the paper as if burned by his brief touch.
Interesting. Simon had never noticed Emma’s reaction to him until the incident in the butler’s pantry. That response he’d assumed was founded in fear, not desire. Ignoring his base thoughts, he focused on the paper she’d handed him. The design appeared well laid out with areas for shrubs, trees, and a fountain. Then he looked out at the landscape, imaging the fountain that would stand about a hundred feet away.
“The fountain was my idea,” she commented. “Don’t you think this would be a lovely viewing spot for it? Just imagine sitting here with a cup of tea and hearing the fountain tinkling in the distance. You should be able to see it from the library too. I cannot wait for Harry to have it commissioned.
“It’s lovely,” he muttered, still amazed by her talent. There was far more to Miss Emma Drake than he’d ever assumed. For the past two years, he’d only thought of her as another silly lady with the single intent of finding a wealthy, titled husband. “How long have you been drawing?”
Emma blinked in surprise at his question. Her former fiancé had never paid any attention to her artistic talent. She assumed most men did not care about such things. So why was Mr. Kingsley showing an interest? Then again, did it matter? They were both stuck out here until Louisa and Harry settled their differences. At least she and Kingsley now had a topic for conversation.
“I’ve been drawing from the moment I could hold a pencil, according to Mamma, that is. I started painting when I was twelve.”
“Do you paint in oil?”
“No, that is considered unladylike,” she replied with a long sigh. She still had no notion how she would arrange to hire an instructor who would teach a woman. And how she would ask Louisa if she would be willing to pay for the instruction.
“You should do it anyway,” he added with a smile. “Hang those who want to tell you what you can and cannot do just because you’re a lady.”
She smiled at his naïveté in the way of Society. “I wouldn’t know where to start,” she said as an excuse.
“Where did you start with watercolors?”
She stared down at the picture of the water lily he still examined. “I begged Mamma for a teacher even though I knew we could scarcely afford such a luxury. Luckily, well not luckily for her, Tessa married...” Which husband had she married then? She looked up at him and shrugged. “Well, she married one of her husbands, thus allowing me the indulgence of an art teacher.”
“Then perhaps to paint in oil, all you need is a teacher,” he said, tracing a finger along the petals of the sketched lily.
Emma continued to glance over at him. She wondered what it would be like to sketch the hard lines of his face. He had a square jaw and high cheekbones that created marvelous lines and shadows across his cheeks. But it would take oils to capture his visage correctly. Charcoal and even watercolors couldn’t highlight the contrast between his black hair and sapphire eyes. The darkness of spirit that seemed to color his entire features would never truly be apparent in watercolors.
“Might I sketch you sometime?” she blurted out before she could stop the mad thought from erupting.
His gaze met hers, causing her to suck in a breath. There was a sadness to his eyes that she’d never really noticed before now. Perhaps she had missed it because he always took it upon himself to taunt her.
“That might not be the best idea, angel.” He broke their stare and flipped to another page of sketches.
“Why not?” For some reason, she now could not let the idea go.
“If you remember correctly, we don’t exactly like each other.”
“I suppose you are right. However, we have been perfectly civil the past few minutes,” she retorted.
“Yes,” he said with a quick smile. “We have been civil all of fifteen minutes. I could be polite even to my fath—my worst enemy for a quarter of an hour. There is also the fact that your sister and my brother would prefer to keep us apart.”
“True, but that is only due to your reputation with women.”
“Precisely why you should not sketch me.”
“I do believe I could capture your true essence.”
He shook his head. “My essence doesn’t need capturing, angel.”
“What else are we to do for the next few days?” She had no idea why this felt so important to