“Fiery?” he asked.
She pulled back her lip. “I was going to say stupid.” Her throat bobbed. “Not that I would know. I have never been stupid or attached in my life.”
William laughed, maybe because he wasn’t sure if he even believed her. The thought of her giving anyone else as much attention as he was getting made his chest twist in the oddest way. He wanted her all to himself and that was selfish because no decent man would have a woman he didn’t love. “Maybe you are right, after all. I think once my sisters are married I will try once more, but…” he trailed off.
“You should find out who you are and what you want first. I am so sick of our lives being decided by tradition. Everyone has the same story. They meet a handsome man at a ball but everyone is too rigid and uptight to really get to know each other. Then all of a sudden they are married. Who would agree to sleep next to an uptight stranger? That sounds even more uncouth.”
“Of course,” he agreed. “But intimacy feels unnerving, especially when you have been trying to keep up appearances your whole life. It might be impossible to find someone who loves you and all the ridiculous things that bog your mind down.”
Charlotte shrugged, kicking a large pebble across the ground as she walked. “Yes, well, here you are practicing on me, so hopefully you will find yourself being honest with the woman you love.”
He looked at her, but wasn’t exactly sure what to say. He cleared his throat. “We have almost arrived back at your estate, yes? I must tell Pemberton that I intend to formally court you.”
“Lord Holdford–”
“May you call me William?”
She paused, rolling her tongue over her cheek. She nodded. “William, you do not have to go through with this.”
“Are you afraid of losing?” he asked.
“No, oh dear, no,” She laughed lightly. “No, I am worried for you. You seem…” she paused, drawing away from him until he was aching for her to come back and loop her arm back around his. “Mm, rather attached?”
“No–”
Charlotte took off running as fast as could be managed in her dress. She looked back over her shoulder at him, and he sighed a breathy laugh before chasing after her, the Hoskins Estate in the distance.
This was beginning to feel dangerous. He should have just stopped it, but he couldn’t. All he wanted to know was how all of this would play out, even if just to keep Charlotte in his life one more day.
Once they arrived back at the estate, William asked Benedict for a moment in his study. He took a deep breath.
“Friend,” he began. “It is my intent to ask your permission to court Lady Charlotte.”
Benedict drew back, laughing. “This is a joke.”
“Not a joke,” William corrected him. “Very plainly, I am asking if I may court her.”
Benedict narrowed his eyes, tapping his quill against the desk repeatedly as he assessed the situation. “Hassheagreed to this?”
“Are you surprised?”
Benedict widened his eyes and sat in his desk chair, taking a deep breath. “She does not intend on marrying,” he said. “So yes, I am.”
William shrugged. “I suppose she has made up her mind then,” he said. “She was very receptive when I expressed my admirations.”
He blinked. “You told her that you wished to court her.”
“Yes,” he said.
“And in proper English? Do you believe she understood what you meant?”
“I am certain.”
Benedict laughed uncomfortable. “Uh-huh,” he paused. “I am not. She has been, you know, very obnoxious about how much she despises the thought of marriage.”
Hm,” William shook his head, pretending not to know what Benedict was talking about. It felt truly wicked to lie to his friend, but he had already made up his mind. “She never expressed that to me. She was, like I said, very receptive.”
For a moment, Benedict shook his head before a smile formed on his lips. He reached out his hand and when William offered his, they shook. “If this is her wish, then it is mine as well.”