Regency Romance Collection From Christina Courtenay (21 page)

CHAPTER TWO

Lexie found Rupert in the nursery, kicking some toy soldiers round the floor with a sulky expression on his face.

‘Hello, young varmint. How are you?’ She smiled at him and held her arms out for a greeting, but he merely frowned at her. ‘Have you no greeting for your favourite aunt?’ He remained silent. ‘Then I don’t suppose you’ll want the present I brought you all the way from Italy either.’ She turned to leave the room and hid a smile when she heard him run across the floor.

‘Aunt Lexie, wait! What have you brought for me? Is it a rifle, like you promised in your letter to Mama?’

She swivelled back to face him and held out her arms again without saying anything. He took the hint and threw himself into her embrace, muttering, ‘Sorry, didn’t mean to be rude.’

‘That’s better,’ she said with a smile. ‘For a moment there, I was beginning to think you didn’t like me any more.’

‘You know I do. In fact, you’re the only lady I
do
like. Apart from Mama of course.’

Coming from an eight-year-old, this sounded hilarious, but Lexie managed not to laugh. She knew he was serious and took it as the compliment he intended.

‘Very well. Will you come and talk to me while I unpack and then I’ll show you what I’ve brought?’

He skipped along quite happily as they went back down to the second floor and along the corridor to Lexie’s room. He even began to chatter on about a new horse his father had bought him.

‘Well, Jefferson is a pony really, but a big one, Aunt Lexie. Almost like a real horse, and spirited. Will you come riding with me? Father says I’m not to leave the park, but if I’m with you, I’m sure he wouldn’t mind.’

‘That would be lovely, if there is a horse I can borrow? I don’t own one, you see.’

‘I’m sure you can have Mama’s. She never rides and I heard one of the grooms say that Shireen does nothing but stand there and eat all day. And if she doesn’t have more exercise soon, she’ll be fat as a flan.’

‘Dear me, we can’t have that.’ Lexie laughed. ‘I see I shall have to take poor Shireen out every day. What do you say, shall we start each morning with a ride? Then perhaps you’ll be able to sit still for a few lessons afterwards at least.’

Rupert made a face. ‘Do I have to have lessons? It’s so boring and I’m no good at them. Miss Ainscough kept hitting my knuckles all the time because I got my sums wrong so often. See?’ He held out hands that were scabby across the top to demonstrate the truth of his statement.

Lexie frowned. She didn’t hold with hitting children as she believed it only made them more nervous and disinclined to learn. ‘Don’t worry, I never hit anyone unless they attack me, and I’m a much better teacher than Miss Ainscough. Shall we make a little bet that I’ll have you doing sums in a trice?’

‘How much?’ Rupert wasn’t his father’s son for nothing and the lure of money was as irresistible to him as it was to George.

‘I’ll give you a whole guinea if you get them all right by the end of the third week of my stay here. How about that?’

‘A whole guinea? Done.’ They shook hands on this deal. ‘But we still go riding every day?’

‘Of course. It’s impossible to learn sums without riding first,’ Lexie told him solemnly.

He chattered on some more while she unpacked her personal belongings. The clothes she had brought had already been put into a wardrobe by a maid, but she preferred to see to everything else herself. At the bottom of her travelling chest lay a parcel wrapped in brown paper, which she gave to Rupert to reward him for his patience. ‘Here you are, this is your gift. But you are
not
to use it without supervision, is that clear? Otherwise I’ll have to take it back again.’

He nodded and tore off the paper in record time, revealing a long, thin wooden box with his name painted on it. Inside, he found a miniature rifle, just right for his size, with his initials engraved on the stock. His eyes opened wide and a grin of delight spread from ear to ear.

‘Thank you,’ he breathed. ‘Thank you so much, Aunt Lexie, you’re the best.’

He hurled himself into her arms without prompting this time and gave her a fierce hug, which she returned. She smiled at him again, but admonished, ‘It’s not a toy, you do realise that? You may only load it and shoot it with an adult present.’

‘Yes, I understand.’ He turned eager eyes on her. ‘Do you know how to shoot? Can you show me? When can we start? No, wait, you’re a girl, so I don’t suppose you can do it. I’ll have to find someone else.’

