An Earl for Edith

by Tammi Lee Bird

  “Maybe. I don’t know what I want right now. You are interested in me as a friend and as a mother for your daughter. I understand that. I know I am not beautiful and that I shouldn’t hope for anything more, but the heart is capricious and I enjoyed his attention. Why, does that upset you?”

  “I brought him to your side. If he breaks your heart or your reputation, it will be my fault. Remember that I trust you to tell me the truth, and that is more important to me than a pretty face or a large fortune. Goodnight, Miss Wilson.”

  He brought her hand up to his lips and kissed her skin. She stopped breathing when his soft lips grazed the top of her hand. He let go of her, and she instantly missed the warmth his contact had brought. Edith sucked in a deep breath of air and let her lungs fill with oxygen. He stepped back, away from her, and whispered, “Sleep well.” Edith watched his lips as they moved. Pink and full, yet there was a masculine curve to them that made her heart beat fast. Before she even said goodbye he turned around and walked away. She took in the length of him as he disappeared into the distance and realized she was attracted to every inch of the dratted man.

  That night Edith’s dreams were filled with warm green eyes and tantalizing lips that were always close yet never touched her mouth. She woke with bags under her eyes and matted hair. Gretchen drew her a bath and got to work on removing all of the tangles from her brown locks. The water rejuvenated her and helped her feel alive again. Her only consolation was the hope that Lord Camden had enjoyed a similar night of torment.

  Edith donned her green muslin dress that flattered her curves the best and headed down to breakfast where her wish was instantly crushed. Lord Camden was humming as he filled his plate with ham and eggs. He looked well-rested and chipper. She had the strangest desire to kick him. Edith didn’t, of course. Such an act would label her a hoyden and remove any goodwill the earl had towards her.

  Edith grabbed a plate and started filling it with fruit, meat, and cheese. She smiled brightly at Lord Camden and wished him a good morning. She refused to let him know how he’d affected her the night before. They sat down at the same table and Edith tried not to stare at him as he ate his food with gusto. She had no appetite, yet she forced herself to slowly eat everything on her plate. She didn’t want him wondering why she wasn’t in the mood for food.

  Miss Middleton joined them a few minutes later and started chatting about the weather and the lack of snow they’d received this year. Edith nodded and the earl discussed how low snowfall would affect the area come spring.

  “I heard we’re going to be having a picnic in the greenhouse once it snows,” Miss Middleton said. “I think that is a magical idea! A picnic in the middle of winter is the most romantic thing I could imagine.”

  While Edith agreed that a winter picnic sounded exotic and lovely. The phrase most romantic seemed extreme. For there were so many activities that would be more romantic than a picnic in a greenhouse under the watchful eye of twenty adults. A meeting alone in the corridor came to mind, and Edith’s smile turned into a thoughtful frown. Did Lord Camden really like her better than the other girls?

  “I hope my mother’s plans live up to your expectation Ms. Middleton,” Lord Camden said.

  Olive Middleton, while a little boring, was curvaceous with thick lustrous chestnut-colored hair. Edith sat up straighter and tried to picture herself as a graceful willow, not a beanpole. “Do you know what other activities have been planned for this party?” Edith asked the young lady.

  “I believe that there will be horseback riding after breakfast then a small musicale showing available to anyone who wishes to perform tomorrow evening,” Miss Middleton replied.

  “There will also be card tables out throughout the day, and I highly recommend the library if you enjoy reading,” Lord Camden expounded.

  “I do love a good book,” Edith answered. “How about your Lordship, do you read?”

  “Not as often as I would like, but yes, I often spend my free time with a novel or historical tome.”

  Olive Middleton shared that she did not enjoy reading but was an avid sewer who always had her needlepoint on hand to pass the time. Once all three were finished eating, Lord Camden asked if they were going to go riding. Olivia said, “I cannot stand the cold.”

  Edith couldn’t wait to be on horseback again. Though she was supposed to be afraid of horses, according to Mama’s lie. Even so, she wouldn’t let that stop her from enjoying her morning. “I would love to join you, my lord. Hopefully, you can recommend a tame beast for me to ride.”

