A Simple Lady (22 page)

Catching only a glimpse of something flying through the air toward her, Elizabeth was so startled she screamed, tried to whirl about, and tripped on her long skirt. Within seconds, she was lying flat on her back on the forest floor, weak from her combined fright and laughter. Apollo was sitting in the middle of her stomach, nonchalantly washing his left front paw.

Elizabeth assumed the footsteps she heard running through the forest were Billy’s. He would have heard her scream, of course, and be coming to check on her. When she looked up from her prone position and into her husband’s apprehensive gaze, her heart began to race. She would never grow inured to his remarkably handsome face, she feared.

“Are you all right?” Kenrick asked, dropping to his knees beside her. Concern had darkened his gray eyes to the color of steel. “I heard you scream.”

Apollo, apparently feeling his left paw had received enough attention, switched to his right.

“Oh my,” Elizabeth said. Then, as the irony of the situation struck her, she began to laugh. Always when she was at her very worst, her husband was the first person on the scene. Here she was, lying on her back in the woods, her hair pins scattered to the winds, her habit covered with twigs and dried leaves, with a cat sitting on her stomach calmly giving himself a bath. And she couldn’t seem to stop laughing.

* * *

Kenrick hurriedly brushed Apollo off of his wife’s abdomen and began gently feeling of her limbs to see if anything was broken. Obviously she was hysterical, and he feared she’d suffered a head injury. Knowing she had recently dispensed with a groom during her morning rides, he could only assume she had taken a bad spill. He didn’t even want to think about how long she might have been marooned here if he hadn’t been taking a short cut through the woodland.

A tug on his sleeve interrupted his thoughts. Billy was standing beside him, a frantic expression on his face.

“I’m not sure how badly she’s hurt,” Kenrick said in response to the question in Billy’s eyes. “She doesn’t seem to have any broken limbs, but she must have hit her head. She appears addled.”

When Elizabeth’s laughter increased in intensity, Kenrick and Billy exchanged worried glances. “I must bring help,” Kenrick told Billy. “Will you stay with her until I return?”

At Billy’s nod, Kenrick got to his feet, but Elizabeth’s laughter immediately died. “Don’t go,” she said. “I’m so sorry. I don’t know why I couldn’t seem to stop laughing, but I’m not injured, I promise you.”

Kenrick hesitated, then dropped back onto his knees as Elizabeth began struggling to sit up. “Lie back for a moment more,” he commanded. When Elizabeth obeyed, he quickly stripped off his coat, folded it carefully, and placed it beneath her head. He was not reassured when he noticed that his wife’s face was gradually turning a fiery shade of red.

“Elizabeth?” he said softly. “Are you in pain?”

She grimaced. “No, I’m just terribly embarrassed.”

“There’s no need for embarrassment. We all take a tumble sometimes.”

“But I didn’t take a tumble,” Elizabeth responded. “I merely stumbled and fell when Apollo leaped at me from a branch.”

A tiny frown touched Kenrick’s forehead. “Then why were you laughing so hard.”

“Because,” Elizabeth replied, “when I saw you standing above me, it reminded me of the rose garden.”

Kenrick’s deepening frown clearly indicated he was having renewed doubts about his wife’s sanity. “Rose garden?” he repeated.

Elizabeth sighed deeply. “If I may be permitted to sit up, I’ll explain about the rose garden.”

Five minutes later, Kenrick was staring at her in amazement. “I’m horrified to learn you actually went through that maze of briars behind your father’s house while trying to locate me on the eve of our wedding. The wonder of it is that only your clothing was snagged. You could have been scratched to pieces.”

Elizabeth shrugged. “I wasn’t worried about that. I was too frantic, fearing I would miss my opportunity to talk to you.”

“And I thought…” Kenrick began, then paused.

“You thought I was an unkempt simpleton who could not understand your reference to a Shakespearean play,” Elizabeth said.

Kenrick grimaced. “Were my thoughts so obvious?”

