“Rotten gophers,” Daddy muttered. “I’ll speak to my gardeners.”
Mama sidled up to Maddie and cast Alice a sympathetic glance. “Poor thing. We should make Miss Lusk comfortable upstairs, don’t you think?”
Mrs. Lusk moved closer to her daughter, a challenging gleam in her eye. “No one should move her until the doctor arrives.”
“Nonsense.” Harrison pointed at the chair. “If we gents take a side, we can lift her and get her upstairs.”
“Ah. We used to do that in college,” Kit said. “Like a litter.”
“Surely that is not safe,” Mrs. Lusk said. “Or proper.”
“We’ll not drop her, I promise.” Harrison put a hand over his heart. “But I think she’d prefer to be out of the midst of all the attention.”
The normally shy Alice beamed at him, relief flooding her expression. “I would be very grateful, Mr. Archer.”
The ladies stepped back as Kit, Harrison and the duke removed their coats and arranged themselves at the sides of the chair. Maddie and her mother cleared a path for them to maneuver. When the three men lifted the chair, Alice grasped the wood to hold herself steady. The pace was slow and careful, with Mrs. Lusk hovering nearby to give unnecessary commentary and directions.
Maddie started to follow, but her mother stopped her. “I’ll go with Miss Lusk. You stay here with the other guests.”
“Are you certain?” She watched the strong muscles of Harrison’s shoulders shift as he moved toward the house. Goodness, he was very fit.
Meet me in the gazebo at half past midnight.
Under no circumstances could she meet him. Not alone, not after this afternoon.
Though . . . would he really come to her bedroom if she didn’t?
Her stomach fluttered, everything in her lower half clenching. No, no, no. That idea should absolutely not appeal to her. If she was dreaming of any man in her bed, it should have been her fiancé.
God, what was she going to do?
When she looked up, nearly everyone had left the tent. Nellie was the only one left. “Want to walk a bit?”
Had her friend been waiting to get her alone? Maddie went over. “I’d like that. The path by the cliffs?”
Nellie nodded and the two of them picked their way down the stone stairs to reach the Cliff Walk. Maddie was breathing hard by the time they found the narrow stretch of path that ran between the great cottages along the shoreline and the water. Every year the homeowners made the walk longer and safer to traverse.
“I apologize for Alice's accident,” Nellie said as they started along the path. The sea churned below, the foamy waves lapping at the rocks and sand. “It was my fault she was hurt.”
“You didn’t force the gopher to dig a hole in our lawn, Nellie.”
“Yes, but I did drag her across the grass in the first place. She preferred the path but I convinced her my way was shorter.”
“Accidents happen. Do not worry about it. She’ll recover.”
“Even so, I should be declared the loser. Don’t let Alice miss out on the boat excursion due to my selfishness.”
Right, the winning prize. A day on the water with Harrison and the unattached ladies sounded like absolute torture to Maddie at the moment. “Perhaps I should cancel in light of recent events.”
Nellie appeared horrified at the idea. “No, don’t cancel. They’re all looking forward to it.”
“They, but not you.”
Nellie lifted a shoulder and turned her face toward the water, but not before Maddie saw her small smile. “I admit, I would rather spend my afternoon elsewhere.”
“Are you going to tell me the identity of this mystery man?”
“No. He’s nothing serious. Regardless, a few hours trapped with a bunch of girls mooning after Harrison Archer is not my idea of fun.”
Nor Maddie’s—not any longer.
Nellie smirked when she caught Maddie’s miserable expression. “It’s obviously not your idea of fun, either. Why are you doing this to yourself?”
“Doing what? Hosting a house party?”
“You know what I mean. Watching Harrison cozy up to these other women.”
“I am engaged. There’s nothing to be said.”
“Engagements are broken all the time. What is it gaining you to play by their rules? A miserable marriage?”
“We’re not all as rebellious as you, Nellie.”
The other woman stopped and took Maddie’s arm. “There’s nothing stopping you. Look out there.” She gestured toward the endless expanse of water, glistening in the distance. “A whole world awaits us, one not bound by conventions or the dictates of society, and women are told not to want it because it isn’t proper. But this is our life, Maddie. Our only chance for true happiness. I am not about to waste it. Are you?”
Maddie sighed. “You make it sound so easy.”
“It’s not. Being a woman is like swimming against the tide to survive—yet you fought for the right to play tennis. What happened when that tennis club owner tried to bar women from hosting a tournament last year?”
A grin tugged at the corners of Maddie’s mouth. “I challenged him to a game.”
“Which you won. After that, he allowed women to host a tournament.”
“This is different. There are other lives that would be affected.”
“If you mean the duke, I think three of the guests and a few chaperones would propose marriage to him on the spot if you cried off.”
“I get the sense you don’t care much for Lockwood.”
“Oh. Well, I hardly know him, do I? Seems a bit stiff, but that goes with the ducal territory, I suppose.” She linked their arms, and the two of them started along the path once again. “I only ask that you think about it. The man is hopelessly in love with you.”
“The duke?”
Nellie chuckled. “You know perfectly well who I mean.”
Chapter Thirteen
At twelve-thirty that night, Harrison paced in the gazebo, restless energy coursing through him like a locomotive. Waves crashed on the beach, while the night air tasted of salt and smelled of roses. The quarter moon overhead offered little illumination, but he didn’t need it. In fact, the darkness might benefit them, as it had in the changing room.
The thought of those sweet fingertips—exploring, caressing his thigh until he’d been hard as stone—had caused him to break out in a sweat all evening.
Her bold touch had caught him unaware. Maddie was careful, the person who thoughtfully considered every outcome before deciding on a course of action. In other words, Harrison’s complete opposite. So whatever was happening between them must have overridden her proclivity for caution while they were in the changing room.
And thank God for that, because he had no reason, no caution when it came to her, especially now. Every moment that passed brought him closer to the end of this house party and her future as the next Duchess of Lockwood. He could not lose her, not this time.
Shoving his hands in his trouser pockets, he stared out into the blackness and forced himself to relax. There was every chance she wouldn’t show. She might decide not to risk it, that her marriage to Lockwood was more important. But Harrison didn’t think so. Maddie wouldn’t like the unanswered questions, the uncertainty of their feelings. She would come looking for answers. For resolution.