An Unsuitable Duchess by Carolyn Jewel

Author:Carolyn Jewel
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Historical, Romance
ISBN: 9781937823399
Publisher: NLA Digital LLC
Published: 2016-02-10T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 9

Stoke caught up with the riders less than a mile east of the house. How many days had he endured the memory of kissing George? Too many. For those brief moments when she’d relaxed into his arms and had surrendered herself to him, he’d been finished. Kissing her had been a mistake. He’d lost his head and handled her as if she were a courtesan. She’d been the one to come to her senses and end the embrace. Thank God. Thank God. He would otherwise have laid her down on the path and taken her right there. He’d even worked out the logistics of doing so.

Off the path and onto the soft ground. His coat as protection from the leaves and soil, skirts up, his hands where they should not be. Unbutton and thrust in. Jesus. What he’d wanted to do felt so real that he sometimes thought he had.

The slower riders were in sight. George and Miss Hunter had borrowed mounts from his stable, and much to his consternation, William had put George on Pluto, a spirited gelding who required a firm hand. So far, Pluto was behaving, but he doubted those good manners would last. He did not, in point of fact, have any idea how well the two women rode. He hoped to God William had known what he was doing, giving George a horse like that. His brother often failed to think things through.

They emerged from the narrower path onto a field and spread out. William urged his horse into a canter, and George did the same. Miss Hunter stayed behind. Lord Revers, engaged in conversation with her, paced himself beside her.

George rode with confidence, but in the open field, Pluto’s nature would soon become an issue. If her confidence was misplaced, she might be badly hurt. Pluto was sixteen and a half hands, and strong enough that when he wanted his way, he got it. All but the best riders had difficulty with him at some point.

The group spread out according to skill, mounts, and, one imagined, one’s preferences about flirting versus the exertion of riding faster than a walk. William returned to ride with Kitty and Lord Revers, leaving George at the head of the field. The distance between George and the others increased. Stoke joined his brother. He nodded at Kitty, who turned pink and looked away. He gestured for William to accompany him out of the young lady’s earshot, for what he had to say was not fit for innocent young ears. “What were you thinking, giving her Pluto?”

William’s eyes widened. He’d got his brother’s back up, but pride be damned. He glanced over his shoulder at Revers. “She’d be bored otherwise. Insulted too.”

“Bored.” He lowered his voice because Revers and Kitty were so near. “Better bored than thrown off. Are you mad?” George was now several yards ahead of the field, easy to do with Pluto, with his long, easy gait. “Pluto is not an appropriate mount for a woman. If he takes it into his head to misbehave, she could be hurt.

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