William calmed his galloping heart and rubbed his face. “Lizzy, you had better try without my help. I think you are ready.”
“No, Will! I need you one more time, please!” Lizzy begged. “My arm is tired and I will not be able to keep it straight.”
William softly smiled, “If only you knew what you are asking, Lizzy. All right, one more time. Stand like before. Allow me to check the pistol before you fire.” He looked at the flintlock and made sure it was clean. He handed it back to her and resumed the position again.
Lizzy stood and aimed. “Will! Wrap your arm around me again. Hurry! I am ready to pull the trigger.”
“Lizzy...” he whispered from behind her.
“Now! This is so exciting!” Lizzy pulled him closer to her.
William wrapped his arm around her waist again and this time held his breath. She was intoxicating and he felt overwhelmed to have her in his embrace.
Lizzy fired and she squealed in joy, “That was better than the first!” She turned around and hugged him, wrapping her free arm around his neck and kissing his cheek. “Thank you! Will you teach me again tomorrow? My arm is tired but that was so fun!”
William encircled his arms around her waist and held her. “Yes, Lizzy. I will teach you again tomorrow. I do not believe I can deny you much. I am going to go for a ride on Snowflake for a while. I will see you later.” He let go and stepped back to distance himself from her.
“Oh, I have not ridden with you for so long! Can I come?” Lizzy asked innocently. “I can still ride Ghost but papa said I am ready for a larger mare or even a stallion. I have done well on Lily but she is such a slow horse and I missed riding fast with you on Snowflake.”
William cradled her cheek and stroked her soft skin with his thumb. “Not this time, Lizzy. I need some time alone.” He kissed her forehead and resignedly walked away with a gloomy look on his face.
Lizzy could not understand why her friend appeared despondent but thought it might be due to fatigue from his travels. She gathered the items from the lesson and walked back to the house to return them to Richard. It had been a great adventure to learn to shoot a pistol today and she was eager to try again the next day.
Chapter 2
“What is the matter with you, William?” Richard asked, as he puffed on his cigar after dinner, after everyone else had retired. “You have been restless and irritable all week long and I hate to see you mope about in this stupid manner. I leave the day after tomorrow and I hope I can help you with whatever you are sulking about, cousin. Did you leave a beautiful woman in Scotland? Are you mourning the loss of some temptress who is not fit to be your wife? Crossed in an unrequited love?”
William snapped at his cousin who was his least favourite right now, “Shut it, Richard! You know nothing about love!” He looked up and saw the crushed expression of his older cousin, remembering Mrs. Jenkinson and Richard’s care for Anne de Bourgh’s companion. He sat down and sipped his drink, “I am sorry, Richard. I should not have said that. I forgot about your situation with Mrs. Jenkinson.”
Richard took a deep breath, “Tell me what is wrong. It has to do with a girl, does it not? Is it Lizzy? Do you find her infinitely attractive and wish to marry her but she is only fifteen?” He began to laugh as he watched William’s astonished face. “I had wondered why you shooed me off from Lizzy’s shooting lesson last week and Uncle George had no idea why you said he had called for me. I have seen your face whenever she makes her daily calls, William. You are in love with her and you have no idea what to do.”
William scratched his head, “You are exactly right, of course. My heart dropped to my stomach the first moment I saw her last week and I cannot get her out of my head. This is Lizzy we are speaking of! The hoyden who climbs trees and chastises me to chew my food more. The little girl who dreams of being a pirate and wants to sail the seas; how can she be the one that I fall completely head over heels in love? I have known her for nearly six years and I wrote to her daily during my travels, and she knows me better than anyone else and thinks of me like a brother. I thought of her like a sister and she has been my dearest friend for years, but I see her now and everything is different. My heart beats wildly, I cannot breathe, and my body... my body reacts like no decent gentleman’s should. I have resigned to staring out the window to try to calm myself whenever she is near me... She is gorgeous and if it were any other lady, I might have proposed the same day. I do not know what to do.”
“Ah,” Richard nodded in understanding. “I wondered why you kept insisting that I join your shooting lessons after that first day, and you are never alone with her. Lizzy mentioned that she has not seen you at her tree since your return and she seemed to be sad about it. I think she misses your company.”
“I have been going to our tree every morning. I cannot stay away from it since it is the most peaceful place in the world for me. I think about her when I sit there and how much has changed since the first time I caught her in my arms all those
