A Spear of Summer Grass - By Deanna Raybourn Page 0,40
to go bushwhacking.”
The gallant thing would have been for him to remark that I was too much a lady, too, but of course he didn’t. He merely gave me a slow look and rose to his feet. He was too big in that room. His very presence seemed to suck out all the air. I waved my hand impatiently.
“Let’s get on with it if we’re going.”
He handed the cup to Dora and gave her a courteous nod of the head. “Thank you for the tea, Miss Dora.”
“My pleasure, Ryder. And if I am to call you by your Christian name, I think you must do the same with me. From now on, it’s just Dora.”
She pinked up again and I resisted the urge to roll my eyes.
“As you like, Dora,” he said easily. “I’m sorry you won’t come, but at least promise me you won’t walk around without an escort. You’ve got watercress down by the lake, and elephants love the stuff. It wouldn’t do to surprise one. Make Pierre go with you. He’s useless, but if he sees an elly he’ll shriek and wave his arms enough to give you time to get away.”
He gave her a twinkling smile and she laughed. I strode out without looking backward and nearly ran into Gideon on the veranda. He was standing, one leg folded up, looking like an abandoned toy. “Gideon, why didn’t you get tea?”
Gideon merely shook his head and stepped off the veranda, heading for the path that led away from the house. Ryder fell into step beside me.
“Did I offend him somehow? Did Dora insult him?”
“No, she was very courteous. She offered to send Pierre out with tea, which confused him.”
“Why? Don’t the Masai drink tea?”
“Not in a white man’s house. They aren’t vicars and bank clerks, for God’s sake, taking afternoon tea in the drawing room. They drink milk and cow’s blood and if they find a taste for it, some of them drink liquor.”
“Cow’s blood?” I said faintly.
He started to explain and I held up a hand. “Not today. I’ve seen enough blood for now.”
“That’s Africa, princess. Besides, a Masai warrior would never take nourishment from a white woman’s hand. It’s degrading.”
I opened my mouth to debate the point, but Ryder held up a finger. “Don’t shoot the messenger. It’s their way and it isn’t my place to change it.”
I lapsed into silence, but only for a moment. “Well, you’ve certainly made an impression on Dora. She’s never chatty with strangers. Why are you so nice to her?”
He paused and his pause was heavy. He was feeling for the words. “She’s a nice lady,” he said finally.
“Is she your type?” I teased.
He didn’t smile. His expression didn’t even flicker. “I don’t have a type. Now be quiet. You’ll never learn anything about the bush if you keep flapping your jaws.”
I sulked for the next quarter of an hour. Ryder led the way, and I noticed his walk as he moved through the bush, low-hipped and loose, as if he and the earth belonged to each other. It was the walk of a confident man who knows exactly who he is and doesn’t give a tinker’s damn if anybody else does.
We walked past Kit’s cottage but the place looked empty and I was a little relieved.
“Looks like your boyfriend is out,” Ryder said coolly. His face was in profile, and I noticed his nose. It was strong and straight, a no-nonsense nose. But the nostrils were flaring just a little, and I realised the coolness was just a pose. He had been good and irritated since that morning, and suddenly I knew why.
I surveyed my fingernails. “He isn’t my boyfriend.”
“Fine. Your lover is out.”
I laughed. “Word travels fast out here.”
“There are two kinds of white people in Africa. Those who work and those who fornicate. Kit’s the latter.”
“Which are you?”
He turned his head and smiled then, a slow smile that might have been an invitation under other circumstances. “Both. I’m the exception.”
“I’m sorry you lost your bet,” I told him. “But let that be a lesson to you, Ryder. I’m no man’s foregone conclusion.”
To my surprise, that didn’t seem to put him off. If anything, the smile deepened, and for the first time I saw the hint of a dimple in his left cheek. His eyes were bright. He was enjoying the game as much as I was. He took half a step towards me, but just then Gideon, who had been walking some yards ahead, halted