by Anne Herries
‘I think she might,’ Lucy said and smiled. She was thoughtful as she removed her own gloves and hat.
Why had Paul looked so very annoyed when he saw them on the road?
* * *
Lucy had changed into a pretty pale-pink afternoon gown and was seated in the drawing room with her mother, Judith, her uncle and father, when their guests were announced. Lady Benson and her son Charles had called and were shown in at the same time as Jenny and Captain Ravenscar.
Lady Benson was a close friend of Lucy mother’s, and once all the greetings had been exchanged and the tea brought in, the young people were at liberty to talk, their little group having retreated to some chairs and a sofa near the window.
‘Tell me, Lady Sparrow,’ Charles Benson said, a gleam in his eyes. ‘Am I right—was it you driving that bang-up rig this morning?’
‘Yes, indeed, it was,’ Judith said. ‘Did we pass you on the road, sir? I was concentrating on my horses and did not notice.’
Charles was barely nineteen, still a little shy of beautiful ladies and with a tendency to blush. He looked very young as he gave her an admiring look.
‘You drove those wonderful horses to an inch,’ he said, clearly overwhelmed. ‘I wish I might be able to handle the ribbons as well as you—and that trick with your whip was neat. Will you show me how to do it?’
‘Certainly, if you wish,’ Judith said and bestowed a smile on him that made his cheeks redden. ‘My cousin has first call on my time, for I have promised to teach her to drive—but if you called in the afternoon I could give you lessons with the whip in the paddock.’
‘Your cousin is rather different from what I expected,’ Jenny murmured softly to Lucy.
‘Yes, isn’t she wonderful?’ Lucy replied and her gaze went to Paul’s face. After the first introductions he had said little, but now he put down his teacup and looked at her.
‘Lady Sparrow has great skill and address,’ Paul said. ‘She has clearly been driving for some years. I think you might do better in a less...precarious vehicle. I am quite prepared to give you lessons in my curricle, Miss Dawlish. Lady Sparrow’s rig is elegant, but a little...too bold for a lady to drive. It might be safer for you...at least until you have some experience.’
Lucy hesitated. In her heart she agreed, but his disapproval of her cousin’s bold rig annoyed her. What did he mean by telling her that he thought her unsafe to manage her cousin’s horses?
‘Judith handles her horses beautifully, sir. I dare say I may do so given my chance. I have known horses all my life and am not afraid of them.’
‘It is not a matter of whether you are afraid...’ Paul looked haughty. ‘It is very well for Lady Sparrow to drive such an equipage, for she has been married and it is generally known that her husband indulged her every whim—but for you...an unmarried girl! I must tell you, Lucy, I was shocked to see you driving on the road in such a way.’
‘I shall not allow you to be critical of my behaviour or my cousin’s,’ Lucy said, stung to defiance. ‘No one else seemed to disapprove of us. Indeed, most people waved to us or saluted Judith.’
If anything, he looked more disapproving than before.
‘I have told you, Lady Sparrow may do as she pleases. I am thinking of you, Lucy. Some people might think...your behaviour was fast.’
Judith turned her head to look at him, a militant sparkle in her eyes. ‘Come, come, Captain Ravenscar, I cannot have you scold my cousin. She had no idea that I intended to take my team on to the road. We went for a drive about the estate and I took a wrong turning. Lucy tried to warn me, but we were forced to drive for some time before we came to a place where we might turn—besides, my friends are used to seeing me drive myself everywhere, even in town. I do hope that does not give you a disgust of me—perhaps you find me too bold?’
Such a brilliant smile accompanied her words that Paul was silenced. He had scolded Lucy, for it had shocked him to see her like that on the road. He had spoken out, feeling that she did not understand how it might look to some other ladies. Lucy would not wish her reputation to suffer, surely—and yet now he was feeling foolish. A few high-born ladies did choose to drive themselves in town and one or two—like Letty Lade—were not above racing their vehicles.
