The silence seemed to swirl about them as surely as the wind. Her features were placid, her air calm, and yet the way her jaw worked, the tension in her neck and shoulders…
She was still upset, though she was trying her best not to be.
“I am sorry,” he murmured.
He wasn’t entirely sure what he was sorry for, but it seemed to make her relax and so he found he meant it. He was indeed sorry for whatever concerns she might have.
A sudden and quixotic notion took hold before he could stop it.
He would take on her troubles. His chest swelled a bit as though that brisk sea wind had puffed air into his lungs...and his pride.
Yes. That was his new purpose. Winning smiles from her was a worthy goal, no doubt, but to ease her troubles, why that...that was very nearly a life’s mission.
“I appreciate your kindness,” she said with another small smile. “But there is nothing to be sorry for. I was merely being maudlin.” She drew in a deep, audible breath and her smile fixed him in place and made it impossible to move. “She fell in love, you see.”
“Ah.” He definitely did not know what to say in response to that. “Then I truly am sorry.” Her laughter made that full-chested pride sensation grow even further. At this rate he might explode with sheer male hubris.
“You are not a romantic then,” she said.
He laughed. “Is it so obvious?”
Her smile spoke of an inside joke, and for a moment it seemed as though that was the nature of their relationship.
As though that was what they were meant to be. Cohorts. Partners. Two peas in a pod, as his grandmother used to say.
But then, he hardly knew her well enough to gauge that. And yet...it felt like he did. “And you?” he asked. “Are you swooning with envy that your sister has found romance or are you a bit more pragmatic than that?”
She lifted one shoulder in an adorably self-deprecating shrug. “She is to be pitied, certainly. Although, I’d advise you not to tell her that. Or her new husband. They would likely not agree.”
He burst out in a loud laugh that shocked them both, judging by her wide eyes. But truly, this woman was most unexpected. “You truly are one of a kind, Miss Sally.”
She arched a brow. “I don’t know about that.” She paused and mischief glinted in her eyes. “Though I can imagine that I am not so similar to the young ladies currently staying at the manor.”
He rocked back on his heels. Danger. He recognized this warning sensation. Last time he’d compared her to other women it had not worked out well for him. “Did you meet the young ladies at the ball the other week?”
“I did not have the pleasure.” Her answer was prim, proper...and utter balderdash.
“You did not wish to, is what you mean.”
Her eyes widened as if she might protest so he hurried on. “Trust me when I say you were not missing anything of interest.” Oh blast it all, that sounded unbearably cruel. He might not have been known for his diplomacy or tact but he was not a mean fellow. “That came out wrong.”
Her brows arched. “Did it?”
“Yes. The ladies in attendance were lovely.” Superficial, perhaps, and more than a little spoiled. But that was to be expected from the type of ladies who’d been invited to join his father’s annual hunting party. “It is just that...I merely meant…”
Her arched brows taunted him. Her eyes glimmered with laughter.
“It is just that I suspect you would not fit in well with them,” he finished.
The laughter died and any warmth in her gaze along with it. Oh for the love of— “I am making a mess of this, aren’t I?”
“Not at all, my lord,” she said, though she was far stiffer than she had been a moment ago. “I understand exactly what you mean. Rest assured, I was not expecting to fit in.” She shifted as though to walk away.
He cursed himself as he tried to think of a way to stop her. To explain. To not fit in was a good thing! It was the highest compliment he could think of, in fact. But her reaction to this latest slip of the tongue and what he’d said before...his teasing remark about outshining the other beauties.
Oh heaven help him. She thought he was judging. Mocking.
He reached for her hand before he could think twice. “Please, let me explain.”
“That will not be necessary.” Her haughty air rivaled Lady Gertrude’s. “I don’t expect to be socializing much, anyhow. But I’m sure my sister will be an...entertaining addition to your party.”
He noted how she stumbled over the word ‘entertaining,’ and wondered even more when a crease formed over her nose when she’d said it. What concerned her about her sister?
Was it her sister who worried her or him? Or them?
Ugh. He drew back in horror. He did not relish having to lump himself in with the crowd back at the manor. “Miss Sally, I merely meant that you are far too unique—”
“Yes. I do understand. I am not a simpleton.”
“I should think not. Not with the way Dr. Roberts talks about your natural gift with medicine and science.”
Her shoulders straightened and he could practically see her mind whirring as she tried to sort out whether he was mocking her.
He was not.
“Miss Sally, I am in awe of your unique talents. And your spirited nature.” They both glanced at the ground behind them where she’d come sprinting at a full gallop. “I find it...I find you refreshing in that regard.” He hesitated for a moment over how much to convey. “I am just as in awe of you as Dr. Roberts and I assure you, I never meant to offend.”
She eyed him oddly, her gaze raking over him. He held his breath as
