Lord Runthorne's Dilemma: A Regency Romance (22 page)

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

Sun beat down on Elizabeth’s head and, despite the shading brim of her bonnet, she had to narrow her eyes against the light. She had wrestled all night with her confusion over Lord Runthorne. It would appear that he had been true to his word. He was now free to marry her.

Or so he believed.

Elizabeth
rather thought Lady Delphine would have something to say to that. There was another problem, too. Could Elizabeth bring herself to marry him if he thought she was Alice’s mother? Her head ached. She hesitated a moment then, although she was not quite sure why, she walked across the lawn towards the lake.

Laughter rose towards her telling her that she was not the only person to find the lake attractive on such a hot day.
She slowed her steps then stopped under the shade of the trees.

Standing by the lake was Alice, her face turned up towards
Lord Runthorne.

He had discarded his coat and had rolled up his shirt sleeves.
His arms were very brown against the white of his shirt. Elizabeth licked her suddenly dry lips. The muscles in his forearms tensed as he drew back his arm and let a stone fly, skipping across the lake. It bounced three times before it sank, sending circles of ripples out to the edge of the lake.

Next to him Alice laughed and clapped.

Elizabeth stepped out from the shadow of the trees. “Alice,” she said. Her eyes kept straying to Lord Runthorne’s strong arms, indecently bared, and she felt a betraying blush mount in her cheeks.

“
Miss, you’re still here.” Alice jumped up and down. “I thought you said you had to go away.” She skipped towards Elizabeth and flung her arms around her waist, burying her head in Elizabeth’s side.

Elizabeth
returned the hug. “My plans changed,” she said. “But what are you doing here, sweetling?”

“
I was walking home and Mr Runthorne saw me and thought I might like to see a trick.”

Elizabeth
raised her brows. “
Mr
Runthorne?” An involuntary smile twitched her lips.

Alice nodded. “Yes, he asked me to stop calling him ‘My lord’. He said he is tired of everyone ‘toad eating’ him, so I was not to stand on ceremony.
”

“Did he?” She glanced at him. “That is interesting.”

Lord Runthorne grunted, sounding embarrassed.

“
Miss, what’s ‘toad eating’? I mean why’d anyone want to eat them? Yuck!”

“I will explain another time.”

To Elizabeth’s slight relief and considerable disappointment, he snatched up his coat and put it on. She met his eyes and blushed deeper. From the expression in his eyes he knew exactly what she was feeling.

“
I think you should hurry home,” she said to Alice. “Mrs Turner will be worried.”

Now
Lord Runthorne grinned. “I was going to escort Miss Alice home,” he said, extending his hand to the child. Alice released Elizabeth and placed her hand trustingly in his.

Elizabeth
felt a sudden and surprising stab of jealousy. “You should be careful, Alice,” she said, more sharply than she intended. At the child’s startled glance she added gently, “it is not always wise to take people at face value.”

“
But you said Mr Runthorne was the best man you had met.”

“
Did you indeed?” He was laughing at her. Again Elizabeth had the unnerving sensation that he could read her mind.

“
Even I have been known to be wrong,” she said.

He
bowed a little as though she had touched him in a duel. “Perhaps, then, Elizabeth you would care to chaperone Miss Alice. That is if you believe I can be trusted with your good self?”

Elizabeth
gritted her teeth. He was playing with her, but she had to speak to him privately and if this was the only way she could see him alone, so be it.

“
Of course,” she said, taking Alice’s other hand. She tried to keep her voice light, pretending it was a game. “So, my lord, what did you think you were doing last night?”

“
Last night? I had a most relaxing sleep. Why? Did you have another activity in mind for me?

“
I meant,” Elizabeth said, through gritted teeth, “your behaviour towards Miss Lacey.”

“
Then perhaps you should have questioned my behaviour yesterday evening.”

“
You are pedantic, my lord.”

“
What does pedantic mean,” Alice said, swinging between them.

Lord
Runthorne laughed. “I think I will leave that answer to you, Elizabeth,” he said and would not say another word on the walk into the town.

***

Runthorne grinned. Elizabeth was fuming. Her eyes were sparkling with suppressed fury and her cheeks were flushed. He half wished that they were flushed for another reason but at least her anger showed that she felt something for him. Nor had he missed the way her eyes had strayed to his bare forearms. All in all he was quite pleased.

He glanced down at the child skipping by his side and his smile softened.
Once Elizabeth saw he was serious about Alice her foolish principles would vanish and she would marry him.

He
glanced over to Elizabeth and his conviction wavered. She was smiling at Alice’s chatter but, when her eyes flicked towards him, her smile dropped to be replaced by a frown.

They walked at a steady pace
with Alice occasionally running ahead to forage for nettles and, with a cry of delight, some mallow.

“
Hold these for me, please sir,” she said.

Runthorne grinned and accepted the bunch of purple headed flowers.
“They are very pretty,” he said. “They will brighten your home.”

Alice put her head on one side.
“Silly,” she said and giggled. “We are going to eat them.” She plucked a young leaf and offered it to him.

“
Thank you, Miss Alice, but I am not at all hungry.”

Alice shrugged and popped the leaf in her mouth.

“Coward,” Elizabeth murmured, but Runthorne decided to ignore her.

The walk was pleasant but all too soon
they passed from the fertile countryside to the dusty town and arrived at Alice’s home. He was struck again by the shabbiness of the street. Alice’s home stood out as one of the neatest, but even there he could see signs of neglect.

