A Sense of Misgiving (Perceptions Book 3)
Page 24
‘You look distracted, Paul. Are you feeling quite well? Flora has gone out for the day so I cannot ask her to make up one of her tinctures for you.’
‘I am perfectly well.’ He clasped his hands behind his back and paced the length of the room, looking flustered and most unlike his normal breezy self. ‘I have just been talking with Luke.’
‘Well, that explains your agitation then. My brother can be a tyrant when he’s in a bad mood. But then, no one’s perfect, I suppose.’
‘You are.’
‘Me?’ Mary laughed. ‘Good heavens, hardly.’
Paul swivelled on his heel, then took the seat beside her and her hand in his. Mary was shocked, but felt no need to reclaim her hand. The pleasant tingling sensation that she experienced from the touch of his fingers persuaded her to leave it just where it was. She had been thinking a lot about Paul these past few days. And definitely not in a brotherly sense.
‘We were discussing your difficulty in knowing when a gentleman’s attentions are being bestowed for the right reasons.’ He cleared his throat, looking nervous and unsure of himself. ‘Luke had guessed my secret, you see.’
‘Your secret?’ She blinked at him. ‘What secret?’
‘That I am in love with you, and have been for some considerable time.’
‘Me? You? Love?’ Mary’s words stuttered to a momentary halt. ‘But I don’t understand. Why on earth didn’t you say anything before now?’
Paul gave a self-deprecating shrug. ‘How could I? I am your brother’s paid employee. I am little better than a servant.’
‘Don’t talk such tosh!’ Mary cried impatiently.
‘Tosh?’ Paul looked faintly amused.
‘It is one of Grandmamma’s favourite words, and it suits the current circumstances perfectly. You are not only Luke’s closest friend, you are his social equal. He could not manage the estate without you, and well you know it.’
‘Even so, I have nothing to offer you, and you are tired of fending off fortune-hunters.’
She sent him a wary look. ‘Is it my fortune that attracts you?’
‘God, no!’
‘Well then, perhaps now would be a good time to tell me what does.’
‘We should not be having this conversation at all. It’s far too soon after Redfern and it is not fair on you.’
‘On the contrary, I don’t find it in the least distressing,’ Mary hastened to assure him, because she truly did not. ‘Besides, you are the one who brought it up.’
‘I have always admired your spirit, your good nature and your individuality, but I never thought the day would dawn when I’d be in a position to articulate those feelings. When I knew that Redfern had you in his clutches…’ Paul closed his eyes, threw back his head and clenched his fists, which is when Mary knew for a certainty that he was speaking the truth. ‘And if it hadn’t been Redfern, I knew I would have to endure the agony of seeing countless men pay court to you.’ He sent her a tender smile. ‘I don’t know how I would have withstood the pain.’
‘You don’t have to,’ she said softly.
‘Luke and I had a heart-to-heart, and he asked me outright how I felt about you,’ he continued, apparently not hearing her interruption. ‘So I decided to tell him the truth, fully expecting to be dismissed on the spot. But instead, he simply smiled and said he had already guessed.’
‘Which is more than I had,’ Mary remarked. ‘You kept your feelings well hidden.’
‘Luke says the only reason he permitted me to thump Redfern was that he felt I had a prior claim on your affections.’
Mary widened her eyes. ‘You seriously thought he would object to your having feelings for me?’
Paul nodded. ‘I seriously did.’
‘Idiot! You ought to know Luke better than that.’
‘Well look, Mary, the thing is now you know. I don’t expect a response. As I say, it’s far too soon, and if I’m being a nuisance just say the word.’
‘I felt the connection between us too.’
‘You did?’
‘In the garden the other day when we were drawing the heron. It made me think.’
‘Did you reach any conclusions?’ Paul asked, his expression endearingly appealing.
‘Flora assured me that I would instinctively know when I had met the man for me. I thought she was exaggerating. After all, I had been attracted to Redfern, but I didn’t feel that…that rightness, for want of a better word.’ She beamed up at him, shy yet resolute. ‘But now I think I do.’
‘Oh, my sweet love.’ He pulled her to her feet and into his arms, kissing her witless. ‘But I shall not ask you for an answer now,’ he insisted when he finally released her. ‘I have taken you by surprise and you need time to reflect.’
‘Have it your way,’ Mary replied, with a supremely confident smile. ‘Just so long as you promise that you will kiss me that passionately each time we discuss the subject.’
‘Minx!’ Paul laughed and pulled her back into his arms. ‘However, I think that is an assurance I can safely give.’
*
Flora returned to Swindon to find not Luke’s coachman awaiting her return, but Luke himself.
‘People will talk,’ she told him when he helped her into the curricle.
‘Let them. I had business in the village anyway, so thought I would collect you myself. How did it go?’
‘Surprisingly well.’ Flora related the details of her confrontation with her father. ‘I still find it hard to believe that it was an accident. My father has a vicious temper, but as Grandmamma herself remarked in her journal, my grandfather was a large man and in relatively good health despite his weak heart. It would not be easy to knock him over by accident. However, nothing can be proved, and I see little point in destroying Papa’s career over it. If Grandmamma had wanted to take that path, she had ample opportunity but decided against it. Probably to protect the rest of us. I may not have any great affection for my sisters, but I feel the same way about protecting them from scandal. Besides, he has agreed not to breathe a word of the rumours about your father. Redfern made a point of telling him in the hope that you would think me more trouble than I am worth.’
‘You are,’ he said, with a sideways smile as he encouraged his team forward. ‘But we have become accustomed to you.’
‘Well, thank you for that.’
‘I’m glad it’s resolved and that you no longer have anything to fear from your father.’
‘As am I. It felt wonderful, standing up to him from a position of strength. Thank you for helping to bring that about.’
‘Me? I didn’t do a thing.’
‘We must agree to differ on that point.’ She sighed and turned her face up to the sky. Swifts soared and the night birds were waking from their slumbers to contribute to the evening chorus. ‘Anyway, perhaps now we shall have a period without any upheaval at Beranger Court.’
‘Don’t count on it.’ Luke grinned. ‘I believe Paul and Mary have come to an agreement.’
‘Really!’ Flora beamed. ‘You encouraged him to speak with her, as I recommended?’
‘I did. The only thing holding him back had been the thought of my disapproval. Only imagine.’
‘I barely can,’ Flora replied, smiling.
‘Paul is everything to me. I cannot think of a better husband for my sister.’
‘He will leave your employ?’
Luke shrugged as he steered his team around a rut in the road. ‘Only if he wants to. We haven’t discussed his future yet. If he would prefer to remain at Beranger Court, and I hope he will, then he and Mary can have the entire suite of rooms that the girls occupied on the main floor. However, I doubt if they will take my convenience into account.’
They returned to the house and Flora went straight up to see the countess.
‘I believe Mary has something to tell us, ma’am,’ she said, removing her hat as she walked through the door.
The End
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