‘On the contrary. My father taught me to shoot when I was quite young. He said it might come in useful and indeed it did. In Italy, once, I had to defend the lady I worked for from highwaymen. Imagine their surprise when they were shot at by me.’

Rupert goggled at her, clearly impressed. ‘Capital,’ he said. ‘So when can we start?’

Although she was weary from the long journey, Lexie couldn’t resist the plea in Rupert’s brown eyes. ‘No time like the present. Let’s go and find an empty field and something to shoot at.’

‘Really, Lexie, what were you thinking? He’s only eight, for heaven’s sake! A firearm, of all things! Most unsuitable. You’ll have to take it back.’

Margaret was scowling at her sister across the dining table, as Lexie had known she would, but she ignored this and looked to her brother-in-law for assistance. George didn’t disappoint her.

‘Oh, do stop molly-coddling the boy,’ he snapped at his wife. ‘He’ll grow up to be a namby-pamby sort if he’s not allowed to do anything. I think it’s an excellent idea to teach him to shoot. Why, I was only six myself when I started learning. Past time, if you ask me. Eh, Jasper, what do you say?’

Lexie glanced at the gentleman seated opposite her, who had been introduced as George’s nephew, Jasper Torrington. She had taken an instant dislike to him, because he wore the exaggerated clothes of a dandy. He also looked the sort of man who fancied himself a cut above the rest without good reason. As far as Lexie could see, he had nothing much to recommend him apart from superficial charm. He didn’t even have a title to warrant his apparent feelings of superiority. It was a mystery to her what he had based his high opinion of himself on, but naturally she didn’t show her antipathy in any way.

‘Quite right,’ Jasper drawled. ‘You need to treat the boy like a man, else he’ll never become one.’

Margaret pouted and pointedly changed the subject, but Lexie knew the battle wasn’t over yet. As soon as they left the men to their port, she would be harangued once more, but she was determined not to pay her sister any heed. It really was time for Rupert to grow up a little. It was no wonder he was wayward if he was treated like a baby at all times.

‘What do you think, Miss Holloway?’

Lexie looked up to find Jasper staring at her, with a glint in his eyes that she didn’t quite like. ‘I beg your pardon? I’m afraid I was wool-gathering. Must be the long journey. It’s quite done me in.’

‘I was talking about George and Margaret’s neighbour, Lord Synley, who happens to be a relative of mine through his marriage to Lady Catherine Downes. I said it’s a pity he doesn’t socialise a great deal. Would make things more interesting around these parts.’

‘As to that, I wouldn’t know, sir.’ Lexie kept her expression neutral. It wouldn’t do to let on that the mere mention of the man’s name still made her tingle. ‘I’m not acquainted with Lord Synley.’

Jasper guffawed. ‘No, don’t suppose you are. He’s not the type of man a respectable young lady would have been introduced to.’

‘Don’t see why he can’t come out of seclusion now,’ George grumbled. ‘His wife’s been dead nearly two years, so it’s not as if he’s in mourning any longer.’

Lexie froze. Synley was a widower? This was news to her and she had to struggle to keep her composure in the face of such a momentous fact. She took a deep breath and tried to sound completely disinterested when she asked, ‘Why would you wish him to, er, socialise, if he’s so reluctant?’

‘He must be rich as Croesus, after that strange marriage of his,’ Jasper said. ‘George wants a chance to fleece the man of some of his ill-gotten gains.’

‘Ill-gotten?’ Lexie took secret umbrage on Synley’s behalf. He may have made an unorthodox marriage, but he certainly hadn’t cheated anyone in order to acquire his rich wife.

‘Don’t be obtuse, Lexie,’ George growled. ‘Everyone knows he must have had some hold over the poor woman to make her marry him. Made her a laughing-stock and for what? Just so he could live out his life in luxury. Pah!’

Lexie wanted to protest that as far as she’d heard tell, Synley had been laughed at too, but clearly neither of them had minded since they’d gone ahead with the marriage in any case. They couldn’t have known that it would prove such a short one. She held her tongue, however, and feigned indifference.

‘Well, if that’s the way you feel, why don’t you just invite him over?’

