by CJ Archer
***
While it was pleasant enough embroidering and listening to Sylvia's chatter, I soon found myself looking up at every sound, hoping Jack would enter the parlor. Just as a watched pot never boils, a watched door never opens, except to let in the footman. He came to deliver a letter to Sylvia. As he was about to leave, I set aside my embroidery and followed him.
"Tommy, wait a moment."
"Yes, my lady?" While his accent wasn't as cultured as Jack's, there was little hint of the speech pattern he'd used the night before when I'd overheard their conversation. It would seem they could both switch seamlessly from one accent to the other.
"Is Mr. Jack Langley about?" I asked.
"I believe he went to the lake."
"The lake? Whatever for?"
"For a...walk."
His hesitation intrigued me. "Thank you, Tommy." He left and I returned to the parlor. Sylvia was reading her letter and didn't look up. "Do you mind if I go for a stroll to the lake?"
She dropped the letter to her lap. "I...I suppose not." She nibbled her lower lip, clearly considering whether she ought to let me go. "You won't forget your agreement."
"No, but if it makes you feel any better, you may watch me from the window and have Tommy escort me."
"There's no need for an escort." She said nothing about not watching. Indeed, she rose from the sofa as I left and settled onto the window seat with her correspondence.
I waved to her once I was outside and she waved back, then pretended to read her letter when she actually watched me from behind her lowered lashes. I crossed the drive and lawn and walked to the lake.
It was a starkly beautiful place. Weeping willows hunched over the bank like tired ghosts, their bare branches drooping into the sleek, dark water. The grass was a green so bright it almost hurt to look at it, although it was muddy in patches, particularly on the banks of the lake itself. The vista would be lovely covered with snow. Hopefully there'd be some by Christmas. I'd like to see it.
I wondered if Tommy was mistaken because I didn't see any sign of Jack at the lake. Not at first. Then movement on the far bank caught my attention. He was running between three trees, touching each trunk, then repeating the course over and over. He was lightning fast. He reached each tree in a fraction of the time it would have taken me.
When he finally finished running, he climbed one of the trees and walked along a horizontal branch. He didn't hold onto any of the other branches, but kept his arms outstretched for balance. He walked up and back several times, then stopped in the middle and jumped off. He caught the branch with both hands and pulled himself up until his chin was above it, then lowered himself again. He repeated the exercise, varying the speeds until finally he let go and landed deftly on the ground.
I was about to call out and wave when he did a most unexpected thing. He walked to the lake's edge and kept going. Good lord, he was having a dip! I know he didn't feel the cold, but it was late November! Madness.
He swam toward me, making it look easy. I'd never swum before, never even seen anyone swim, and I couldn't look away. He slipped across the surface like a boat, his strokes effortless, graceful. Perhaps I should have left and not let him know I'd been watching, but I was too intrigued. That a man could be as natural in the water as out of it was amazing.
I thought he hadn't noticed me, so when he stood up a few feet from the edge and acknowledged me with a nod, I was taken aback. I blushed fiercely and looked away. He wore only a sodden shirt and breeches, and both clung to him like skin, outlining the muscular contours of his chest, shoulders and thighs. He possessed an athletic build, tall and broad across the shoulders, tapering to a narrow waist. Magnificent. Better than any classical statue depicted in Vi's copy of Gods of the Ancient World.
"Grew bored with embroidery, did you?" he asked, wading through the shallows toward me. Water cascaded off his body and dripped from his hair and lashes. The corners of his mouth lifted in a teasing smile. He looked like a devilish sprite, up to no good.
"I, um..." It was all I could manage in my addled state.
"Something the matter with your tongue? And here I thought you weren't afraid to speak your mind."
Damn him. He knew the effect he had on me. Not only did my face feel like it was on fire, but I couldn't think of anything witty to say to dispel my humiliation. All I could do was turn away, but it was too late. I'd already seen much more than I'd ever seen of a man before.
