, searching her face for the answer.
“I’m better,” she whispered, overwhelmed by his intensity. “Much, much better.”
“That’s good,” he replied, then swiftly, before either of them could think about it, he yanked her hard against him and brought his lips to hers.
She was shocked, but her body seemed to know what to do. Her arms wound over his shoulders and around his neck, her fingers meshing themselves in his thick, silky hair. His mouth was soft and damp as the grass, but his hands felt strong and rough on her cheeks. She pulled him even closer, till they were pressed together from chest to knee, leaving no space for shyness or insecurity. Somewhere in the back of her mind, she felt surprised by her daring, but the feeling faded quickly, for she was too full of other feelings.
But he must have been surprised, too, because all at once, he jerked away from her. Dizzy and thrown off balance, Amy nearly toppled over. It was lucky she was already so close to the ground. She caught herself on her hands in the wet grass, and all her newfound confidence vanished. Suddenly, she felt foolish and embarrassed.
Colin sat back, muttering an oath. “I’m sorry,” he said with a sigh, running a hand raggedly through his hair.
Of course he was sorry. He didn’t like her; he wanted to get rid of her. What she couldn’t understand was how he could kiss her like that, feeling as he did.
She didn’t trust herself to speak. Instead, she sat down and put her head in her hands. But she didn’t cry. She felt too mixed up to cry.
“I’m betrothed, you know,” he said suddenly.
Amy looked up. She hadn’t known—nobody had mentioned it.
“Her name is Priscilla Hobbs,” he continued. “Lady Priscilla Hobbs. Her father’s an earl—she’ll make a perfect mother for my children. Oh, and she’s very nice,” he