“To me they were. But I was accustomed to being underestimated and thus would have recognized your doubts more readily than most people. I was planning to tell you the truth about my capabilities when my parents interrupted us.” Elizabeth paused for a few seconds, then sighed before continuing. “I have not yet apologized to you for my parents’ misapprehensions about your intentions that evening. They had no right—”

“No,” Kenrick interrupted. “They had no right to jump to such an uncomplimentary conclusion about you, but I have learned in the past weeks just how likely your parents are to misread situations. In fact, I am amazed that, with such parents, you managed to grow up to be such a remarkable young woman.”

Elizabeth smiled. She’d received so few compliments over the years that a sincere word of praise had the power to delight her. But much more important to her than the praise, she realized, was the look of admiration shining in Kenrick’s eyes. She returned his gaze, willing her thoughts to be written in her eyes, for she could not yet force her lips to form the words she longed to share with her husband—words that would have expressed her as yet intangible desires.

A sigh from Billy attracted her attention. He had been waiting patiently while she and Kenrick sat on the ground talking. Now he was beginning to fidget.

“Poor Billy,” Elizabeth said, reaching to grasp his hand. “You have been very good this morning. Would you like to continue our game of hide and seek?”

Billy nodded eagerly.

Kenrick immediately stood and then reached to grasp Elizabeth’s hand and pull her to her feet. They stood, inches apart, her hand still clasped in his. Elizabeth’s head began to swim and she knew intuitively that it was from no physical ailment. Her husband’s closeness was intoxicating. The soft scent of his sandalwood soap, along with the warmth emanating from his body, assaulted her senses, creating longings that Elizabeth had never experienced before.

Suddenly frightened, she wrenched her hands from his grasp. “I-I must return to Billy,” she said.

Kenrick blew out his breath in a long sigh. “Yes,” he said softly. “Yes.” Then he turned and hurried away through the forest, leaving Elizabeth to silently curse herself for her missishness. After all, she and Kenrick were married. What would have been so terrible about a small kiss between husband and wife?

When Elizabeth arrived at the stables the following morning for her usual ride, Kenrick was there before her, one shoulder propped against the stable door as though he was waiting for her to appear. He straightened as she approached, a mischievous smile teasing the corners of his lips.

Elizabeth’s heart sped up as Kenrick strode toward her. “Good morning, my lord,” she murmured through suddenly dry lips. Her husband looked even more handsome than usual this morning, perhaps because there was an especially appealing gleam in his eyes. She nervously moistened her lips. A bit intimidated by his warm smile of welcome, she glanced up at the cloudless sky. “The day promises to be sunny,” she murmured inanely.

“Especially now,” Kenrick agreed, smiling even more broadly. “May I join you for your ride?”

Elizabeth nodded, delighted with the open admiration in Kenrick’s gaze and suddenly feeling breathless and lightheaded.

She allowed him to toss her into the saddle, marveling that the mere touch of his hands could create such peculiar sensations in her stomach.

“May I take the lead today?” he asked as soon as he had swung himself onto Solomon’s back. “Although I didn’t spent a lot of time at Oak Groves when I was growing up, my father occasionally had me join him here for a few weeks in the summers. On one of those visits, I discovered a glade that I particularly enjoyed, and I would like to share it with you.”

“Very well,” Elizabeth said, feeling somewhat foolish. Why could she not think of something clever and witty to say, something that would prove to her husband that she was just as sanguine as he appeared to be? Unfortunately, she admitted to herself as she followed Kenrick down a narrow path leading into the woodland, none of her studies over the years had prepared her to deal with the peculiar emotions that were besetting her now.

Conversation was limited by their necessity to ride single file, a circumstance Elizabeth welcomed since she could think of no topics of discussion she felt would interest Kenrick anyway. However, too soon for her comfort, they exited the forest into a sunny meadow where Kenrick pulled up and waited for Elizabeth to join him. Wild flowers provided a multi-colored carpet, and a small pond near the center of the glade was surrounded by willows swaying gently in the soft breeze.

“Oh,” Elizabeth breathed softly. “What a magical place.” She could immediately envision her husband as a small boy slipping away here to play. In a child’s imagination, she knew, the willows could easily double as a castle, and the pond could be swiftly transformed to an ocean sporting dangerous pirate ships.

The broad smile on Kenrick’s face was proof of his pleasure at her reaction. “Would you like to sit under the willows for a while?”

