“You know I’ll never take any money from you.” Everly turned to her with a wrinkle in her nose. “Oh, Brin, there are moments when you make me realize how much is wrong with our world. Why must ladies go through all of this just to be free when lords snap their fingers and men high and low let them be?”
Brinley smiled and recalled how Lore had followed her around during the tour. Now that the event was done, she realized how much of a novelty it was. For a few hours, she’d had a handsome man at her heels. That was never to be again.
He’d sat at a table not far from hers during the evening meal, joking with Denhollow and Sillian. She’d strangely not heard any whispers about Lore’s attention to her. She and Everly had been certain Lady Jennie and Lady Frannie would have spoken to all their other close acquaintances about it, but they hadn’t.
Perhaps, it was because even after seeing it, the women were not ready to believe.
And Brinley realized not being gossiped about hurt nearly just as much.
“If I were a man,” Everly placed her hands on her hips, “I would run this country.”
Brinley began to laugh.
“I truly would!” Everly declared.
“No one would ever mistake you for a man,” Brinley said.
Everly rolled her eyes. “You never know. People only ever see what they wish to see.”
Brinley sighed. “Well, with this last sale, I have finally managed to save enough to buy a house in the country.”
Everly settled down on the bed next to Brinley. “But why settle in the country when you can simply come live with me in the city?” She’d made the offer before.
“I can’t,” Brinley said. “I have this need to be out on my own. You understand.”
“I do. More than anyone else,” Everly said in a serious tone. Then she smiled. “I’m very proud of you. I wish others knew. Can you imagine what your mama will say when you announce at the end of the party that you’ll not be moving in with Arabella and her husband?”
Brinley smiled. The only true obstacle would be her father’s approval, but she already knew he would once she proved to him that she had a plan. She’d learned as much as she could from Lady Everly about running one’s own estate.
She was ready.
Everly stood. “I’ll have my own footmen take the design back to Madam Keats. The money should be here by the end of the month if not by the end of the party, I suspect.”
Brinley went to the table and gave her the sketches. “Thank you again.”
“It is what friends do. Now, are you coming down for the card games? I hear Lady Hero is quite entertaining to watch.”
Brinley shook her head. “I plan to be amongst the group that rides early tomorrow morning.” She was always on the hunt for new inspiration and what better scene than a view of the castle at dawn?
Everly bid her good night and Brinley made ready for bed with a smile on her lips.
* * *
This was the worst.
Brinley looked from her father to the large Spanish stallion before her. “Where’s Ginger?”
“I left Ginger home,” Lord Tellock said. “You’ll take this one. His name is Jupiter. You’ll take this horse every time you ride. He’s just for you.”
Brinley looked the great horse over and a sinking feeling settled into her belly. She knew just whose horse she was about to mount.
She glanced around at the rest of the party that were making ready.
The sun had yet to break the horizon, but a pale blue hue was cast over the shadows. Servants gathered around with lanterns,
A few other ladies would be joining them, but most of the party was made of gentlemen.
To her surprise, Lore was up. She’d been sure he’d have stayed up well into the wee hours of the morning enjoying parlor games and thus wouldn’t have made it this early.
But there he was.
He sat on another darker steed. He didn’t look even the least bit tired and openly glared in their direction.
“Father,” Brinley whispered. “This horse… It’s too big. I would rather take a smaller one.”
“You’d likely hurt a smaller horse, Brinley.”
The comment stung and made her realize just how much she wanted this conversation to end before her father embarrassed her more.
With no one’s help at all, she mounted the horse and could feel the animal’s might. It was exhilarating. She touched the white and silver coat and listened to the animal’s breathing.
She didn’t look in Lore’s direction.
“Enjoy your ride,” her father said before stepping away to speak to a stableboy. He would not be joining them.
She planned to tell a stablehand to switch her horse with another once her father disappeared but didn’t have the chance. The party started out with her father seeing her away.
Arabella rode to her side. She was yet another surprising face. Arabella distracted her thoughts for a while with tales of the good time she’d had the previous day as they rode past the gatehouse and onto the main road.
The hills seemed endless. Fresh dew rose like gentle clouds from the fields and disappeared beyond the trees that surrounded the ravine. The verdant landscape was picturesque.
She could see herself settling in this part of the country. She’d yet to find the property she desired. With a two-month party ahead of her, she saw no reason she couldn’t use a few days to ride around and see what she could find.
It invigorated her.
“Is Lord Laurel watching you, Brinley?”
She made the mistake of looking. Though he didn’t glare anymore, his concentration was definitely on her. His friends were with him, Denhollow and Sillian. They were watching her as well.
“It’s the stallion,” Brinley said. “It’s beautiful.”
“Oh, yes, that makes sense,” Arabella said with a sigh of relief. “For a moment, I thought you’d done something terrible.”
Brinley’s heart shook. “Why would you think that?”
Arabella tilted her head. “Well, what else could there be? Of course, everyone who gets to know you enjoys your company, but...” Arabella smiled, unwilling to finish her words. The statement was hardly cruel when it was fact.
