Page 20 of An Innocent Bride for the Duke

“Almost done,” Louisa reported, “thanks to His Grace.”

She leaned across with a napkin to wipe the boy’s crumb-smeared mouth but he twisted away from her and clung to the duke’s jacket.

“His Grace has been very kind, Ezra, but you must come to me now to get ready to go out,” Louisa told him gently.

“No!” declared Ezra fiercely. “I stay with Uncle Benedict.”

“Don’t you want a nice suit of new clothes, Ezra?” asked Lady Esher, looking between the awkward child and her niece. “Louisa will be getting a new dress too. That nice green summer dress Mrs. Shaw is making should be ready for a final fitting, dear.”

“No!” the little boy answered. “I’ve got my clothes on.”

“Yes, but you are growing, Ezra,” Louisa tried to explain. “You need new clothes all the time.”

“Don’t want to!” he retorted belligerently, eluding Louisa’s grasp when she reached forward to take him from the duke.

“Uncle Benedict can come too,” Fanny suggested blithely, oblivious to the flash of surprise and mild annoyance that Louisa saw crossing the duke’s face.

While he clearly liked his friends’ children, and had showed great patience around Fanny and Ezra, that did not meant that he wished to spend his day in domestic pursuits like outfitting them. There were limits to a man’s patience, Louisa supposed, just as there were limits to hers.

“I think His Grace may have other plans,” Louisa tried to suggest tactfully to Fanny. “Ezra, I’m going to get your toy dog from upstairs and Rover can come with us in the carriage.”

“I want Uncle Benedict!” insisted Ezra, his arms tightening around the duke’s neck. “I don’t want Rover.”

“It seems I have little choice about my morning,” the duke said, giving a long sigh of resignation but then patting the little boy on the back. “I do sympathize with Ezra too. I never liked being measured for clothes as a boy either. Needs must, I suppose. Come along, Ezra. I shall only accompany you if I am assured your pants will stay dry.”

Hoisting the boy up onto his shoulders, he walked him out into the hallway in search of the nursemaids.

The weather was beautiful and the paths down to Rosemere village were scenic but Benedict still couldn’t entirely dismiss his frustration at being press-ganged into this domestic outing. He might have gone swimming in one of the lakes instead, or taken that stallion out for another hack through the woods.

Instead, he was striding through the countryside with a small boy on his shoulders, trying to stay at least a few steps ahead of Lady Louisa Ascot and keep his attention on something else at all times. It had been hard to sleep after they parted last night and Benedict was glad that he could not remember his dreams today, suspecting that they had not been entirely decent.

“There is Barrow Hall where Sir Arthur and Lady Manners live,” sounded the young woman’s happy voice as the party walked past a old-fashioned house in beautifully kept gardens. “Oh, good morning, Sir Arthur! How well your lilacs are looking.”

“Welcome home, Lady Louisa,” called back a cheery old man from the gardens. “We’re glad to have you back in the neighborhood again, Lady Esher. You must call in and see Lady Manners.”

“Another time Sir Arthur,” replied Lady Esher, raising her hand in greeting. “We are taking our little guests to Mrs. Shaw this morning. Give my greetings to Lady Manners.”

“Shall I introduce you, Your Grace?” Lady Louisa asked, coming to Benedict’s side.

“Later,” he said quickly, nodding politely to the old man as they passed. “As your aunt said, we must get the children to the dressmaker now.”

They could not have been walking for more than twenty minutes but Louisa had already greeted at least half a dozen neighbors and friends, seeming incapable of smiling acknowledgement and passing by as any normal person might - or at least any normal denizen of London. With the prospect of being introduced to yet another local acquaintance, Benedict began to long to be back in the capital.

We could be on this road all day if Lady Louisa carries on like this…

Yet far from being irritated, everyone of her acquaintance had so far responded with enthusiasm, crossing the road to greet them or coming to their gates to talk with her or with Lady Esher. Lady Louisa made no distinction of rank either, greeting children from the small laborers’ cottages with as much pleasure as Sir Arthur Manners or the Rosemere rector’s wife, Mrs. Terrence.

Even when there was no one else on the road, Lady Louisa seemed to be ever talking, pointing out interesting features of the landscape, medicinal plants growing in hedgerows and herb gardens, and the best places to see certain birds and animals at this time of year.

Her knowledge surprised Benedict although he could not really say why it should. Lady Louisa had lived in the countryside for most of her life and clearly loved her home and gardens. Why should she not have learned all about it?

While Louisa talked most, presently about chamomile, Lady Esher’s commentary reflected affectionate indulgence for her niece. Fanny was clearly charmed with the walk, chattering effortlessly along with their companions.

“Chamomile like that is the best tea at bedtime, of course,” Lady Louisa was presently remarking to whoever might be listening, her voice sounding some way behind Benedict but still too close to be ignored. “You can brew it with hops and valerian for the most calming affect.”

“You do make the best herbal teas, my dear,” said Lady Esher.

“What’s that plant there?” asked Fanny, presumably pointing to something. Can that one make tea too?”