Fear spiked through her. There was nowhere to go, and if she couldn’t free herself, he’d get what he wanted. What he’d started all those years ago…
Ezra had gone to pay a call on his Teddy, but the butler had informed him she’d already gone out. He could have gone inside and visited with Graystone and his wife, but chose to go looking for her instead. A walk…she couldn’t have gone too far. Hyde Park was nearby and a popular destination for promenading. Though he didn’t believe Teddy was the sort to want to participate in the normal social options the ton deemed acceptable.
As he reached Hyde Park, he rode through it with ease. His horse whinnied. The stallion wanted to gallop now that they were in a wide open space. Ezra patted him. “Not now Jupiter,” he said in a soothing tone. “We have a lady to find. Later, I’ll take you for a proper ride.” It had been awhile since he’d been in the country. Jupiter hadn’t adapted to town well. He’d have to take him to his ancestral estate and leave him there for the grooms to take him out more often. The horse calmed and Ezra focused on the path in front of him.
There were not a lot of people in the park. Most of the ton had probably departed so they could start preparing for their evening entertainments. Some ladies took an hour to bathe and dress for balls. Gentlemen usually went to their clubs to avoid their wives or whatever females they had in their lives. Ezra would probably have gone to his club if he hadn’t developed a slight obsession with Teddy.
He kept going along the park until he neared the Serpentine. There was a cool breeze that brushed over him. He frowned at the sight of a woman lying underneath a tree, then glanced again toward the lake. Beyond the tree was a man and a woman, and they didn’t appear to be having a pleasant conversation. As he neared, he recognized both of them and then pressed his knee into Jupiter’s side. He would get his gallop after all. When he reached the tree, Ezra slowed the horse down, and once he came to a stop, he slid out of his saddle and rushed forward. Panic seized him, and he couldn’t do anything to calm the anxiety crushing every part of him.
“Let me go,” Teddy demanded. She sounded scared, and Ezra wanted to pummel his uncle for hurting her. “I’m not asking again.”
“What do you think you’re going to do?” His uncle laughed. “Nothing. That’s what will happen. Come with me now, and we’ll settle this in private.” He was going to kill his uncle. How dare he put his hands on her.
“I do believe the lady asked you to release her,” Ezra drawled. “Please do as she asks.” His temper was barely contained. He couldn’t give in to the urge to hit his uncle, at least not yet. If he did, Lord Eaton might shove Teddy into the Serpentine. She'd told him she didn’t swim, and her dress might hamper any efforts on her part to try.
His uncle turned to him and said, “Stay out of this, boy. It has nothing to do with you.”
“It has everything to do with me.” Teddy needed him, and that empowered him. He hated that his uncle had decided to do this to her, but he was grateful that he had been there to come to her aid. “She is mine.” He growled the words out, but Ezra had never meant anything more in his life. Until that moment, he hadn’t realized how deeply he felt it. This was more than an obsession. He cared about her, and that shocked him.
“Is that so?” His uncle lifted a brow, then casually shoved her into the river. “Then she’s yours to save, isn’t she?” He nodded at Ezra and sneered. “Good luck, boy. You’re going to need it.”
Teddy sank into the river and didn’t surface. Terror spiked through him. His heart beat heavily in his chest and his breathing became frantic. Ezra didn’t bother to pull off his jacket or boots. He didn’t have time, and he prayed it wouldn’t prevent him from rescuing her.
He dived several times until he found her and dragged her to the shore. Ezra lifted her onto the ground and crawled up beside her. She coughed up water and spit it on the grass. “Thank…you…” Her teeth chattered as she spoke. “Cannot…swim…”
Ezra lifted her into his lap and rocked back and forth. He had to reassure himself that she was all right. His uncle, the coward, had taken off. Ezra would take care of him later for what he’d done to her. “I lost years off my life when he pushed you in.”
“I'm not yours,” she said decisively. “Never yours.” Her teeth chattered as she spoke the words.
He chuckled lightly and kissed the top of her head. “You are,” he said with a conviction he felt in his soul. “Don’t worry…we have time. I’ll prove it to you.”
“Take me home,” she ordered. “I don’t need you to do anything for me.” She tried to pull herself out of his arms, but she was too weak. Teddy met his gaze. “Let me go, Lord Carrolton.” Her tone was soft, but firm.
“Ezra,” he told her. “I do believe it’s past time we dropped formalities. You did give me permission to call you Teddy.”
Her mouth dropped open as if she were going to argue with him, but she must have decided against it. She likely recalled their last conversation. “Formalities are important to observe.”
“In public, yes, I agree.” He grinned. “But, Teddy dear, there is no one here to see or hear us.” An idea formed in his mind. One he probably should ignore, but he wasn’t strong enough. “And I do believe you asked me to kiss you once. It’s time I honored that request.”
Her eyes widened at his words,