He inclined his head a little stiffly. ‘Indeed, it would be impertinent in me if I were to tell you what to do, my lady.’
‘Yes, it would,’ Judith agreed pleasantly. ‘However, I see no reason why we should fall out over such a foolish thing. I shall be certain to keep to the estate roads whenever Lucy is driving my rig.’
‘Do you not consider your horses a little too strong for teaching a beginner, my lady?’ Paul arched his right eyebrow at her, his eyes a flinty grey.
Judith ignored his look, but tossed her head, a pugnacious glint in her eyes.
‘Lucy does not fear them, you know, and the horses respond to a firm hand. Besides, I shall be with her. I would not let her drive alone until I was certain she could handle the horses.’
Paul inclined his head and then responded to a question from Charles Benson, but his gaze was stern as it fixed first on Lucy and then on Judith. Her laughter rang out several times and Paul could not help noticing her vibrancy and her confident manner. He had met ladies of a similar cut in Vienna and might have taken a mistress from amongst them had he been interested. None of those ladies had caught his interest, but Judith Sparrow certainly had something about her. When she saw him looking at her, she gave him an arch look, as if challenging him, and he frowned at his own thoughts.
‘How does Lord Ravenscar today?’ Lucy asked and he relaxed his frown.
‘He seems better than when I returned, but his health will never be robust again, I fear.’ Paul hesitated, then, ‘I did not mean to scold you or to criticise your cousin. She has town ways and they do not always sit well in the country, that is all.’
‘Judith is very brave and...magnificent,’ Lucy said. ‘I find her company makes me feel more alive...much better than I have felt in an age.’
‘Yes, she is magnificent,’ Paul said and looked at Judith as she spoke and laughed with Jenny. The widow was assured and seemed to brush off everything with a laugh or an arch of her brow. He imagined that she was not easily impressed and, piqued because she appeared to ignore him, he determined to catch her interest. ‘Do you stay long in the country, Lady Sparrow? I should think you more at home in town.’
‘Would you?’ Her smile was deliberately provocative. Paul felt himself respond even though he’d meant to resist the challenge she threw out. ‘I can be content with my horses and dogs in the country, if I have the right companions. I am not above being pleased by simple things, sir.’
‘No, no, I did not mean...’ Paul was on the wrong foot with her and determined to do better. ‘You strike me as a woman who likes London or Paris and its pleasures.’
‘If you mean would I like to travel, the answer is yes,’ Judith said and suddenly smiled at him. ‘It is a passion with me and I should like to indulge myself—but I must have comfortable companions about me. My father is too busy to be bothered with a widowed daughter and so I think I must look for a husband.’ She laughed and looked at Lucy. ‘We have been making plans to lay siege to the gentlemen of Bath next month—for we are both in need of husbands.’
‘Judith!’ Lucy cried and blushed as she saw Paul’s eyes upon her. ‘That was our secret.’
‘Oh, but I do not mind sharing it with present company,’ Judith said, ‘for they will not be a target.’
She had thrown down the gauntlet, her eyes bright with mischief.
Paul frowned, but immediately felt the urge to make this merry widow take back her words. She was attractive and he was drawn to her. He did not know why she had got beneath his skin, but he was seized by a strong determination to make her see the error of her ways.
He was well satisfied when he rose to take his leave, and did not see the odd questing look that Lucy threw at him as he bowed over her cousin’s hand.
She was silent for a moment after their guests had all gone, then said she would go up to her room. Judith accompanied her, slipping an arm through hers and smiling in a satisfied way.
‘I thought your Captain Ravenscar a pompous idiot at first,’ she confessed, ‘but then I saw there was more to him. I dare say he was merely trying to protect your reputation, Lucy—for he clearly thinks me fast and not proper company for you.’
‘Oh, I doubt he truly cares what I do,’ Lucy said carelessly. ‘Besides, he has no right to tell me what I may or may not do.’