  “Of course, Miss Wilson. I wouldn’t want you to be uncomfortable. We have several older mares that are as gentle as a kitten.”

  Edith laughed. “In my experience, kittens are anything but gentle. They are all teeth and claws hidden behind a facade of fur.”

  “Well, that is not the case with my mares. I’ll choose a better metaphor next time. How about they are as calm as a spring morning.” The twinkle in his eye let her know he understood the problem with his new comparison. Yet she couldn’t help herself.

  “Yes, a spring morning with a sudden lightning storm. I am beginning to fear that you have no truly tame horses here.”

  Lord Camden wished Miss Middleton a good morning and made plans to meet Edith in a half-hour once they were both properly dressed for the cold. A few other houseguests were to join them at the stables. Edith quickly put on her riding dress, pelisse, and warmest gloves, hat, and muff. Once she was prepared she found Lord Camden waiting for her by the stairs. He escorted her to his stables, and she was impressed before she even entered the building. Inside were rows of clean stalls and the finest horses she had ever seen. Edith was especially impressed with his stallion, Amadeus. The black beast had one spot of white on his nose and his coat was so well brushed it shimmered like satin.

  “He’s beautiful!”

  “Yes, he is. My father spent a fortune acquiring him for me. So far he’s sired two colts and a filly. Would you like to see them?”

  Edith nodded, and Lord Camden took her to the other side of the stable where he introduced her to a young foal only a few months old. The little filly was the spitting image of her father except half of her face was white. The boys were almost a year older, and one was pure black while the other was reddish-brown.

  “They must be the pride of your stables.”

  “Yes. It took me several years to find a mare for Amadeus. Their mother has a pedigree almost as illustrious as his.”

  “Which horse do you think Sir Archibald would choose, if he won the bet?” Edith asked.

  “Either Mozart,” he said, indicating the pure black colt, “or Jupiter.” Lord Camden took Edith a few stalls down and showed her his white Arabian with a cream-colored mane. “Jupiter was sired by my father’s favorite horse. I would hate to lose either of them.”

  “Then you had better keep me in your good graces.”

  “True. Now as for today, let me introduce you to Dandi, short for Dandelion.” As they walked to the next stall, Lord Camden had one of the grooms start preparing their horses for the morning ride. Her mare was not yet old, but was a sweet soul and as gentle as they come. Edith put her hand up to the horse's nose and let the animal smell her. Edith was excited for a lovely day and knew it was time to let the earl know that she loved horses. I’ll act as scared as possible then show off how well I can ride. I’ll push Dandi to do some tricks, and then I will tell him about Mama’s lie.

  Sir Archibald, Mr. Stirling, and Lady Wycliffe entered the stables together. Lord Camden happily greeted his cousin and guests and chose horses for everyone. Edith watched him pick stallions for the men and a beautiful mare for Lady Ann.

  A groom placed a mounting block beside her horse and held out his hand to help steady her as she got into the side saddle. Edith gently flicked the reins and the horse began to walk out into the beautiful field next to Avonview. The trees were bare now, and in the shade patches of snow remained from the last storm.

  Edit
h waited for everyone to mount. As a group, they followed Lord Camden as he led them to a trail through the woods. The wind was icy yet she felt invigorated now that she was out in nature. She had been in London too long and had missed the beauty of the natural world around her.

  Sir Archibald brought his horse up to ride next to her and said, “It is a very beautiful day, don’t you agree, Miss Wilson?”

  “Yes, it’s lovely for December. Do you enjoy the cold?” she asked. His teeth were already starting to chatter..

  “I don’t mind cool weather, but I usually try to avoid being out-of-doors when it is freezing. I prefer the warm summer months.”

  Edith tucked her scarf into her coat where the wind was getting in. “I doubt we’ll be out long today. Thankfully the sun is out and the sky is clear. It shouldn’t get any colder.” Edith nodded to Sir Archibald as the path opened up into a spacious field overlooking the River Avon. She was ready to fly with Dandi.

  Edith put her horse into a canter and sped past Sir Archibald and Lord Camden. As her horse reached a full gallop she heard Amadeus coming up behind her. She screamed into the wind as her hair pulled free of her chignon. She’d never been on a runaway horse in her life, as she was an expert horsewoman, so she drew from her imagination to create a scene that might come out of a romantic thriller.