“
The landlord does not see fit to make minor repairs,” Elizabeth said, as though sensing his surprise.

“
I assumed Captain Maybourne was the landlord.”

Elizabeth
shook her head. “If he were, the entire street would be in better condition. He is something of a philanthropist.”

Mrs Turner bustled out of the door and dropped a curtsey.
“Oh, Miss, my lord, I am so sorry. Alice you are a tiresome child, I have been watching for you this past hour.”

Runthorne
let Alice’s hand go so the child could run inside. “Please do not be hard on her, Mrs Turner,” he said. “It was entirely my fault that she has been delayed.”

“
Oh, I’m not angry,” Mrs Turner said. “But I do worry about her, my lord.”

“
Your care for her is obvious,” he said. He glanced at Elizabeth. Perhaps this was the moment he had been waiting for. If he showed Elizabeth how little Alice’s parentage mattered to him, surely she would soften.

“
Indeed, you care for her almost as though she was your own,” he said.

Next to him
Elizabeth choked. “I think we should be going.”

“
Oh, I am in no hurry.” He grinned at her discomfiture. “I understand that you have given Alice a home. That was good of you,” he said, turning back to Mrs Turner. Elizabeth pulled on his sleeve but he ignored her. He folded her fingers into the crook of his arm. She bowed her head in surrender, but not before he caught the resignation in her eyes.

Mrs Turner smiled at his compliment but shook her head.
“Goodness has nothing to do with it,” she demurred. “The poor lass lost her mother.”

He
nodded and half turned to Elizabeth. She looked angry. Angry and hurt. He suddenly had the horrible suspicion that he had misjudged the situation.

“
How did she lose her mother?”

Mrs Turner
’s motherly bosom rose as she sighed. “She died in childbirth, poor woman and her man rejected Alice. Would have nothing to do with her, saying she’d taken the one good thing in his life.”

“
That was harsh.”

“
Oh, I’m not saying that he wouldn’t have come round at some point but he broke his neck one night. Roaring drunk, he was.” Mrs Turner sniffed, obviously upset.

Runthorne
nodded, not quite sure what to say.

“
He was Mrs Turner’s brother-in-law,” Elizabeth said, softly and he realised that her anger was for the pain he was causing Mrs Turner. “She was also her sister-in-law’s midwife. She brought Alice into the world.”

“
I am sorry,” he said.

Mrs Turner shook her head as though to dispel her gloom.
“Ah, well, it was a long time ago, but some of the other children know her pa didn’t want her and tease Alice something dreadful. I do worry when she’s late home.”

“
Then I apologise again for delaying her,” he said.

“Come, my lord,” Elizabeth said and Runthorne finally allowed her to steer him away, although he could not quite stop himself glancing behind him.

***

Elizabeth looked at Lord Runthorne from beneath her lashes. They walked in silence, he considerately matching his steps to hers but otherwise not appearing to be conscious of her presence.

“
Are you satisfied,” Elizabeth said, when she finally grew tired of being ignored.

He
shot her a startled look. “Satisfied?”

“
Yes. At finding I am not Alice’s mother.” She searched his face to see if her barb had hit its mark. When he did not answer she spoke again. “So now that I no longer need rescuing, you can apologise to Miss Lacey and resign yourself to marrying her. You will have to anyway. Lady Delphine will see to that.”

Elizabeth
quailed at his furious expression. “What are you playing at Elizabeth?”

Elizabeth
lifted her chin determined she would not be browbeaten by him. “Do you realise how insulting was your instant belief that I was Alice’s mother, that I was some
lightskirt
,” she said, rather than answer his question.

Lord
Runthorne raised a brow. “Strange, I thought that my acceptance of Alice was an indication of my love for you.”

“
Love? What do you know of that?” Elizabeth dropped his arm and strode ahead. She had to put distance between them before she said something unforgivable.

He,
however, did not seem inclined to let her go. In two long strides he closed the distance and swung her around to face him. Elizabeth was overwhelmingly aware of his masculinity. Face to face, alone in a dusty country lane. She tilted her head so she could see him better.

“
You stubborn, foolish woman. I love you. But I will not have you play with me, Elizabeth.” His voice was harsh and Elizabeth recoiled. His hand tightened almost, but not quite, hurting.

He was so close
Elizabeth could have reached up a mere inch and kissed him. She gritted her teeth, rousing her temper. She would not do something so stupid. Not now. Not when he had hurt her so deeply.

“
It is not I who play games, my lord,” she said, putting all her hurt and anger in her voice. “You tell me you love me only days after becoming betrothed to another, then you manufacture a quarrel with her so she will jilt you, leaving you free to do what exactly, my lord?”

She narrowed her eyes.
“Do you expect me to happily accept a proposal from you, just to find myself abandoned? Is this some kind of evil game to punish me for jilting you so long ago?”

His
lips quirked. “I have not proposed yet,” he said.

“
Oh!” Elizabeth did not believe he had said that. She rammed down hard with her heel on his foot, but her soft kid boot made no impression on his more substantial footwear.

Lord
Runthorne gazed deep into her eyes. “This is no game, Elizabeth,” he said and lowered his lips to hers.

Elizabeth
wanted to resist. For a moment she did, but then she could not help herself. She melted into his embrace.

His lips were strong, but felt so soft against hers, as though he did not want to frighten her.
Gently his lips parted hers and he tasted her. Elizabeth curled her fingers in his hair, knocking his hat aside. Their kiss deepened. His hands no longer held her arms. Instead they stroked her shoulders, sliding slowly down her back, drawing her closer.