‘He certainly has not—unless you are fond of him?’
‘I like him well enough as a friend...’
‘Then we shall teach the captain a little lesson,’ Judith said with a naughty smile. ‘I promised to show you how simple it is to bring a gentleman to heel, Lucy—and it may as well be he as any other.’
* * *
Over the next few days, Lucy and Judith drove out about the estate in the high-perch phaeton and the driving lessons were begun. Although a little nervous at the start, Lucy gave no sign and gradually she began to thoroughly enjoy driving and to feel confident, though as yet she had not mastered Judith’s trick with the whip.
Charles Benson had not succeeded either, and Judith confided to Lucy that he had the worst hands she’d ever seen in a gentleman.
‘I should not dream of letting him drive my horses,’ she said.
‘Oh, but, Judith,’ Lucy cried, ‘the poor man adores you. He is here every day and stays for tea and would stay for supper if he were invited. I believe he is in love with you.’
‘Oh, very likely,’ Judith replied with a laugh. ‘It will pass, my dear Cousin. At his age he will fall in love regularly. I do not expect his adoration to last more than a week or two.’
‘Cruel...’ Lucy cried, but laughed, for in truth Judith had done little to encourage her ardent adorer.
She could not think her cousin cared for him at all, but she was never unkind to her admirer and could not help it if he had fallen in love with her. She was lively and teasing and brought a sense of fun to everything she did.
* * *
Lucy had often managed to forget Paul altogether in her cousin’s company, but once alone in her bed the regrets returned. She had hoped he might visit often, as he had been used to years before, but it was not until the morning of the day before her dance that he drove over.
Lucy was in the parlour, her cousin having taken her father out for a drive because he was leaving the next day.
‘You will forgive me for deserting you,’ she said before she left. ‘I do not know how long it may be until I see Papa again and he asked if we might be alone for a time.’
‘Of course you must take him,’ Lucy replied. ‘I shall be perfectly happy to stay at home. There are many little tasks that need doing before tomorrow.’
However, she had finished her tasks and was sitting in the parlour wondering whether to ride out with her groom when her visitor was announced. Paul strode into the room and her heart caught with both pleasure and pain as she saw how well he looked in his tight-fitting breeches and a blue riding coat with whip ends threaded through the buttonholes.
‘Do I find you alone, Miss Dawlish?’ His eyes travelled about the room as if searching for someone.
‘Mama is still in her room,’ Lucy replied. ‘I fear my cousin has gone out with her father.’
‘I am sorry to have missed her,’ Paul said. ‘Jenny wanted to assure you that she and Adam will attend your dance tomorrow. Hallam and Madeline are visiting with us, so there is no need for her to cry off—and Father seems well enough.’
‘I am glad to hear it,’ Lucy said. ‘Are Hallam and his wife well?’
‘She is with child, but otherwise very well, I think...but prefers to stay quietly at home and would not wish to attend a dance.’
‘Please sit down, Captain Ravenscar,’ Lucy invited. ‘May I send for refreshment?’
‘Nothing, thank you. I would much prefer to take you out in my curricle...if you should care for it?’
Lucy was surprised, her eyes lighting as she looked at him. Her heart missed a beat and she smiled with pleasure.
‘Very much, sir—if you will let me handle the reins for a while.’ A teasing light made her eyes very bright. Had she known it, she looked much as she had before the tragedy.
‘Why not?’ he asked, amused. ‘Do you need to change?’
‘No for I put on this habit in case I decided to ride out,’ Lucy told him. ‘My hat and gloves are here on the table. We shall go at once, for you will not wish to keep your horses standing.’
‘Good.’ He smiled at her and Lucy’s heart caught. For a moment it was as if the years had rolled back and this was the young man she had ridden and walked with as a young girl. She felt a little breathless, her heart beating rapidly as their eyes met and held. ‘I have been wondering how your lessons progressed.’
