learn to ride astride and shoot a firearm?”
“My brother taught me, but that was before he knew better. It was just the two of us after our parents died. Ash was barely old enough to be my guardian, but he tried.”
Lana chuckled. “The lessons our brothers teach us can come in handy at the most unexpected times. I have four older brothers of my own, and I daresay my education as a lady was enhanced, thanks to them.”
“Well, Ash’s wife does not view my unorthodox education the same. She was raised with sisters only, and my rowdiness often sent her into the vapors. My poor brother didn’t know what to do when she took to her bed for days after he defended me.”
She nibbled her bottom lip and glanced out the window. How it had broken her heart to see her brother conflicted. When Muriel was with child, Vivi knew she would be sent away. Even in her nine-year-old heart, she realized this was for the best. If her sister-in-law had lost Ash’s issue after a spell brought on by her antics, Vivi might have lost her brother, too. She had been saddened by the news of Muriel’s miscarriage, but also relieved she wasn’t to blame. She had been living at Brighthurst House for weeks at the time.
Now, Muriel despised her for forcing her to endure Mrs. Honeywell’s companionship. “I fear my brother’s wife and I will never be on friendly terms.”
Lana clucked her tongue. “Please don’t take offense, my dear, but I shouldn’t think I would like to make Lady Ashden’s acquaintance. Is there a way to avoid inviting her to yours and Luke’s wedding?”
Lana’s optimism buoyed her spirits until memories of what Vivi now dubbed “the tooth blunder” resurfaced. She groaned under her breath.
Lord, help her. She made for an abysmal seductress, but she must try or else surrender.
And surrender had never had a place in her vocabulary.
“Lana, how does a lady court a gentleman exactly?”
“Just continue to be yourself.” When she frowned, her friend laughed. “Oh, very well. I may have a couple of suggestions, but I warn you to use them wisely and be prepared.”
“Prepared for what?”
“For anything. The Forest men are an unpredictable lot.”
***
Luke shifted in the saddle and peered over his shoulder toward the carriage where Vivian was safely ensconced. Safe from what, exactly, he didn’t know. Perhaps safe from him.
After a sleepless night of fantasizing about removing each article of her clothing and kissing every inch of her body, he didn’t trust himself to remain a gentleman if he found himself alone with her again this evening.
Being in close proximity all day would only make matters worse. Yet he missed her wit and laughter. The heat of her skin as his leg accidentally brushed against hers in the carriage. His body ached for her.
This is insanity. He swallowed a groan and returned his attention to the rutted road.
Drew chuckled.
“Speak your mind and be done with it,” Luke said. “You know you will eventually, so spare me the suspense.”
“You only need to give the word if you want to join the ladies.”
“I don’t.” But he did. He wanted it with great intensity, which was the reason he was riding his damned horse.
Drew’s black stallion plodded along beside Thor in companionable silence. Luke wished he could say the same for his brother.
“Lady Vivian is a beautiful young woman. Father chose well.”
Luke pulled his hat lower to shade his eyes. “I’m certain Father had no idea what he was agreeing to when he entered into negotiations with Ashden.”
“What do you mean? Lady Vivian is lively, intelligent, and not a bit hard on the eyes. What fault do you find with her?”
“She has no faults in my eyes. Father, on the other hand, would not have approved of her high spirits.”
“Hmm,” Drew muttered noncommittally.
“Have you ever met a lady who wields a foil and can sit a horse better than most men? You should have seen her clear the fence at Brighthurst. It required hardly any effort.”
A surge of energy chased away the sluggish feeling that had been dogging him since he had climbed from bed that morning. Vivian excited him; she made him feel intensely alive, like the day he had been caught in the thunderstorm. The first day he had laid eyes on her.
“If Lady Vivian is an accomplished equestrienne,” Drew said, “you should have invited her to join you instead.”
“She is perfectly fine in the carriage. I can barely keep my hands off her