Discovering Her Earl (Scots and Scoundrels Book 2) by Allison B. Hanson

Author:Allison B. Hanson [Hanson, Allison B.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Dragonblade Publishing, Inc.
Published: 2024-04-18T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Seventeen

It felt odd to be wearing a gown. Especially one so elaborate as the green confection Nettie assisted Elaina into for their final dinner at Dalkeith.

“You look lovely,” Lord Melville said as she descended the stairs to meet him in the foyer.

“Thank you. You are very handsome,” she said before thinking on her words. Should she have admitted to thinking him handsome? She was only speaking the truth.

“You are too kind.” He offered a quick bow and held out his arm to escort her to the dining room. As usual, he assisted her into the seat next to him.

She expected it to feel different, but touching his arm now felt exactly the same as it did when he’d helped her down from the wagon at the dig. Or assisted her in maneuvering a pile of rock.

The familiar tingle and heat radiated from the point of contact, up her arm and throughout her body. Lately, that tingle had resonated in a lower part of her body that was indecent, but delightful.

She shook her head to rid herself of the thoughts before they turned her cheeks crimson. It wouldn’t do to be thinking of such things when she would be bundled in a carriage with him for days on end as they returned to England.

She couldn’t believe their time had already come to an end.

While she looked forward to seeing Aunt Rose and Uncle Henry, she would miss this time with Julian. She wasn’t ready to leave Scotland.

Here at Dalkeith Castle, they were in a bubble of contentment. No external forces pulling them apart. No distractions. Just she and Julian in the evening entertaining each other with comical tales of their youths.

“Are you looking forward to returning to London?”

She opened her mouth to tell him she was not, but instead settled on, “I suppose it is time.” Which meant nothing. “At least the Season will be over.”

“You don’t enjoy the activities?”

She shouldn’t have shrugged for it was unladylike, but there were no words to properly answer in the way a shrug did. When he didn’t say anything else, she felt the need to speak.

“I’m sure it’s not a surprise to you to know I do not fit in with the other ladies of the ton.”

“Do you think it a bad thing?”

“I used to wonder what it might be like to be… normal. It is strange, I always see the other ladies as so perfectly ordinary. I guess I always wanted a life like theirs. A normal life. But I have loved all the adventures I’ve been a part of and the places I have seen.”

“And now?” Julian asked. “Which life would you choose? A staid existence that fits society’s dictates, or the chaos and adventure of a life in foreign lands?”

She didn’t have to think about it.

“I would choose the life I have with Henry and Rose.” She smiled remembering those first days with them. “When I was eleven, I rather viewed their affection for one another with disgust. But now, I know it comes from true adoration.

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