‘I am not yet as accomplished as my cousin,’ Lucy said as she set her hat at a jaunty angle on her fine blonde curls. ‘Judith says that I have good hands and will be a notable whip in time.’
‘Lady Sparrow is a very confident woman,’ Paul replied, an odd smile on his lips. ‘I think I set out on the wrong tack with her and must mend my ways or she will not dance with me tomorrow.’
‘You are coming?’ Lucy stared at him, her pleasure plain to be seen, for she had thought he might cry off.
‘Hallam and Madeline will keep Father company—and I believe I ought to make some effort to renew my acquaintance with our neighbours, for I have been away a long time.’
Lucy wished that she was on the old terms with him, for once she would have hugged him in her pleasure, but things had changed and she could no longer behave like the tomboy she had once been. Instead, she inclined her head politely.
‘Mama was of the same mind. We have been out to dinner twice this week, but until Judith came we had not entertained ourselves. Her arrival has been the excuse Mama needed to invite her friends once more.’
‘I remember some of the evenings we had here in the past—and at home,’ Paul said. ‘We were good friends then, were we not, Miss Dawlish—all of us?’
‘Yes, of course.’ Lucy hesitated, then, ‘I think we are still friends, Paul. It is just that we have fallen out of the habit of it.’
‘Yes...’ A smile flickered in his eyes as he looked down at her. ‘I was used to call you Lucy...’
‘I wish you would do so now,’ she replied a little shyly as they went outside. Paul’s groom was standing at the head of his pair of matched greys. Paul helped her up and then climbed up beside her.
‘I shall,’ he said. ‘Jake, you may wait here until I return.’
‘Go to the kitchen for a glass of ale,’ Lucy said kindly.
She watched as Paul flicked his reins and his horses moved forward at a walk, which increased to a trot once they were clear of the drive. He waited until they were upon one of the estate roads, before turning to Lucy with a question in his eyes.
‘Do you feel you can handle them?’
‘Yes, of course,’ Lucy said. She had noticed that the horses were a little more inclined to shy and toss their heads than Judith’s pair, but as Paul was beside her,
she felt no fear in accepting the reins from his hand. Immediately she felt the horses pull as if they thought they could get away from this new hand, but she gave a light tug and they responded immediately.
‘They are beautifully trained,’ she said. ‘I think they have soft mouths, for it needed only the slightest indication to hold them back.’
‘Horses will always test a new hand, but these are well trained. Had I brought my chestnuts I should not have been so inclined to allow you to handle them...though you are doing well. Your cousin is right, you do have good hands. I remember that you always rode well.’
‘I should, for you and Mark taught me,’ Lucy said. ‘Do you recall that pony with the wild eyes? Papa bought it for my tenth birthday without seeing it and when it came it was so wilful...always kicking the grooms and trying to throw me off.’
‘It succeeded more than once,’ Paul said and laughed. ‘Had your father known he would have sold it immediately.’
‘But I loved Treacle,’ Lucy said. ‘I should have hated it if Papa had sold him—even though he did not like to be ridden. Besides, you told me that I should get back in the saddle and not sniffle. What choice did I have?’
‘You were very brave,’ Paul said, laughing. ‘I always admired you for that, Lucy. Between us, Mark and I managed to train the wretched animal and I think you had no more falls after he was broken.’
‘Only one, which was my own fault. I put Treacle at the hedge at Long Mile Bottom and he refused. I went sailing over his head and knocked the breath out of myself.’
‘I am not surprise he refused,’ Paul said. ‘That was a foolish thing to do, Lucy. You deserved to be thrown...but, no, I should not have said it. You might have been badly hurt.’
‘If I had it would have been my fault,’ Lucy said and laughed. ‘We got into some terrible scrapes together, did we not? I remember how cross Mama was the day my best dress was torn...’
‘And my father took his stick to me for tempting you out when your mama had forbidden it...’
