A Regrettable Charade: A Regency Romance (Lords & Ladies of Mayfair Book 6) by Laura Beers

Author:Laura Beers [Beers, Laura]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2024-02-06T00:00:00+00:00

Octavia enjoyed the wind on her face as she raced her horse through the fields of Hyde Park. She didn’t ever want to slow down. For once she did, she knew that Fredrick would chide her for riding her horse too fast. But that didn’t deter her. It never had before, so why start now?

The Serpentine River appeared in front of her and she reined in her horse. She loved how the fog hung low on the water during the early morning hour. It reminded her of the lake by their country estate where she’d spent hours reading in the chair that had been placed by the water, specifically for her.

Fredrick’s horse came to a stop next to her. “Are you mad?”

“Last I checked, I was not,” Octavia replied cheekily. “Why do you ask?”

Not looking the least bit amused, her brother continued. “You are going to break your neck if you keep riding like that.”

“I know how to ride my horse,” Octavia said as she ran her hand down her mare’s neck. “I have been riding Rosie since I was in braids.”

“That doesn’t mean Rosie wouldn’t ever get spooked and toss you off,” Fredrick advised.

Octavia leaned closer to her horse and said, “You would never do that to me, would you? You are a good horse.”

“It is like talking to a wall when I speak to you.”

“Yet you keep doing it, expecting a different result. Who is the mad one now?” Octavia joked.

Fredrick gave her an exasperated look. “You are impossible.”

Adjusting the reins in her hand, Octavia found herself curious about something. It had been bothering her since the last time they had gone to Gunter’s. “Are you happy to be home?”

“I am,” came his quick reply. It was too quick. Now she suspected that Fredrick was hiding something.

“You don’t seem happy,” she remarked.

Fredrick smiled, but it looked more like a grimace. “Do I not look happy?”

“On the outside, yes, but your eyes are telling me a different story,” Octavia said. “I know it must be hard to leave your comrades—”

“Leave it, Octavia,” Fredrick ordered.

“But I feel—”

He cut her off again. “You don’t get to feel anything about what I have gone through. What I have seen. It is enough to ruin any sane man.”

“I am here if you want to talk about it.”

“I don’t.”

Octavia knew she should drop it but she had one more thing she wanted to say. “You may think you are alone, but you aren’t.”

Fredrick clenched his jaw. “I know you are trying to help, but there is no helping me. And I refuse to burden you with what I was forced to do as a soldier. That wouldn’t be fair of me.”

She opened her mouth to respond, but Fredrick spoke first. “We should be heading back,” he said.

Octavia wasn’t quite ready to leave. “What if we talk about something else?” she asked. “Could we stay for a few more moments?”

Her brother looked as if he were going to refuse her, but to her surprise, he replied, “Very well.

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