I liked it.
"Shall we walk back to the house together," he said. "Or would Sylvia have a fit if she knew you'd seen me like this?"
"She didn't know you were here when I said I was going for a walk to the lake."
"In that case, perhaps we should return separately. I see no need to endure a lecture from my little cousin on propriety."
"It bothers her that much?"
"It doesn't bother you? You are the sheltered one after all."
Determined not to let him know how affected I was by his state, I turned round to look at him, keeping my face as blank as I could. "It doesn't bother me, no. We could chalk the experience up to training if you like. After all, I feel quite...enlightened." Light-headed more like. My gaze dipped to his groin. The tight, wet breeches left nothing to the imagination, and to my dismay, my face heated to the very tips of my ears again.
Even worse, Jack looked amused at my discomfort. "Glad to be of service in furthering your education," he said. "Shall I escort you back to Sylvia's lecture hall?"
"Shouldn't you change first?"
"I'll change back at the house."
"Didn't you bring spare clothes with you? Shoes?"
"Have you ever put wet feet into shoes? It's not exactly comfortable."
I didn't suggest that he should have had the foresight to bring a towel to dry himself. "You're not cold?"
"I never get cold."
"Oh. Right. Of course not. So what were you doing on the other side of the lake just now?"
"You saw that?" He walked off, not waiting for my answer, or for me for that matter. Although he wore no shoes, he wasn't careful where he set his feet. Dirt and stones didn't seem to trouble him. "I was exercising. It helps me think."
I hurried to catch up. "What were you thinking about?"
"You don't want to know."
"Actually, I do."
"Let me put it another way. I don't want to tell you, Violet."
"Very well. Shall we talk about more inane things then? Something you do want to talk about?"
"If you wish."
His evasiveness grated. So much so that all I could think about was digging further to find some answers. "You were very fast over there."
"I thought we were going to talk about dull things."
"You're assuming I find you interesting."
I thought I heard him chuckle, but there was no sign of amusement on his face. "You wound me, Violet."
"Somehow I doubt that." I couldn't help laughing. I certainly did not find him dull, and he knew it. That didn't mean I was going to let him distract me from my mission. "Where did you learn to be so fast? And how did you learn to swim? Was it before or after you came to live here?"
"It's something I've always known how to do. I was never taught."
Never taught? Surely swimming was a difficult activity to master. Unless he were a fish, how could he possibly just 'know how' to do it? "Like the fire starting," I muttered.
He stopped. Looked at me. "You may be onto something. Perhaps they're linked. I never considered it before. Can you swim?"
"I've never tried."
"Perhaps you should."
"Jack, I am not going into the lake."
Crinkles appeared at the corners of his eyes. "Pity." He glanced up at the top floor of the house, and I followed his gaze. I expected to see Langley looking down at us, but instead it was Bollard's emotionless face that peered from the window. "I need to see August about something," Jack said. "I'll see you later."
"You're
not going to suggest to him that I go swimming I hope. Because if you do, I shall have to break our agreement and escape."
"Come now. Where's that spirit I've witnessed countless times?"
"Hiding from you and your schemes."
"I wouldn't let you drown." His eyes danced merrily. "Perhaps only a dunking or two. I do owe you after you gave me a reticule full of vomit."
"The vomit and the scratches on your hands are nothing compared to what I'll do if you suggest I go swimming in the lake."
"Don't worry. As amusing as it would be to see you swimming, what I have in mind is much more interesting."
"Oh? What is it?"
"Let me speak to my uncle first." He nodded at the parlor window on the first floor. Sylvia glared at us, her arms crossed, her fingers tapping on her sleeve. "You'd better go inside and receive your lecture."
"My lecture! You're the half-naked wet one. I'm an innocent who's led a sheltered life, remember?" I turned to go into the house, but not before I saw something that sent a thrill of tingles down my spine. Jack actually grinned.