  “Stop, Miss Wilson. Pull back, there’s a…” Camden’s words disappeared under the sound of the horse’s hooves and Edith turned her head to look back, trying to keep a horrified expression upon her face. The earl was closing the gap between them quickly. She faced forward and secretly urged her horse to go faster. Eventually, the earl would catch her as Dandi was no match for his thoroughbred, but for now, she lived in the moment enjoying her ploy.

  A fence appeared almost out of nowhere. Edith didn’t have time to slow Dandi down, so she kept her pace and said, “You’ve got this Dandi, it’s just a little jump.” She patted her horse and urged her forward. Dandi followed her command with grace and leaped over the fence with ease.

  Chapter 10

  His heart lurched as Edith and Dandi flew gracefully over the fence. Her scream of terror filled Miles with concern. He should have stayed closer to her or led her horse around. He’d thought her to be a better horsewoman than she’d claimed, yet now one of his gentlest beasts was carrying her off. He leaned forward, and Amadeus increased his speed and jumped across the fence. A few heartbeats later they came abreast of Dandi and Edith. A strand of trees made it difficult to maneuver. The trees thinned and he moved as close to her as he was able, reached out and grabbed the reins from her hands and called out, “Whoa, whoa.”

  Once the horses slowed, Miles swung his leg over his horse and slid down to the earth to calm Edith. “Here, let me help you down,” he said. His arms lifting up to her waist to aid her. She shifted suddenly and practically fell into him. Her weight pushed him back and his foot caught on a loose rock. He went down in a flash, and they were lucky that Amadeus had already stepped forward out of their way. Edith landed on top of him. Her willowy curves pressed up against him, her legs indelicately tangled around his.

  The cold air wasn’t enough to regulate his body temperature as he put his arm around her. Places that were frozen moments before were warming dangerously to her presence. He wanted to push her off of him, but she was shaking. Was she crying?

  As gently as possible Miles lifted Miss Wilson and rolled her to his side. “Are you alright?” he asked. “Does anything hurt?” Her eyes were closed as she made a strange noise. A snort. She was laughing! She rolled farther away and burst into a fit of giggles.

  Miles was lost. Was she truly feeling mirth at their strange situation, or was this some sort of hysteric fit? Her laughter turned into a cough and Miles stood up, brushed wet dirt off of his breeches and offered her his hand. “I’m not sure what to make of your mood, but lying on the cold wet ground is bound to be bad for your health.”

  Luckily they were all alone and no one else had jumped the fence. The trees and hill blocked their view of their fellow riders, but it wouldn’t be long before the rest of the party joined them.

  “I’m…” giggle, “sorry, It went better than I expected.” Edith took a deep breath and accepted his help getting up to her feet. “I know I shouldn’t have done it, but I couldn’t help myself. I’m actually an excellent rider. I love horses, but ever since Mother lied about me being scared of horses, I’ve hated pretending to be terrified of them, until today. I acted out a scene from one of my favorite books where the heroine was stuck on a runaway horse, and you reacted just like the hero.”

  Miles couldn’t hide his surprise. The meek mouse was now running around him causing chaos, fear, and desire. His blood still ran hot. He looked at her, just inches away, her lips and cheeks red from the wind. Her hair falling down around her haphazardly. He leaned forward, and tucked a stray strand behind her ear. “I am torn between the desire to throttle you for causing me such concern, and kissing you senseless.”

  Her eyes widened, her gaze lowered to his lips. Her eyes lingered and her stare caused his mouth to tingle under her total concentration. Miles succumbed to his desire and pulled her to him.

  “You can’t,” she whispered, “I don’t want to force you into marriage.”

  “I promised our lips would not touch,” he whispered into her ear. “I can think of several ways we can work around such a simple constraint.” He trailed his fingers down her arm, and lifted her hand up between them. Her eyes twinkled with excitement. She didn’t back down or pull away. He removed her glove and brought her hand to his lips. He kissed the palm first. Then each finger in turn and heard his heart beating, behind him. No, those were horse hooves. He dropped her hand and stepped back to see Sir Archibald riding towards them.

