Placing a friendly hand on Nicholas’s shoulder, Tibbons said, “I know Lord Tulk deserves to be punished, but you’re a gentleman. Might I share something a friend once told me?”
With a sigh, Nicholas nodded. “Go on, then.”
“Don’t give up hope,” Tibbons said. “It’s the only thing we have sometimes. A solution will come, I’m sure of it.”
“I pray you’re right about that,” Nicholas said. “After all these years, to be so close and lose it all would be devastating.”
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Three days following the departure of Maria, Jenny found she missed her sister more than she expected. Now however, she found herself on an early afternoon excursion with Lord Dowding. A blanket of snow covered the ground, requiring Jenny and Louisa to don their warmest wool coats, thick woolen scarves, and gloves. Yet, the earl had yet to explain where they would be going.
“Have you any idea what His Lordship intends, Tibbons?” Jenny asked the driver. “I’m very curious, and he refuses to say!”
The driver chuckled and offered her a friendly smile “I’m just the driver, miss. He’s not even told me where to go yet.”
Sighing, she gave him a nod and stepped into the carriage. When Louisa was seated, Jenny said, “I wonder what he has planned. It’s far too cold for a stroll, and a picnic is certainly out of the question.”
“A horseback ride?” Louisa asked before saying immediately after, “No, it’s far too cold for that, too.”
As the carriage traveled away from the school, Jenny and Louisa suggested, then dismissed several more ideas. Then Jenny laughed. It did not matter what arrangements he had made. Their romance was growing, and Jenny was excited to see where it might lead. What began as an earl wishing to use her soon became friendship. Now it was something far more beautiful.
What did all this mean for her future? Their future? When one courted, it usually ended in marriage. That thought alone thrilled her, for she could think of no one with whom she would rather be married to. Yet she had known since the beginning that they were destined for more. Now she was being proven correct. And she could not have been more pleased.
The carriage slowed, came to a stop, and Jenny and Louisa alighted. Lord Dowding was waiting for them, his thick, double-breasted coat and gray muffler making him look as dashing as ever. Or perhaps that came from the redness of his cheeks brought on by the cold. Or his welcoming smile. His perfectly formed lips…
She shook herself.Stop thinking about kisses!Telling herself this did nothing to stop the tingling sensation that traveled through her body. Just as it did every time she was near him.
“Good afternoon, ladies,” he said, bowing to them. Jenny and Louisa gripped their skirts to perform a curtsy, but he waved them off. “Forget the formalities. The ground is slippery. There is no need for anyone to end up on her backside all for the sake of propriety.”
Jenny took his proffered arm. “What is planned for today, my lord?”
“I say we have a bit of fun,” Lord Dowding replied. “I’ve come to realize it’s been far too long since I’ve truly enjoyed myself.”
They made their way down a footpath that wound around the side of the house. The snow had been swept from the stones, but what remained crunched beneath her boots. Jenny was relieved he had advised her to wear footwear suitable for this type of outdoor weather.
To her surprise, Osborne stood beside what appeared to be a birdbath. Only it did not contain water. Instead, flames flickered around several logs, creating a ring of warmth around it.
“Now, Miss Louisa, you may remain here by the fire to keep the cold at bay,” Lord Dowding said. “Osborne, if you would please prepare the dueling line.”
The butler bowed. “Yes, my lord.” He then picked up a long, thin stick and walked away.
“Dueling line?” Jenny asked. “If your idea of fun is you and I dueling—and I don’t care what weapons you’ve chosen—then I should leave now.”
The earl laughed. “Snowballs are not pistols, Miss Jenny.”
She came to a sudden stop. Osborne had drawn a line in the snow in the middle of the garden. On either side of that line, set back about ten feet, was a pile of thirty or so snowballs.
“My lord?” she asked, her eyes wide.
“Do take care, Miss Jenny. I’m an expert marksman.” He winked at her and walked to one of the snowball piles. “We should discuss the rules. The line Osborne drew, you may approach but not cross it. Nor the line behind your arsenal.”
Jenny turned to find that, indeed, another line had been drawn behind her, as well as one on Lord Dowding’s side. “But, do ladies engage in duels with snowballs?” she asked incredulously. The idea of Mrs. Rutley playing in the snow in any way seemed ridiculous.
The earl threw his head back and laughed. “I’m sure some ladies somewhere have no qualms about it. My mother and I played often during my youth. And trust me, few gentlemen see it as a respectable activity. Not when snow is the ammunition used. But I see no harm in a bit of childish fun from time to time. Now, do you wish to play?”
She grinned. “I do.” She began to turn around to move to her arsenal of snowballs. “Are there any other rules I should know?”
Splat!