‘Reggie, I beg of you, don’t,’ she said, hanging on to the side of the carriage. ‘Please turn back and take me home.’
‘You are not afraid I shall overturn you, are you? I never knew you to be so chicken-livered. Come, Sophie, where is your spirit of adventure?’
‘It is not my spirit that is lacking,’ she said. ‘I am concerned that we are attracting attention.’
‘Admiring glances, what is wrong with that?’
‘You know perfectly well what is wrong with that, Reggie. You will quite ruin my reputation if you do not slow down to a sedate walk and turn round. Even then I fear it will not do.’
‘There is no room to turn round until we reach the end.’ Nevertheless he did slow the horses, though this had the effect of taking them longer to reach a turning point and longer for them to be seen and either admired or criticised. If she could have sank down on to the floor, she would have done. All she could do was pray no one would recognise her. In that she was to be disappointed and by the person she least hoped to see.
He was riding towards them on his bay and on coming level lifted his hat and bowed. He did not speak, but the amusement was evident in his brown eyes. She endeavoured to ignore him.
‘Who was that?’ Reggie asked as they passed him.
‘I have no idea, but it seems every time I go out, I encounter him. He is the most odious man.’
‘Top of the trees,’ he said. ‘I wonder how many cravats he ruined getting that one tied like that.’
‘I do not know and care even less.’
‘Tell me,’ he said changing the subject abruptly, ‘are you enjoying your Season? That is why you are in London, is it not?’
‘Yes, and I am enjoying it excessively.’
‘Ah, then, no doubt you have dozens of hopeful swains vying for your hand.’
‘Dozens,’ she agreed in the hope it might put him off.
He sighed as they reached a spot where he could turn round without colliding with other carriages. ‘So you like being admired and setting off one suitor against another. It is cruel of you, Sophie.’
‘I do not do it on purpose, Reggie.’
‘My trouble,’ he said regretfully, ‘is that you know me too well. I do not represent the excitement of conquest.’
‘Riding in this contraption is excitement enough, Reggie.’
They rode on in silence until they were once again in Park Lane and turning down Mount Street. She was never more thankful to reach the door of Cartrose House. He jumped down to help her out and it was then Teddy came out of the house.
‘There you are, Sophie. I was just coming to look for you. Bessie was in such a taking, nothing would satisfy her but I come out and search for you.’ He noticed Reggie and then the high-perch phaeton. ‘Hallo, Reggie. So this is the vehicle Bessie was so upset about. What is it like to drive?’
‘Easy enough when you know how,’ Reggie answered him. ‘You have to be careful not to take too tight a turn, but it can really go with the right cattle.’
Sophie left them talking and went indoors, where Bessie greeted her in floods of tears. ‘Where have you been, Miss Sophie? It don’t take but a few minutes to get from Bond Street to here in a carriage and you’ve been gone over an hour.’
‘Is it that long? Dear me, I had no idea. The high-perch phaeton needs a very wide turning circle, or so I was persuaded, and we had to drive down to Piccadilly and then to Hyde Park corner. And then Reggie decided to drive in the park.’ She was mounting the stairs as she spoke, followed by her worried maid.
‘Oh, Miss Sophie, how could you be so wanting in conduct as to allow that? Whatever would your mama and papa say?’
‘They will never know of it, Bessie. Now I must change. I fear it is too late to go looking for ribbons today. I shall have to go tomorrow.’
‘With Lady Cartrose, I hope, for I declare I could not endure another outing like today’s.’ She busied herself pouring water into the bowl on the nightstand for Sophie to wash her hands and face.
Sophie stripped off her muddy dress and went over to the nightstand. ‘Bessie, I have mud on my face!’ she exclaimed as she glanced in the mirror that hung above it. ‘How mortifying.’ Her thoughts went immediately to the strange, yet familiar, rider who’d had amusement written all over his face as he’d bowed to her.
‘Yes, but you would go off with Sir Reginald and did not give me time to point it out to you.’
Sophie dipped a cloth in the water and scrubbed at her cheek while Bessie rooted in the cupboard for a dress for Sophie to wear. ‘What about this green muslin?’
‘Yes, that will do. And, Bessie, you will not say anything to Lady Cartrose about this morning, will you?’
‘You may rely on me, Miss Sophie, but what if you were seen by some of her ladyship’s friends? It would not do for her to hear of it from one of those, for they will put the worst complexion on it.’
‘You think I should tell her?’
‘It would be best, then she will be forewarned and have her answer ready.’
‘Is she home?’
‘Not yet, for which I am thankful, for if she had been here while you were out, I do not know what I would have said to her. She would most likely have turned me off for allowing it.’
‘She can’t turn you off, Bessie. She does not employ you—my father does. And in any case, no blame can be attached to you for anything.’
‘I am glad you think so.’
* * *
Once more respectably dressed, Sophie went down to the drawing room to await the return of her aunt. Teddy was waiting for her, his long legs straddling the arm of the chair in which he sat. He righted himself on her entrance. ‘Racketing about on your own is not the thing, Sophie, not the thing at all. And as for accepting rides in high-perch phaetons, that is beyond anything. What can you have been thinking of?’
‘I only wanted to get home quickly to change my dress. It was either ride with Reggie or walk through the streets in a soaking wet dress that was clinging to my legs. It would have been too mortifying.’
‘That won’t fudge, Sophie. If you had had any sense, you would have gone into the nearest dress shop and bought a dress to come home in.’
‘I didn’t think of that and if I had I couldn’t have done it, I did not have enough money on me.’
‘You could have put it on account.’
‘Whose account? Yours? Aunt Emmeline’s? Mark’s?’
‘It would have done no good naming me, but Aunt Emmeline would have stood buff and certainly Mark would.’ He sighed. ‘It is too late now. The damage is done. Reggie wanted to buy you a new dress, but I dissuaded him. It would not do, you know, unless you were affianced to him.’
‘I am not completely devoid of sense, Teddy, and I am not affianced to him and never will be. You may rest assured I would certainly not accept a gift from him. And if no one saw me in the phaeton, then there is no damage done, is there?’ As she spoke the image of a smiling stranger with warm brown eyes flashed into her mind.
‘Let us hope you are right. I have Reggie’s word he will not speak of it. When Papa gave you into my care, I had no idea what an onerous task it would be. I beg you, Sophie, try not to get into any more scrapes.’
* * *
It was after dinner when Sophie and Lady Cartrose retired to