Two Lady Scoundrels and a Duke - Tessa Candle Page 0,22
voice trailed off weakly.
“And? You thought taking to the trees was the best mode of escape? And here I am the one with a bump on the head!”
“Your entire head is a bump, if you think you are amusing in the slightest. If you must know, I was thinking of my hens.”
“Your hens?”
“I was going to take them with me when I quitted the cottage, but I needed something to feed them on the way, and I spied a few winter pears left up here.”
“You are quite mad. Do you know that?”
A muffled snort came from the knot of fabric, and her voice quavered. “Just get me out of this damned tree before I freeze, will you? My skirt is caught on something.”
Foxleigh’s heart soared. She was asking for his help! Might she not care about him still a little bit, despite everything? He made his way with renewed vigor to the base of the tree and looked up. This angle was even more revealing. His loins stirred. Steady now, Foxleigh.
“What are you waiting for?”
“Tsk. So impatient. Recall that I am an invalid, after all.”
“You are a bacon-brain!”
“Perhaps. But that only means it takes a tad longer for my slow wit to savour the moment, for I wish always to remember you like this.”
“Cad!” She tried to sound stern, but he could hear the laughter in her voice. “When I get down from this tree I will give you another bump on the head.”
“With such an inducement as that, how can I further delay?” He found a low branch and began to ascend.
The problem was, when he neared the spot where her clothing was tangled, he could not see which branch it was caught upon. “Apologies, Katherine, but you have things all twisted up in a ball. I shall have to feel around in your skirts to find the branch that is the culprit.”
“I suppose you say that to all the ladies.”
Laughter overtook him, and he almost fell off his perch. “Do not make me laugh, now. Be serious!” But he loved her so. And if they could laugh together, even in such a fix as this, there was hope. Their future bliss blazed bright before his eyes, as he found the branch at the center of the tangle and began to pull the fabric away from it.
He almost had it. One more heave and it must come free. But his efforts unbalanced him, and he suddenly fell from his branch several feet before his own coat hung up upon something and mercifully brought him to a lurching halt.
“Fox!” Her voice was a screech.
She had called him Fox. A stupid smile split his face. “I am well, Kat! Do not be alarmed.” He wanted to add my darling, but restrained himself. Better not to test his luck. Yet his heart was full of her and called her by every endearment, even as he dangled precariously from the tree.
“Thank God in heaven! Can you get free?”
“I, um, do not believe that would be advisable, as my entanglement is the only thread by which I hang, at the moment. Remind me to give my tailor a bonus.”
“Is there another branch you can hold on to?”
He looked about him. “There is one beneath me and to the right. I think I can reach it with my toe.” It would involve some twisting.
“Can you get a leg over?”
He smirked. “That remains to be seen.”
“Loathsome scoundrel! You deserve to fall. Now try to focus!”
“I shall try, but I am still feeling dizzy, you know.” When he shifted his weight to stretch toward the branch, an ominous cracking noise sounded above him. “Ah, well. Perhaps it is better if I do not move so much. I believe we require assistance.”
“What a brilliant surmise. Perhaps we could get Marie stuck up here as well. That would be terribly cozy.”
“Perish the thought. But what of Dog? Can he not go fetch someone to come to our aid?”
“Who should come, you daft man? Did you not notice that I live alone in the middle of nowhere?”
“Oh, about that. I hired some servants in the village. They are all busy about your cottage. I am sure Dog could get their attention.” He looked about for the hound, who was nowhere to be seen. “If only he were here.”
“Is he gone?” Katherine sounded concerned. “Are you sure?”
“Yes. He has run off, I am afraid. The infidel. I am sorry I shared my dinner with him, now.”
“You gave him your food?” She