| |
“If you showed any sort of patience, Lucas would have called on you today. We did not have to bother Colebourne with a visit,” Selina informed Abigail, untying her bonnet.
“I am not calling on the duke to see Lucas. I promised Colebourne I would visit him for tea once he arrived in town. This is my first opportunity, and I refuse not to fulfill my promise,” Abigail answered in defiance.
Selina hmphed. “Whatever you must tell yourself to convince yourself otherwise.”
Before Abigail could defend herself, the butler, Goodwin, answered the door. “A pleasant surprise, Miss Cason and Lady Forrester. The duke will find joy with your arrival. He has waited for your visit.”
Abigail smirked at Selina. “I hope we have not come at an inconvenient time.”
“No. The duke and Lord Gray are reading in the library. Would you like to surprise them?” Goodwin winked.
“Please.”
“I will inform the housekeeper to add two more cups for tea.”
“I told you he expected me,” Abigail gloated to her friend.
“Arrogance does not suit you, my friend.” Selina tried to bite back a smile.
Abigail laughed. “I agree. I found pleasure from the duke waiting for my visit and allowed it to go to my head.”
“Understandable, especially after you told me how he considers you a daughter.”
Abigail and Selina paused at the doorway before announcing their presence. They watched Lucas pace back and forth before the fireplace, with Colebourne watching him in amusement.
“Do you think she will show today?” Lucas asked with impatience.
The duke caught sight of them and winked. He nodded his head to hide. Selina pulled Abigail to the side, pressing them against the wall.
“Why the sudden urgency to see Abigail? I thought you saw her at the Mitchel Musical last night. Your aunt wrote to me this morning, telling me how you couldn’t take your eyes off Abigail.”
“Nosy busybody,” Lucas muttered.
Selina and Abigail covered their giggles.
“Did she look lovely?” Colebourne asked.
“Like a walking dream come true. There are no words descriptive enough to describe how breathtaking Abigail is.”
Selina sighed. “Ahh, how romantic.”
“Maybe luck will shine our way today with a visit from Abigail.”
Lucas slumped into a chair. “Luck has never befriended me.”
“Perhaps your luck has taken a turn,” Abigail said softly from the entryway.
Lucas scrambled to his feet when she spoke. He bumped into a side table in his attempt to reach her, then rubbing his hip, almost knocked over a vase in his impatience. Selina laughed at him as she passed him to hug his father. He stopped before Abigail and took in her smile that brightened the room.
“Hello.”
He swiped back a lock of hair that fell over his eyes. “Hello.”
He endeared himself to her with his sheepish smile. “How are you today?”
Lucas gulped. “I am well. How are you?”
“Better now,” Abigail whispered for only Lucas to hear.
Lucas’s eyes widened. “Were you ill?”
Abigail smiled. “No. Only missing you.”
“Oh.” A goofy smile spread across his cheeks. “Oh!”
“Come closer, Abby, so I can give you a proper greeting,” Colebourne ordered.
Abigail giggled at Lucas before moving on to greet Colebourne. She wanted to address him as Poppa but would wait until Lucas married her. Were her thoughts too presumptuous? Perhaps. However, Selina had mentioned she had grown arrogant of late.
“Ahh, you two lovely ladies are a sight for sore eyes,” Colebourne complimented them as he helped them to sit on the settee.
“I hope you do not mind, but I told Goodwin I wanted to surprise you,” Abigail explained.
Colebourne chuckled, glancing at his son. “Oh, you are a pleasant surprise to our afternoon. Are they not, Lucas?”
Lucas shook his head, clearing out his thoughts. Especially the ones too inappropriate for the present company. “I apologize. What are we discussing?”
“How nice it is of Abigail and Selina to join us for tea.”
“Yes, most pleasant,” Lucas agreed, walking over to sit next to Abigail on the settee. Abigail slid over to make room for Lucas, jostling Selina.
Selina rolled her eyes at Lucas. “I think I prefer to sit over here.” She rose and chose a seat next to Colebourne.
“Did you enjoy the musical?” Lucas asked Abigail.
“Yes, it was very enjoyable.”
“Lucas just told me how lovely you looked. And Susanna has sent word of your success. I am very proud of you, my dear.”
Abigail nodded at his praise.
“You look lovely today, too,” Lucas sputtered.
A warm blush spread across Abigail’s cheeks at Lucas’s attention. He only spoke to her, ignoring his father and Selina. However, when Abigail glanced over at them, they only smiled their pleasure at Lucas’s smitten behavior.
