felt weak, boneless. This would never do! They were pulling up before the Folly. Desperately she pulled at remnants of her icy mantle. The Ice Witch would not be so consumed!
She breathed deeply, composing her face. By the time the carriage door opened and the steps were let down, she’d achieved a modicum of control. She hung onto it tightly, as a shipwrecked sailor hung on to flotsam and jetsam, praying for rescue. He was there, by the door, waiting to help them alight. Millicent, anxious to secure the earl for herself, pushed past Lady Elsbeth to take the earl’s hand. She remained by his side while he assisted Lady Elsbeth and finally Jane. Jane’s fingers trembled slightly when her hand touched his. He looked at her quizzically, but she refused to meet his dark gaze. When she was safely on the ground, she quickly pulled her hand from his and walked hurriedly toward the other carriage, ostensibly to greet the others.
Blankets were spread out in the shade of a tall, spreading elm. Hampers of food revealed delicacies to tempt everyone’s appetite, along with bottles of wine and jugs of lemonade. A gentle breeze rustled the leaves. Sounds of laughter and the ebb and flow of voices floated across the hillside and down into the valley. The boys ran after each other playing a game of tag. Giggling, Edward careened around Lady Serena, using her shoulder to pivot. Lady Serena screamed in surprise and jumped, spilling her glass of wine across the blanket, barely avoiding staining her pale yellow skirts.
"How dare you, you little—"
"Serena!" cut in Lady Elsbeth. "They are only playing a game. Boys, don’t play around here. You’re liable to hurt yourselves or someone else, not to mention the hazard of falling into a platter of food!"
The boys laughed. "Yes, by Jove, wouldn’t that be a sight! I can see you now, Edward, face first in one of Cook’s cream puffs," said Bertram. The picture he imagined sent him laughing harder and reeling backwards, clenching his sides.
"Oh, really? Well, I can see you in one of the jellies!" Edward countered. "All sticky and gooey, with ants crawling all over you!"
"I can see caterpillars falling on you from the trees," Bertram yelled, his chin thrusting forward pugnaciously.
"Yipes!" squealed Lady Serena, looking upward. Her skin crawled and she flicked at imaginary crawling insects.
"Children!" cried out Lady Elsbeth, a faint blush staining her cheeks.
"And getting stuck in all that cream, wriggling about," Bertram finished with a flourish.
"That’s nothing," began Edward, puffing out his small chest as he prepared to launch into an even more gruesome image.
"That’s enough," corrected the earl, laughter robbing his words of force. "Remember the ladies’ sensibilities."
Millicent, seated next to the earl, preened at what she considered his obvious attention to her.
"Why don’t you show me how that telescope of yours works," he continued, surging to his feet in one fluid motion.
"What—" protested Millicent. She clamped her lips shut, a determined look steeling over her features. She got to her feet and followed after the earl.
"Poor Millicent," said Jane to Lady Elsbeth, "I don’t think she knows how to handle children as rivals."
With a laugh, the Marquis of Conisbrough leaned back on his elbow next to Lady Elsbeth. "That’s not a contest she has a chance of winning, either. "
"Oh?" encouraged Jane.
The marquis sat up. He looked pointedly at Jane. "I don’t tell tales on another. If you want that story, you’ll have to ask him."
Jane flushed and bristled at the implied criticism. Lady Elsbeth took pity on her niece and patted her hand understanding. Jane released a long sigh and relaxed. No doubt the primary subject of numerous tales, the marquis had learned the consequences of gossip. When was she going to learn?
With his wineglass refilled, Sir Helmsdon sauntered back to Jane. In his other hand he carried a wine cork, which he absently tossed into the air, catching it as it fell. "I’d like to see this telescope, too. Would you be my guide, Miss Grantley?"
"Certainly, sir," she said, anxious to get away from the scene of her embarrassment and to give her aunt and the marquis a modicum of privacy. She held out her hand for Sir Helmsdon to help her rise.
He deftly caught the cork once again and, palming it in the same hand that held the wineglass, offered her his free hand. They walked slowly toward the Folly.
"Miss Grantley," he said when they were out of hearing. "What do you know of those