the opposite wall, letting in a slight breeze.
The innkeeper spoke up. “I will see to yer food right away.”
“Thank you,” Miss Blackmore murmured.
After the innkeeper closed the door, Miss Blackmore’s eyes scanned the room. “This is quaint,” she observed.
“That it is,” he acknowledged as he walked over to the chair and pulled it out for her.
As Miss Blackmore sat down, she asked, “How are you faring?”
“I am well,” he replied, coming to sit across from her.
She eyed him intently. “Are you now?”
Leaning back in his chair, he asked, “Are you a witch?”
A twinkle of amusement came to her eye. “I am no witch; I can assure you of that.”
“Then how did you convince me to allow my sister to marry Mr. Kendall?” he asked. “I still can’t figure out how you accomplished that feat.”
“Because, in your heart, you knew it was the right thing to do.”
He sighed. “You keep saying that, but I must conclude that you have magical witch powers.”
Miss Blackmore laughed, and the sound warmed his heart. That was a sound that he knew he would never grow tired of.
“You are just used to getting your way, my lord,” she teased.
“That is true,” he replied. “The only time I don’t seem to get my way is when I am around you.” He smirked. “Why do you suppose that is?”
Miss Blackmore shrugged. “I know not.”
“I suppose it is because you are a beautiful woman, and I don’t dare disappoint you,” he remarked in a flirtatious tone.
He watched as an adorable blush crept up onto her cheeks, and she lowered her gaze towards her lap. Clearly, he had unsettled her, and for some reason that pleased him greatly. It meant that she wasn’t completely impenetrable to his charms.
A knock came at the door before it was pushed open and a young woman walked in with a tray in her hands. She placed the tray onto the table. As she wiped her hands on her drab gown, she asked, “Is there anything else ye need?”
“No, thank you,” he replied, his eyes still watching Miss Blackmore.
The girl curtsied before she exited the room, closing the door behind her.
“We should probably hurry up and eat,” he said, glancing down at the tray of food. “We have a long journey back to Town.”
Miss Blackmore brought her gaze back up as she reached for a piece of bread. “I have no doubt that my sisters are worried sick about me.”
“I would imagine that’s true,” he agreed.
She smiled as she broke the bread in half. “Amelia will be eager to hear all about my adventure, but Hannah will chastise me for my impulsiveness.”
“Is that so?”
“It amazes me how different my two younger sisters are,” she shared. “Sometimes I wonder how we all belong to the same family.”
Edward leaned back in his chair. “Which one of your sisters are you more like?”
Miss Blackmore pressed her lips together as she took a moment to ponder his question. “I suppose I am more like Amelia. Sometimes I feel like my soul craves adventure, as if there is so much more than what I have planned for my life.
“Is that a bad thing?”
She shook her head. “No, it’s not,” she replied. “After all, what is life but one grand adventure?”
He reached for a piece of bread. “I used to feel that life was made up with mundane tasks, day in and day out, until we eventually die.”
“But not anymore?”
“No,” he replied with a shake of his head. “I am starting to see life differently.”
Miss Blackmore brushed her hands together, wiping the crumbs off. “That’s good.”
“I agree.”
“May I ask what changed your perspective?”
He swallowed his bite of food before saying, “Not what, but whom.”
Miss Blackmore held his gaze as a slow smile came to her lips. “This person sounds very wise.”
“But this person is also quite infuriating,” he joked.
She shrugged. “Those two always seem to go hand in hand.”
“Do they now?” he asked, amused.
Miss Blackmore’s smile grew as she reached for a piece of cheese. “What were you like as a child?”
“Do you truly wish to know?”
She nodded. “That is why I posed the question.”
He leaned back in his chair. “I used to be so carefree,” he said. “Our country estate was surrounded by woodlands, and I spent countless hours roaming through the trees.”
“Is that so?”
“When Kitty was old enough, I would let her accompany me, and I would show her the stream that I loved to sit by and think,” he shared. “Most of the time she would get distracted