At Elizabeth’s swift nod, he quickly dismounted and then reached up to help her slide from the saddle, appearing in no hurry to release her once her feet were on the ground. “I think, Elizabeth,” he said softly, gazing into her eyes, “that it is time you and I became better acquainted.”

“I agree,” Elizabeth responded quickly—before she could lose her courage. After all, she had been longing to know her husband better. And besides, she had not yet spent enough time with him to be able to judge the truth of Gerald’s assertions about him.

“I’m glad,” Kenrick said simply, reaching to take Elizabeth’s gloved hand in his own and lead her slowly through the sunny meadow to the shady bank of the pond. There he removed his riding coat, spread it carefully on the bank, and insisted that Elizabeth sit on it to protect her from any possible dampness. Then he lowered himself to the ground beside her. “Tell me about your childhood,” he commanded, reaching to pluck a blade of grass which he began twisting around one finger while he gazed solemnly at the ripples on the pond’s surface.

A bit startled, Elizabeth glanced at her husband. He was still staring at the water. “Why?” she asked baldly.

He looked at her then, long and searchingly. “A fair question,” he allowed at last. “I could tell you that I merely want us to become better acquainted, and that would be true. But it would be only a part of the truth.” He paused and took a deep breath before continuing. “As I am sure you know, my first marriage was based on a lie, and, as a result of that lie, I was afraid to trust any woman again. I certainly did not wish to marry a second time, and I now know that our marriage was not what you wanted either. But in recent weeks, I have begun to hope that, if we try, we can learn to trust each other and perhaps build a real marriage out of the rubble of our poor beginning.”

“And an understanding of my childhood is essential to your trusting me?” Elizabeth asked, frowning slightly as she tried to understand.

“Not at all,” he replied quickly. “I already trust you, Elizabeth. I have for quite some time. Please believe that. But I don’t understand you. I simply can’t comprehend how anyone could survive such a childhood and still grow up to be as intelligent, as generous, and as unembittered as you are.”

“I fear you give me too much credit,” Elizabeth objected with a pleased smile. “But I thank you for the compliments. I doubt anyone can understand how much a few words of praise can mean to someone who grew up with so much criticism.”

A small frown touched Kenrick’s brow. Then he was smiling encouragingly. “Tell me about it,” he invited.

Fifteen minutes later Kenrick had decided that his wife was truly the most remarkable woman he’d ever met. She had begun her story haltingly, as though expecting each word she murmured to be met with disbelief. And so he had been extremely careful to keep his expression nonjudgmental, even when he was imagining that he had his hands around her parents’ throats, choking each of them to within an inch of their lives.

Not that Elizabeth had even once denigrated her parents, Kenrick realized. On the contrary, she had consistently tried to imbue the hardships of her childhood with humor, laughing as she described her youthful missteps while attempting to keep up with the daily demands of a crumbling estate. And her eyes had positively glistened with gratitude when she told of the help she had received from Mattie and the vicar and her many neighbors.

But Kenrick was quite capable of reading between the lines, and he could easily imagine the fears, uncertainties, and frustrations that a bright and sensitive child like Elizabeth must have suffered when her most earnest efforts earned her nothing but condemnation and disappointment from her parents. That she had succumbed only to an occasional stutter now struck him as near miraculous, and he could only feel ashamed of himself for having reacting with so much bitterness and distrust when confronted with his father’s and his first wife’s transgressions. That he in no way deserved Elizabeth’s approbation was clear to him, but he very much hoped he could earn not only her approval but also her love.

There! He had at last admitted the truth to himself. He was, indeed, falling in love with Elizabeth. And the thought, surprisingly, no longer terrified him. It was, in fact, rather comforting. He could envision a wonderful and fulfilling future with Elizabeth, a future filled with love and with trust and with laughter. A future that included children who would again make the halls of Oak Groves ring with the clatter of children at play.

And they would be good parents, he and Elizabeth. They would somehow avoid the mistakes of his father and of Elizabeth’s parents, and they would surround their children with approval and with caring, with laughter and with love.

“Is something wrong?” Elizabeth asked, her eyes dark with concern. Only then did Kenrick realize that she had stopped talking and that he had been staring off into space, lost in his lovely daydreams of tomorrow.