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When he caught up to her, it seemed he’d accepted her silent rebuff In a nor infinitely better these last days, but if I had to shoulder a weapon or wield a sword, I’m afraid I still wouldn’t be of much use’
Perhaps his nearness had rattled her nor, ‘Did you wield a shen the pirate ship was taken?’
‘I did’ His aze went to the far horizon ‘I served in the Quartern, whichthe movement of provisions in and around Brussels We never saw any actual fighting I hope I acquittedfor one’s life in a skirelo’s’
Amanda wondered if he’d killed a man He must have at least injured sorim look on his face, she didn’t dare ask
In any event, they’d reached the manor Amanda was about to walk up the steps when the entry door flew open and Althea, the train of her habit caught up over one arm, dashed out
She stopped short, staring at A
A flash of guilt wafted through A him
Trying to da her cheeks, she said, ‘Thank you, Mr Anders, for adiscussion I expect I’ll see you at dinner’ Nodding to Althea, whose expression had gone fro, she continued up the steps and into the house
Chapter Nine
Two days later, Greville entered the breakfast room to find it deserted In answer to his unspoken question, Sands said, ‘Miss Amanda rode out early to visit some tenants, but Miss Althea should be down soon’
Conscious of a disappoint, Greville nodded and went to fill his plate He’d not seen the glorious A with his left side on fire and the cutlass wound weeping, he’d cursed hi and spent the day resting
He really shouldn’t seek her out anyway For the second ti her, the urge to do so stronger than the occasion before, on the terrace This time, she’d nearly initiated the caress herself, before sanity returned and she prudently broke away from him
He should respect that prudence and keep his distance
Except…he just didn’t want to What was the harm in a little dalliance? an insidious voice asked He wasn’t a green youth, to be catapulted beyond the limits of control by a si a husband rander than hiratify them both, after which she’d be off to London and he could concentrate on settling his own future
While he wrestled with te today?’ she asked as she accepted a cup of coffee from Sands
‘Much better, thank you’
‘I’lad We hoped you’d not re-injured your shoulder avoiding the collision with Mr Williams’
‘A temporary setback, no more’
‘Excellent The day looks to be fair Would you like to ride out? I could show you the ruins of Neville Tour’
After the irritation of his aching shoulder and a day of forced inactivity, the idea of being out in the fresh air was so appealing that he replied at once, ‘I should like that very much’
‘Wonderful!’ Miss Holton gulped the rest of her coffee and set down the cup ‘Just let e into my habit and I’ll meet you at the stables’
Not until she’d dashed off did Greville recall that, with Miss Neville off somewhere and unable to act as chaperon, he probably shouldn’t have accepted Miss Holton’s invitation
By now, he’d had several occasions to observe the strain between the two girls He suspected that, after seeing hio, Miss Holton had leapt at this opportunity to circu time alone with him