“If you think I will leave a woman like you walking alone at this time of night, think again.”
“A woman like me?”
His dark eyes settled on her, and suddenly she couldn’t breathe.
“Beautiful.”
Abby had been flattered by many, but that one word affected her more.
“Thank you. But I hope all women deserve to be protected, and not just because of the way they look.”
He sighed loudly. “That did not come out as I meant it to, and of course all women deserve to be protected, which sadly is not always the case. You’re one of those devilishly tricky females who would challenge a poor man’s words constantly, aren’t you?”
“It’s my fondest wish to always be such a woman, and I certainly challenge my brothers.”
“They have my sympathies, as my sisters challenge me and my brothers also.”
“Excellent.” Abby smiled. A wide, joyful one, because that’s how she felt right in that moment with him. Joyful.
“You are a very beautiful woman, Abby. I just needed to say those words to you, as I had no chance when last we met.”
She waved them away, uncomfortable as most would be.
“I always speak the truth and meant every word. You are beautiful.”
“Really? Always?”
“Yes.”
“So if one of your sisters walked into your front parlor in a dress that was a hideous cut and color that made her look sallow, you would tell her?” Abby turned to walk backward, needing to see his face. “You’re hesitating, Daniel.”
“I’m thinking, Abby.”
“It is a simple yes or no.”
“There is nothing simple about insulting a woman, and especially a sister.”
She giggled.
“Perhaps not in that situation then. So yes, I may stretch the truth slightly but for the greater good.”
“What is that wonderful smell?” Abby sniffed the air.
“Roasted chestnuts. Would you like some?”
“I would most definitely.” Anything to prolong this moment and the freedom, no matter how brief, she was relishing.
Of course, there would be hell to pay if anyone in her family found out what she’d done. She’d be locked in her room and the key would be thrown away. There would be yelling and dire threats. Abby pushed that thought aside. Her real life would not intrude on the here and now.
She inhaled the wonderful scent again as Daniel handed her a chestnut. Popping it into her mouth, Abby made a noise.
“Good?”
“Extremely.”
“Excellent, and now we shall continue your journey home,” Daniel said.
“I will continue my journey; you will attend your secret lesson.”
“That certainly makes it sound far more interesting than it actually is, I assure you.”
“You are learning to paint?” Abby asked.
“No.”
“To write flowery prose.”
“Good God, do I look like the type to want to learn flowering prose?”
“There’s a type? I had not realized.”
His answer was to crunch on another chestnut.
“You secretly wish to embroider your handkerchiefs?”
“It appears you have found me out. With so many siblings, I felt it necessary to mark what is mine so they do not steal it.”
“A sound plan, sir.”
Her need to know was now bordering on desperate. How was it that she met this man such a short while ago, and yet now felt like she knew him—and what’s more, trusted him.
Abby pondered that briefly. Did she trust him because he was the first man she’d spoken to without one of her brothers watching her every move? A man she could actually converse with without them glowering from a few feet away.
“Will you not tell me?” she said, when she’d been determined to keep quiet. “My next move will be to beg, and that is very belittling for a person.”
“Begging has its place,” he said. “For instance, when there is but one slice of pie left and your mother is debating who in the family deserves it the most.”
“Or when you want the first bed warmer?”
“Also an excellent begging reason.”
“Please tell me, Daniel.”
“Oh, very well.”
Abby watched him pull something from inside his jacket and realized it was a flute. “I am to take lessons and have been for some weeks now.”
She looked at the silver instrument in his big hands.
“Where did you hide that?”
“I had a special pocket fitted. Have I shocked you, Abby?”
“No. I think it quite wonderful. I love music, but I had imagined any number of scenarios, and this was not one of them.”
His eyes caught and held hers, and she struggled to breathe around the lump in her throat. They seemed to look deep inside her. Her heart thudded hard inside her chest. She’d never had this kind of reaction to a man before.
His smile was small and held more than enough boyish charm to have her returning the gesture.
“I always wanted to learn to play an instrument,” he continued. “I saw someone playing the flute one evening and thought it quite magical.” She heard the awe in his words.
“I understand,” Abby said, but she did not add that she played also, badly. Piano was her love.
“I have lessons with Mr. Kiltcher. He is highly regarded and happy to teach a gathering of people who wish to learn in the evenings.”
“That is very kind of him to do so, and at such a late hour.”
“Kindness has nothing to do with it; it’s the money I give him,” Daniel drawled. “I and the others who come also.”
“Could I perhaps listen?” The words had come out of her mouth before she could stop them. “I would not make a sound, I promise. Simply sit and bask in your magnificent flute playing.”
“No one has heard me play before, and I assure you I am far from magnificent.”
No, you’re not.
“You should tell your family. They will be proud of you. Plus, then you could make them suffer through your practices. I do that to my siblings when I sing. They hate it, but are often too polite to tell me. It’s a great deal of fun.”
“I shall need to be on my guard around you, clearly.”
His words hinted that they would see