‘Tried that, won’t come,’ George said. ‘Sent round a terse note saying he was occupied with business matters. I ask you. What would he have to do? He has a steward for that sort of thing, like we all do. No need for him to traipse around the countryside personally checking fences and ditches, but apparently he insists on it. Even helped one of his tenants with putting up a roof once, I heard. Preposterous! He’s an earl for heaven’s sake.’

‘Well, I for one am grateful to the man for refusing,’ Margaret cut in. ‘From what I’ve heard, he has the devil’s own luck at cards, so no doubt he’d have fleeced you, not the other way round. Besides, he’s the most disagreeable man I’ve ever had the misfortune to meet.’

Lexie could have disputed that statement as well, but didn’t. What was the point? It was clear that none of them would be meeting up with Synley in the foreseeable future, so it didn’t matter.

However, a small part of her couldn’t help but wish it wasn’t so. Especially if he was indeed a free man.

Shireen proved to be a lovely honey-coloured mare with a sweet temper, yet fast and raring to go. Lexie had no trouble controlling her, since she was an experienced horsewoman, and she was happy to note that riding was something her nephew did well too.

‘You have an excellent seat, Rupert,’ she commented as they cantered off on their morning ride the following day. ‘Did your father teach you to ride?’

‘No, Father is always too busy. Melton, the head groom you know, gives me lessons and he says he’s pleased with me.’ He beamed at her. ‘I love riding and isn’t Jefferson just the best?’ He patted the neck of his pony and received a whinny in response. It was clear the two of them had bonded, which was as it should be.

‘Indeed, he is quite splendid.  Now which way shall we go?’

There was a small forest near Hawthorne Manor and although Lexie wasn’t sure whether it belonged to George or not, she knew that they were allowed to ride in there. The paths all ended up roughly in the same place and they could find their way home from there later. Since it was a sunny day, the light filtered down through the trees. It glinted on a carpet of early bluebells, making it seem like a fairy tale world. It was the perfect place to go.

‘Let’s take the right hand path,’ Rupert said. ‘I’ve never been that way before.’

They set off and as usual, Rupert chattered on while they went. Lexie had to answer a million questions about everything under the sun, but she found his curiosity endearing and didn’t mind. It showed that he wasn’t a dullard, as some of his governesses had tried to claim. No doubt they had failed to inspire him to learn, she thought. Such an inquisitive boy shouldn’t be difficult to teach and she looked forward to the challenge, even if it was only for a few short weeks.

They had a pleasant ride, alternating between walking and cantering, with the occasional short gallop. When they were almost at the other edge of the forest, however, and could see brighter sunlight up ahead, a pheasant suddenly erupted from a nearby thicket and flew up in front of them with a squawk. Shireen shied, but Lexie didn’t lose her grip and remained in the saddle, keeping the horse in check. Jefferson, however, took fright and bolted.

Rupert screamed, but wasn’t thrown. As his horse took off, Lexie could see that he was holding on for dear life and doing a good job of it, but she wasn’t sure how long he could continue to do so. She set off in pursuit, urging Shireen into her fastest gallop. ‘Hang on, Rupert, I’m coming!’ she shouted, not sure if he could hear her.

Jefferson thundered along, clearly terrified out of his wits and therefore much faster than normal. Although Shireen was gaining on him, she wasn’t doing so as quickly as Lexie would have liked and she tried to make the mare go faster. ‘Come on, Shireen, he’s only a pony. You can do it, girl.’

Rupert was now bouncing around dangerously on the back of his mount and Lexie’s insides clenched. She knew it was only a matter of time before he fell off and at such speed, it would be a nasty tumble, possibly even fatal. It didn’t bear thinking of. She was almost sobbing with frustration and anxiety when suddenly another rider came out of nowhere and headed straight for Rupert. At the very last moment, when Lexie was sure the boy would lose his grip, the other rider grabbed him round the waist and lifted him off Jefferson. He then slowed down with the boy safe in front of him.

Lexie pulled on the reins and came to a halt next to them, her attention all for Rupert at first. ‘Are you all right? Are you hurt? Rupert, I’m so sorry ...’