“Mama thought she saw him watching you at dinner,” Arabella went on. “We were quite worried. I hope to make a good impression on Benedict’s family. I’m sure she was wrong, however. Perhaps, it was Everly he was watching? But truly, I am glad to have an answer to this most pressing question.”
Brinley didn’t see why the question had been so pressing. She hadn’t caught Lore’s gaze once during the meal. Surely, he’d not been watching her while she’d been watching him?
“Wherever did Father get that horse?” Arabella asked, staring down at the silver beast. “It is quite beautiful. What’s her name?”
Brinley had no time to answer or to tell Arabella Jupiter was a boy. Arabella’s attention was stolen by the two other ladies of the party who knew her.
“Enjoy your ride, sister, and I’ll come to your room tonight with ices.” Arabella grinned before she moved away.
“You shouldn’t tug on his reins so much.” Lore all but snuck up on her other side.
All Brinley had wanted was a peaceful ride.
“I’m not tugging the reins,” she responded indignantly.
“You are and it’s not necessary.” He gazed at the horse with an emotion Brinley attributed with longing. “He knows how to lead and takes cues well with nothing more than a slight squeeze of the knee.”
Brinley glanced around. Again, there were a few eyes on them. “Perhaps we should switch if you believe you know the horse so well.”
His eyes moved to her, and she saw happiness before it was snuffed out. “No. I couldn’t take Lore Tellock’s horse.”
But it was his horse. She knew it to be.
And if she wished to ride anymore while she was at the castle, she’d have to mount Jupiter every time.
Once agai
n, her father, in his own way, had ruined the party for her.
∫ ∫ ∫
0 9
Lore didn’t mean to, but during that morning’s ride, he stayed close to Brinley. He’d not seen Jupiter in months and had worried about the horse’s care. From what he could see, Jupiter was healthy, but he’d have to find a way to inspect him closer upon their return.
He’d barely witnessed the sunrise or listened to his friends as they tried to engage him in conversation. All Lore could think about was his horse and how he had to get him back.
He’d have to double or triple his efforts if he wished to have him.
Tellock was a cruel man for this. He’d known exactly how Lore would respond.
Though as they rode, Lore couldn’t understand the need for Tellock to have made this arrangement at all.
Everyone liked Brinley. Once she gave her opinion on a matter, others would listen. A few of the gentlemen even joined her in friendly debate. She held her own when they tried to bully and sway her thinking.
She was unafraid to show herself to be a lady who possessed a mind, which would only dissuade a very small selection of men.
There were moments when he saw Lord Tellock in her. She had a certainty in herself that almost drove him mad, mainly because there were so many things he was so very uncertain about.
She was not like other women. She didn’t laugh simply to be polite. It took true comedy to move her. Neither did she smile because it was the thing to do. She did it when something someone said pleased her.
Her honesty was refreshing, her face pretty, her body—whenever the material revealed it— was arousing.
The gentlemen were fools to not have already sought her hand. Brinley was perfect in every way. Far too perfect for Lore and his shameful past. But how to get them to see what he saw?
But, of course, that was where Lore was supposed to come in, he supposed. He was to fill in the gap. Lord Tellock believed that if men thought Lore saw her to be attractive then they should as well.
Would that be enough? He hoped so for both their sakes.
When they were back on the road to the castle, Brinley fell behind and Denhollow caught up to him, forcing him to remain where he was. “Lore, I don’t believe I’m mistaken, but is Lady Brinley on your horse?”
Lore refused to look back at Jupiter. “I’m… allowing her to use him during the party.” And Lore would make sure the horse remained when her family departed. He had two months to get Jupiter back or he’d have to wait through the winter and try again next Season.
He’d not tell Denhollow the truth. Maybe Sillian, since he knew the viscount could hold his tongue, but not Denhollow. It would lead to embarrassment for both him and Brinley.
More so Brinley.
Why her embarrassment meant more to him than his own, he didn’t know.
Denhollow made a wheezing sound. “You’re allowing her to ride your horse? You wouldn’t even allow me to ride him and I’ve asked for years.”
Lore tried to come up with something to say to that. He had been protective of Jupiter until that night he’d lost him at the tables. Anger, arrogance, and alcohol had made him foolish.
Denhollow lowered his voice. “Perhaps, you share your steed, because she shares something of her own.” He lifted a curious brow, but his eyes insinuated something dark.
Lore looked over at him and allowed the hauteur in his gaze to speak on his behalf. Even still, he could not hold his peace. “You speak of a lady.”
Denhollow lifted a hand. “My apologies. ” His expression was comical, and so not to be taken seriously.
“Tell no one the horse is mine.” The last thing he wanted was for gossip of Denhollow’s nature to spread. Though he was upset that Brinley was displaying his horse before him, Lore knew where to rest the blame.
Lord Tellock should have known someone would recognize Jupiter and maybe make assumptions.
“Sillian knows,” Denhollow said. “I’ll make sure he doesn’t say a word.”