  Edith was frozen in place. Had she noticed they were no longer alone? “Ah, Sir Archibald, I was afraid we’d lost you for good.”

  “My horse refused to jump the fence, and I was forced to find another way around,” the baronet explained.

  Miles whistled to Amadeus who ran to him. He mounted and Sir Archibald hopped down to see Miss Wilson. “Are you alright? Is anything broken?”

  “No, I am fine. Thankfully. But I could use some help getting back on my horse,” Miss Wilson said. Miles watched Sir Archibald wrap his arms around Edith’s waist as he lifted her onto Dandi. If he had waited a moment longer, he could have helped her instead of Sir Archibald. Not that he cared, but for decency’s sake the man ought to have let her step on his hands to get up instead of taking liberties.

  Once Miss Wilson was safely back on her horse, Sir Archibald turned, bent down, and retrieved her glove lying wet on the ground. The glove he’d just removed. Why on Earth did I do that?

  Edith snatched her glove from Sir Archibald’s hand and wrung it dry. It was too cold to go without it, but it was too wet to wear. She placed one hand in her muff and used the other to steer the horse. She’d been so sure Miles was going to kiss her. Her heart had been pounding and her hand still felt his lingering warmth.

  Mr. Stirling and Lady Ann rounded the bend, and the whole party was reunited. Lady Ann asked if she was alright, and Edith replied, “I’m perfectly fine, though I think it’s time we return. I could use a good strong cup of tea to heat me up. My limbs are positively frozen.”

  She hadn’t noticed the elements. What her limbs had been frozen with wasn't the cold, but a hot desire to cling to a man. Her cheeks flamed with embarrassment. She’d let him hold her close, and fondle her fingers without a single word of restraint. She should have told him to stop.

  They took a different route back that followed the river. She somehow ended up next to Lord Camden with the rest of the party behind them. Edith let the sound of the water calm her nerves and vowed to act as though nothing had happened between them.

  “Did you grow up here at Avonview?” Edith asked.

  “Yes, I spent many summers playing in this very water, and Mother often scolded me for tracking mud back in
to the house. She even made me scrub the floors a time or two to teach me a lesson. It was a lovely place to be a child.” His voice was steady and his smile without feeling. How could he be so calm and collected?

  “My house was much smaller and there was a pond nearby instead of a river, but I too spent most of my formative years out of doors. I had a rather strange attachment to frogs when I was a girl,” Edith confessed. She wasn’t about to let him see how rattled she still was. Even the trickle of the river wasn’t enough to fully calm her heavily beating heart.

  “And I thought all females detested any sort of amphibian. I distinctly remember putting a frog on Olivia Lamb’s shoulder only to hear her shriek in fear,” he replied.

  “Should I be concerned about your attachment to Miss Lamb? I’ve heard that’s the sort of thing little boys do to get the attention of the one they admire,” Edith teased.

  “Not at all. Olivia is one of my tenants. She married the butcher’s second son and now has five children of her own.”

  “That didn’t really answer my question. Did you like Olivia when you put amphibians on her?”

  Lord Camden frowned. “I’m not sure. I can honestly say I never questioned my choice of teasing her as a lad. Did you have a terror in your neighborhood who you suspected liked you?”

  Edith shook her head. “No, they all followed my sister Felicity around like puppies. Next to her, I was always invisible. In some ways, it is nice that she had her season first. Now that she is married, I don’t have to compete with her. Felicity is the spitting image of my mother with blonde curls and azure eyes.” Edith shivered as a gust of wind pierced through her pelisse and chilled her. She was ready to be inside, away from Lord Camden and his confusing behavior. “Let’s race back.”

  “Your horse is no match for Amadeus.”

  “Then what are you afraid of?” Edith gave a yell and flicked the reins. Dandi responded beautifully and they sped down the path. From behind she heard Camden give chase and the race was on. It didn’t take long for him to overtake her, and he was several yards ahead by the time they reached the stables. Still, Edith was happy to have enjoyed the thrill of speed and conceded defeat upon her return.