“No!” Louisa caught the little girl’s arm and yanked her away from the edge. “I will get them.”
She glanced into the water and noticed the two small rocks that Charlotte had spied. They were only in a foo
t of water with a thin layer of ice on top. Louisa crouched down by the edge and leaned over to reach the pebbles. They were slighter farther away than she’d thought. She stretched her arm out to grab them. Her feet slipped out from under her, sending her splashing into the icy water.
“Louisa!” Harry shouted.
“Miss Drake!” Charlotte screamed.
She scrambled to get out of the water. Strong hands pulled her out and into a warm embrace. Frigid water trickled down her face from the brim of her hat. She let her head rest on Harry’s chest until her teeth started to chatter. “Dear G—God, that is c—c—cold water.”
“We need to get you inside,” he said, rubbing her arms with his gloved hands.
“Are you all right, Miss Drake?” Charlotte asked before fat tears rolled down her red cheeks. “I’m sorry.”
“Charlotte, I am unhurt, only c—cold and wet.” Louisa held out her right hand. “Here are your snowman’s eyes. I will let you two finish him off while I go change.”
Harry looked down at her, shaking his head with concern or irritation. “Charlotte, before we continue, we must get Miss Drake into the house.”
“Yes, Papa.” Charlotte took hold of Louisa’s hand. “Come along, Miss Drake.”
They walked back to the house quickly. Jenkins opened the door and then hid a look of disdain. “Miss Drake, are you well?”
“I—I—I,” she couldn’t form a single word with her teeth chattering.
“Jenkins, alert Lily that Miss Drake needs her assistance this minute,” Harry commanded. “Miss Drake, I will carry you upstairs and help you until your maid arrives.”
“Y—You d—d—don’t need to c—carry me,” she protested, feeling rather foolish for slipping. “I—I’m always tripping over my b—big feet.”
He swung her up into his arms for the second time in three days. At this point, she did not care to protest. He was warmth. She snuggled in closer to his heat and listened to the sound of his heart beating in his chest. A hint of leather and cinnamon swirled around her, enticing her with the fragrance.
“Now I owe you two scoldings,” he grumbled as he attempted to open the door. “Three days here and you have walked through a blizzard and fallen into an icy pond.”
“I’ll do it, Papa.” Charlotte swung the door open, allowing Harry to enter the room.
“You don’t need to worry about me.” Her heart warmed by his care.
“You are in my home. While you are here, you are my concern.” His voice softened before speaking to his daughter, “Charlotte, go into my bedchamber and bring back the bottle of brown liquid on the table near my bed. Do hurry, poppet.” Slowly, he lowered Louisa to her feet. “We have to get you out of these clothes before you get frostbite.”
“Lily will b—be up in a moment,” Louisa managed to get out. The chill returned with the absence of his heat.
“We are not waiting for her.” He unbuttoned her cloak and removed it from her. After tossing it over a chair, he said, “Turn around.”
“Harry, this is very improper.”
“Says the woman who is the epitome of improper behavior.” He turned her around and attacked the laces on her dress. “We have a three-year-old chaperone.”
“Papa, is this it?” Charlotte asked, holding up an almost empty decanter of brandy with two hands.
“Yes, now carefully pour Miss Drake a glass.”
As Charlotte concentrated on pouring the brandy, Harry slipped the wet dress off Louisa’s shoulders. She shivered as the warm air of the fire hit her bare arms.
“The decanter is too heavy for her,” Louisa said as Charlotte attempted to pour.
“She’s a big girl, and the decanter is almost empty,” Harry replied.
Charlotte beamed over at her father as she emptied the contents into the glass. “I did it, Papa!”