Lore nodded and then pulled the reins on Gasper and waited for the party to pass. When he didn’t see Brinley, he turned to find that she’d fallen far behind.
He turned his mount and trotted toward her. “Are you all right?”
“I’m perfectly fine, my lord.” She lifted her chin and kept her gaze forward. “I simply wished to have a moment to myself.”
She was a very good rider, he noted. Lore hadn’t missed the implication in her words. She wanted him to go away.
He rode beside her, partly because he wished to be with Jupiter when they returned, but more so because he wanted to bother her. He’d not wanted to bother anyone since his childhood.
His nearness earned him her glare. In the direct light of the sun, her brown eyes proved to have other depths. Shades of cocoa, umber, and a dash of topaz.
“I know how to ride, my lord,” she said briskly. “I’ve been riding since I was a young girl.”
“I can see. You’re very good,” he decidedly said.
She was momentarily stunned, but then her expression cooled. “Thank you. I’m sure the praise came from the very depths of your heart.” She turned away.
He smiled and wondered at her comment.
* * *
Brinley looked over and caught the grin on Lore’s face. It was hard to tell if it was genuine, yet that never concerned her heart. It jumped at the sight of him.
If she wasn’t careful, that smile would visit her in her dreams.
She needed to find a way to get rid of him.
She remembered their conversation the previous day. He didn’t seem to care for her nosing into his business. “Have you thought more on your purpose in life, my lord?”
He lifted a brow. “My purpose? I thought we were speaking about wants.”
She shrugged. “Sometimes, they can be one and the same.”
“I’m sure that is the case for very few,” he said.
“Do you have a career?”
“I aim to be the finest gentleman in all the world.”
She rolled her eyes. “I heard a rumor that you’d once worked for the church?”
He looked ahead as they passed through the gatehouse. “I did.” He smiled coyly, and Brinley knew it to be false. “But again, it isn’t as though I’m in need of a career. My lands make a sizeable income.”
She saw it now. The mask dropped right before her eyes. He was hiding something behind the light humor. She simply didn’t know if she cared enough to ask after his secrets.
Actually, if only to herself, she did admit to wanting to know more about him, but such things would only lead to danger. For now, she liked to think him a gentleman without any depth or feelings, and he was making that tremendously easy for her.
“You have lands?” she asked.
He pointed east. “They’re not far from here, actually. They’re but a ride away. Chesterhill Manor.”
“What’s it like there?” she asked. She was very interested in the area.
“I don’t know. I’ve not been there in many years.”
“Well, you should go see to your lands.” She nearly wanted to beg him to go right then and there and abandon the party. “Anything could be happening that you’re not aware of.”
“Anything? Like what?” he asked.
A footman approached. Lore got down from his horse and stopped the man from assisting Brinley. Instead, he took Jupiter’s reins in his own hands and began to lead her toward the stable.
“What are you doing?” she asked.
Already the other riders were dismounting and there were eyes on them.
“I’d like to see your father’s horse up close. I’m sure he won’t mind.”
“But you don’t have to take me with you,” she protested. Thankfully, she didn’t have to worry about propriety. There were other riders heading to the stables as well. She and Lore would not be alone. Still… “Leave me here.”
“But we’re in the middle of a conversation.” He
looked at her and asked in an earnest tone, “What possible calamity could befall my lands that I could see to better than my estate manager?”
The conversation clearly had not derailed him.
“What if... your manager is stealing from your coffers?”
“My manager is an honest man,” he countered.
“But you wouldn’t know unless you went to see for yourself.”
The stables were just as grand at the castle itself. Instead of wood, the stalls were made of black iron and the floor was a warm reddish brick that blended well with the stone walls. There were windows cut into the walls that allowed light during the day, but once night fell, the black iron chandeliers overhead would be lit, which she was sure would make the place quite majestic.
Lore stopped once they were inside and then came to stand by Jupiter. He lifted his hand.
“I can get down by myself.” She turned to do just that.
She had one leg over when his hands grabbed her hips.
His voice brushed her ear. “I’ve got you.”
She could hear the conversations of others in the stables over the pounding of her heart, but the position of Jupiter’s large body kept them from being seen.
“I said I didn’t need help,” she replied with her foot still in the stirrup. She turned around and readied herself to give him what she hoped to be a withering look, but she found his face much too close for comfort.
His eyes were on hers and full of amusement, his hands firm. “It’s the gentlemanly thing to do to assist a lady down from her horse, and I believe I just told you that I planned to dedicate myself to that exact profession.”
She took a breath, which dragged in his scent. He smelled like warm male flesh.
In-spite of herself, she couldn’t build a true dislike for him, not when he was looking at her with those eyes.
Brinley hopped down the rest of the way.
The movement caused her to all but plow into him.
She spun around and gasped. “I’m sorry. I didn’t…” She’d been looking down, believing she’d knocked him over but was now forced to lift her gaze.
Her fall hadn’t affected him at all. She was nearly certain his feet hadn’t even moved.
The Perfect Gentleman (Valiant Love) (A Regency Romance Book) Page 5
