Dominic (15 page)

“There
is nothing
m
ore
tedious
than
watching
other people
da
nc
e,”
he
stated
flatly. He
turned to
f
ace
M
iss Thornton
and
took
her
fingers
to
his
lips
in
a
brief
salute. “I
hope
you will
e
x
cuse
m
e
if
I
take
m
y
leave,”
he
said with
a
c
u
rt
n
ess
he
tried
to
suppress. Returning
hi
s gaze
to Mrs.
Lewis,
he
favored
her with a terse nod, his countenance
as
stone,
and
inwardly
seething,
m
ade
his
leisurely
departure
from
the
hall.
His
leaving
causing
a
s much comment as had his arrival.

“
W
ell!”
expostulated
Mrs. Lewis full
of righteous indignation. “
So
m
u
ch
for
his
lordship
and
his insufferable
m
anners!
Co
m
e
m
y, dear, we will find you a more a
m
iable co
m
panion.”

“Thank you, but no,” replied Miss Thornton with quiet dignity. “I have suffered enough
this evening.
I wish no more than to be left alone.”

“As
you
wish,”
re
pl
ied
M
rs.
Lewis
ha
u
ghtily, shrugging
her
shoulders.
“I
am
sure
that
I
am
not
the
one to
push
m
yself
forward. I saw the
need
for assistance
and atte
m
pted to offer it. Howev
e
r, trouble not, I leave you to
your own devices, make what best you can of the
evening,” and with this, she
m
arched away leaving Miss Thornton to her own reflections.

It
would have
surprised her
greatly
to
have
seen
the s
m
all
s
m
ile
that
played
over Sophie’s
lips
and
the
gleam that ca
m
e to her eye.

*****

Rising just befo
re noon the following day, the e
arl attacked
a
h
earty breakfast before
finally
m
aking
his
way toward the stables
. Here he stood in shirtsleeves,
leaning over the loosebox door, ad
m
i
r
i
ng Sonnet who stood in t
he shadows
of the
interior.
She
was
a
b
ight
bay
thoroughbred, her breeding show
i
ng in every line. She had a sweet enough nature, yet a f
i
re lay
beneath
the
surface and she pro
m
ised much. Over the previous week
s
Vale had broken her to head collar and lunge rein and two days
earlier
had
introduced
her
to bridle and bit
.
Today he
would
add
the
saddle.
But
no
rider
yet,
he
thought
to
hi
m
self.
He
would
not
break
her
s
p
irit
by
atte
m
pting
too much too soon; he had hopes for her future.

Ordering
the
groom
to
fit
her
head
collar
and
to
lead her into the yard, he attached the lunge rein to the noseband. Coiling it ar
o
und his ar
m
,
he took up the lunge whip and led her toward the south paddock. Speaking over his
shoulder,
he
sent
the
groom in
s
earch
of
a
lightweight saddle.

If
anything
was
designed
to
revive
his
flagging
spirits, it was his horses for which he held an unrivalled passion and
he
jealously
guarded
his
r
i
ght
to
their
schooling.
As a young boy he had watched his father bringing on the youngsters and he had learned
m
uch. The d
uke was well known
for
his
eq
u
ine
s
kills,
he
too
holding
a
passion
in that direction. Over the years he had established a
well-respected bloodline, the founder stallion of which had
been brought from
France at the ti
m
e of his wedding.

Vale would send for
W
roxh
a
m,
but not until he had established
the
groundwork
of her
schooling
and
standing now
in
the
center
of
the
paddock
he
started
to
lunge
her
at a steady, e
v
en, pace.

Beco
m
i
ng impatient of the groo
m
’s delay he looked in the
dire
c
tion of
the
s
tables
and
in
so
doing
beca
m
e
aware that
he
was
the
object
of
scrutiny.
Turning,
he
espied
a
lone horseman sitting
on
the rise some distance away
, however
he
paid
no
heed,
his
m
i
nd
being
occupied
with the
groo
m
’s tar
d
iness.
A
f
ter only a short while, the groom eventually
arri
v
ed,
red faced
and
full
of
apologie
s
, explai
n
ing
that
the
reas
o
n for the
delay
was
that
the
saddle had been in the process of being cleaned.

Sonnet accepted the saddle a
f
ter an initial s
h
ow of reluctance when she sidled
a
nd atte
m
pted to kick at her sto
m
ach
to
rid
her
s
elf
of
the
girth
,
bucking
occasionally to
add
weight
to
her
protest, b
u
t
his
lords
h
ip
was
patie
n
t and
worked with
her
u
ntil
she
c
al
m
ed
and
went
f
orward well
on
the
lunge.
It
was not
until
he
had
decided
that
she had
worked
long
enough
and
tur
n
ed
toward
the
gate
that he
re
m
e
m
bered
his
spectator
and
caught
sight
of
him
just as
he
was
riding
away
f
rom
the
rise.
Giving
his
presence no
m
ore
than
a
m
o
m
en
t
’s
thought, Vale returned to
m
ore pressing
m
atters and ret
u
rned Sonnet to her stable
.

However, on several occasions over the next few days he
beca
m
e
aware
of
the
onlo
o
ker’s
presence
as
he schooled t
h
e filly, usually at t
h
e sa
m
e t
i
m
e of day, his mornings
being
occupied
with
either
shooting
or
fishing on
the
estate.
Finally,
he
decided
on
f
i
nding
out
w
hom his watcher
m
ay
be
and
instead
of going
to
the
paddock
with Sonnet,
he
sent
a
groom of
like
height
and
weight
in
his place, hoping
to
engage
the
spectat
o
r’s
atte
n
tion
long enough for him
to be intercepted.