“Are you all right?”
Again, Drake blinked, and again, the picture before him changed. His eyes once more fell upon Lady Leonora’s face, her blue eyes full of concern now that she moved closer, looking at him. He could tell that she had noticed, had noticed his sadness and regret, that black void that still lingered within him, and she was offering him comfort. Despite everything she had been through, been through even today, she now stood before him, battling down her own fears and holding out her hand to him.
Drake was touched. He could not recall the last time someone had put him first. Not since his mother had died. And without thought, his hand closed more tightly around hers. He felt her drawing in a deep breath, struggling to hold on to sanity as her own past once more came knocking on her door. “You did very well,” Drake told her once more, forcing himself to loosen his grip until her hand slipped from his. “If you are up for it, I suggest we continue practicing in a similar manner.”
This time, Lady Leonora blinked, and he could see her eyes focusing on him more clearly. “In a similar manner?” she echoed his words. “I cannot punch you again. I will not—”
“You can, and you will,” Drake told her in a strict tone. Still, her concern for him was something he cherished. “Nevertheless, what I meant to say is that if you’re up for it, our training should include a more physical component.” He held her gaze, trying to make her understand. “You need to practice this so you will not lose your head should it happen for real.”
He only hoped it never would!
Lady Leonora swallowed hard but nodded. “That makes sense. Thank you for all your help,” she once more glanced to where a bruise was no doubt forming upon his throat, “especially today.”
Drake respectfully inclined his head to her, offering her the hint of a smile. “Thank you for your trust, my lady. I promise I shall never betray it.”
Her eyes held his, something akin to amazement and disbelief in them. “I don’t know why,” she whispered then, “but I never once thought you would.”
Drake could not remember ever having received a greater compliment.
Chapter Sixteen
Four Sisters
“Where are you off to in such a hurry?”
Hearing her sister’s voice, Leonora blanched, her heart nearly jumping out of her chest as she spun around, her dark cloak almost slipping off her shoulders. “Louisa!” she exclaimed in shock and surprise, in pleasure and concern. “What are you doing here?”
Standing in the door frame to the drawing room, Louisa brushed a blond curl out of her face. “I came to see you,” she replied in a bit of a chiding tone. “We haven’t seen much of each other lately. You always seem to be…somewhere else whenever I stop by.” Curiosity sparked in her sister’s green eyes. “Come, have some tea with us.” She waved Leonora over.
“Us?” Leonora inquired as she cast a wistful look over her shoulder at the gardens and the hedge beyond. “Who is us?” Stepping across the threshold and into the drawing room, Leonora was surprised to find all of her sisters assembled there. “What is going on here?” she asked, looking at Louisa.
Juliet reached out and poured some tea into another cup, which she handed to Leonora upon her seating herself next to her on the settee. “It’s been a while since we’ve all been together like this,” Juliet remarked, looking around at all four of her younger sisters. “Before long, you shall all be married and we shall only see each other upon occasion.”
Red-haired Harriet, youngest of the five Whickerton sisters, laughed. “Oh, I have no intention of ever marrying!”
Christina rolled her eyes at her. “Harry, you know you must marry. What alternative is there?” Christina possessed the same blue eyes as Leonora while her hair shone in almost the same golden hue as Louisa’s.
Harriet snorted. “Just you wait!” she promised, a somewhat conspiratorial look in her green eyes. At barely nineteen years of age, she still had her head up in the clouds, determined to make her own way.
“How is married life treating you?” Juliet asked, redirecting the conversation back to Louisa. “I hope you’re not back at each other’s throats.”
The sisters laughed, knowing that being at each other’s throats was a way of showing affection for Phineas and Louisa.
“You know well that we are,” Louisa stated with a chuckle, the glow in her green eyes whispering of how deeply she cared for her new husband. “However, I am not here today to talk about me.” Her gaze swiveled around to Leonora, a pointed look coming to her eyes.
Leonora swallowed the sip of tea she had just taken, surprised when all her sisters turned to look at her. “What is going on? Why are you all looking at me?”
With a grin on her face, Christina rolled her eyes at her. “Do you truly intend to pretend to be ignorant of the fact that our dear new neighbor continues to stare at you at each and every ball we attend?”
Leonora almost dropped her cup. “What?” Her gaze moved to Louisa, wondering if her sister had said anything.
Almost imperceptibly, Louisa shook her head no, understanding Leonora’s silent question perfectly.
Harriet laughed. “It is so very obvious,” she stated outright. “Whenever you move, so does he. He is always nearby, always looking at you in that penetrating sort of way.”
“Yet, we have never seen the two of you speak to one another,” Christina pointed out, one brow drawn down in suspicion. “Is there anything you wish to tell us?”
Never having been a good liar, Leonora stared at her sisters, unable to form a coherent thought. Thankfully, Juliet came to her rescue as she often did. “Now, don’t all badger her at once. If she does not wish to tell us, it is her choice.” She gave their two youngest sisters a stern look, then turned back to look at Leonora. “We are simply concerned about you. You have not been yourself this past year,” a measure of sadness came to her eyes, and Leonora wondered if perhaps her eldest sister suspected something, “and we simply wish to know if he could be the reason for your recent change in spirits.”
“Precisely,” Harriet chimed in, new eagerness upon her face as she leaned forward, eyes fixed upon Leonora. “I find it most strange that lately you often seem to disappear without a trace. You’re not in your chambers. You’re not in the gardens. You’re not anywhere you usually are.” Her brows drew down. “Where do you go?”
Juliet huffed out a chiding breath. “Harry, you cannot truly mean to suggest that Leo sneaks off to meet Lord Pemberton in secret?” She shook her head at the absurdity of such a notion.
Leonora raised the cup to her lips once more, hoping to buy herself some time. Her eyes darted to Louisa, remembering what Lord Pemberton had told her. Her sister and brother-in-law had noticed Leonora slipping through the gap in the hedge the day of their wedding. They, at least, knew that she did in fact sneak off to meet Lord Pemberton in secret. Fortunately, though, Louisa did not say a word about it. Instead, she turned to Christina and asked, “Have you heard from Sarah lately? Do you think her mother still plans on compromising her in order to secure her a husband?”