“Thank you,” Abigail said.
Goodwin entered, followed by more servants carrying trays with tea and cake. Another maid trailed after them with a vase of flowers and sat them in the middle of the table. Goodwin instructed the servants to serve the tea and cake, then he ushered them away.
Colebourne kept up the flow of conversation, filling the awkward silence with humorous stories of the time he courted Olivia. Throughout their visit, Lucas kept his gaze focused on Abigail. He would inquire of her activities in London, only to stop mid-sentence and stare at her. Selina and Colebourne kept making humorous remarks at his expense. However, Lucas remained clueless at their intent. After a while, they took pity and offered them a few moments of privacy.
“Selina, I have a letter for you to deliver to Susanna. Will you accompany me to my study?” Colebourne asked.
Selina winked at Abigail. “Yes. Then we must be on our way. Duncan has promised to take us for a ride through Hyde Park.”
“A carriage ride through Hyde Park? That does not seem like Duncan’s style,” Lucas commented once Selina and his father left.
Abigail nodded. “Yes. Selina raves it is most fashionable for one to be seen riding in an open carriage.”
“I was not aware you cared about being fashionable.”
“I do not care.”
Lucas frowned. “Then why agree to join them?”
“Because Selina is my friend, and she wishes to show me this pastime.”
“Or does she wish for other suitors to claim your hand?” Lucas snarled.
This wasn’t how she wished to spend her time alone with Lucas. To listen to his tone, she would think how the gentlemen paying her attention made him jealous. Which was absurd. Wasn’t it? Abigail recalled other instances where gentlemen paid her attention, only for them to refuse to meet her eyes when they met again. Was Lucas the reason for their disinterest? She always thought he stopped other gentlemen from talking with her because he found them unsuitable to court her.
“I think it is time for me to leave. Your opinion of Selina is unfair. Especially with the loyalty she has shown you, even after the way you treated her.” Abigail stalked toward the door.
Lucas caught her wrist and swung her around before she went very far. “Don’t leave. Forgive me. The feelings I hold for you have turned me into a ranting lunatic. I have allowed my insecurities to surface, blaming others for my actions.”
Abigail softened at his apology. She never meant to make him jealous. She only wanted to share another activity she would get to partake in. Since she had refused to enjoy them last season, she now embraced them and wanted to share them with Lucas.
“Will you join us?” Abigail asked.
Lucas wished for nothing more than to join them. But his jealousy would flare out of control, and he didn’t want to ruin the outing for Abigail. “I cannot.”
Abigail frowned. “Oh. All right. I hope you have a pleasant afternoon.”
Lucas drew her into his arms when he heard the disappointment in her voice and brushed a stray curl behind her ear. “Not that I do not wish to, but I have an appointment scheduled with my solicitor I cannot miss.”
Abigail relaxed in Lucas’s arms once she realized he wasn’t trying to avoid her. “Of course.”
“Can I call on you tomorrow? I would like to escort you to a flower exhibit Lord Daborne is holding in his conservatory.”
“I would enjoy that.” Abigail gazed into Lucas’s eyes.
Lucas lost himself in her adoring gaze. The golden flecks made the green in her eyes explode with color. He bent his head and drew her lips under his in a soft, slow kiss. Time stood still as he tasted the burst of lemon on her tongue. The tart flavor contradicted the sweetness of their kiss.
Abigail felt as if her feet lifted off the floor and she floated on a cloud. Lucas’s kiss was gentle, yet he held his passion under tight control. A passion she wished to ignite but she knew they couldn’t. But it didn’t mean she couldn’t tease him a little into unleashing himself a bit.
She traced her tongue around his lips, dipping inside to dance against his tongue, only to pull away. Lucas groaned and Abigail teased him again. Only this time, he tightened his embrace and his tongue stroked hers in a provocative dance of seduction, each stroke growing bolder than the one before. Abigail’s moan reflected her need.
Lucas pulled away, dragging in deep breaths to calm his libido. “You make me forget myself.”
Abigail skimmed her thumb across his lips. “’Tis my intention.”
Abigail leaned forward and brushed her mouth against his. Then she winked at him as she drew out of his embrace. She joined Selina, who stood staring at them with an expression between shock and amusement. Lucas understood Selina’s reaction oh so well. This new flirtatious side of Abigail shocked him, but he found immense pleasure with the vixen she portrayed.
His curiosity piqued to learn what else she held in store for him.