107. Soft, Sweet & Gentle by Barbara Cartland

Author:Barbara Cartland
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 978-1-78213-432-9
Publisher: M-Y Books
Published: 2013-10-06T16:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER FIVE

After breakfast they went to the stables and once again Georgina found herself riding Sunlight.

“We will have to be fair and ride the other horses sometimes,” she said to Alister. “We don’t want them to be jealous if we take Sunlight and Firefly out every time.”

He laughed.

“Do you think they really notice?”

“Of course they do. Papa always taught me to talk to my horse and I am sure that he understands every word I say.”

Alister laughed again.

He thought that she was quite right and they would have to exercise the other horses and he was certain that the grooms would not do it as well as they did.

They rode over the fields and called at one of the farms. The farmer and his wife were delighted to see the new Earl.

They showed him proudly how well the crops had sold the previous year, also their lambs which were already arriving and they felt that they would have a larger number than in previous years.

Georgina had already told Alister that this was the most successful farm on the estate. He congratulated the farmer warmly and Georgina thought that he had a very good way with the people of the estate.

She had been a little nervous in case he was too haughty or did not speak to them as if he understood what they were doing.

She need not have worried.

He was, she observed, as friendly and as interested as she had hoped he would be.

They rode on to another farm, which was not quite so prosperous and the farmer and his family told Alister they had had a bad crop last year, but hoped for a much better one this year.

He spoke to them encouragingly and she thought he was certainly making himself popular and the word would go from farm to farm and cottage to cottage that he was the right person to take her father’s place.

They spent some time riding over the fields and, when they returned for luncheon, Alister asked,

“How much of the estate have we already done?”

“Very little really,” Georgina replied. “In fact there are many, many more acres for you to see and at least three very large farms.”

“I had no idea I had inherited such an enormous Empire,” Alister sighed.

“You will soon get used to it,” Georgina promised. “I hope you will understand when I congratulate you on being splendid this morning.”

His eyes twinkled as he enquired,

“Did you expect me to be anything else?”

“I was a bit apprehensive that, having lived abroad for so long, you would have forgotten that English people are very proud and take umbrage very quickly if people condescend to them.”

“So that is what you thought I might do!” Alister protested.

“I was afraid of it,” she answered. “Because I love these people so much, I would not want them to be hurt or in any way have cause to criticise their new owner.”

She spoke as if it really mattered to her and Alister thought that in all his long acquaintance with women he had never known anyone who cared so much about the ordinary people working in the fields.

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