Page 30 of His Duchess' Mischief

“Do you see it, with the white patches beneath its wings? That is the male, I believe—probably out hunting for rabbits. I hope he catches one, or we will be overrun by Michaelmas.”

She squinted upward, a hand shielding her eyes as she watched the bird flying overhead.

It was far lower to the ground than those she had seen in her youth, enormous feathers stretched at the wing tips, gliding effortlessly in the air.

“How tiny its movements are,” she noted, astonished. “It barely moves its tail and glides to the left and right on a whim.”

A long silence behind her made her look over at Seth, who stood gazing up at the bird, that same little smile on his face.

“When I was a boy, I often thought he was lonely,” he said softly. “But now, I think he enjoys the privacy, with only the wind for company.”

Alicia swallowed as her throat tightened.

It did not sound as if the Duke were speaking of the bird now, and she thought back to their wedding and the empty pews on his side of the church.

CHAPTER 10

They watched the buzzard together for a few minutes. Seth expected Alicia to grow bored quickly, but she seemed just as engrossed in its flight as he was.

As they watched, he heard the telltale hammering of a woodpecker and turned to locate it.

“Would you care for a walk through the woods?” he asked.

He was unsure why he was asking her; she likely wished to be free of his company. But she did not hesitate to walk alongside him.

It was good to be alone together and not see the anger and resentment in her eyes.

Perhaps Lucas is right; it is easier to have one’s wife as a friend instead of an enemy.

Before he knew where he was taking her, they had reached a familiar path down to the den he had used as a child.

Seth frowned. He had never brought anyone here before, and his instinct screamed at him to turn back.

He hesitated for long enough that Alicia caught up with him, glancing down into the gloom ahead of them with some trepidation.

“Where are we headed?” she asked, her tone shifting from light interest to suspicion in an instant.

Seth’s jaw tightened. “Do not fear, Duchess. Did I not tell you that I would never harm you? My days of murdering those closest to me are over.”

He could not hide the anger that raged beneath the surface, and she fell silent. He cursed himself, knowing that she did not deserve his wrath. But he was unable to prevent it from rising all the same.

It was how he had felt all his life, his inability to save Gordon a constant weight on his mind—a reminder of his failures. Even after all these years—all his endless research and investigations—he still had not found out what happened to him.

The slope down to the clearing was steep, and he held out a hand for Alicia, but she seemed disinclined to take it now, the tension between them mounting as they descended.

If she breaks her neck, that will be the final straw for those who accused me.

Seth made sure to walk in front of her, determined to act as a barrier and prevent her from tumbling to the bottom should she fall.

Even his father had not known of this secret hideaway. Preferring to tour the estate on horseback, the late Duke had never wandered so far on foot.

But Seth had come here often as a boy, the moss-covered roots of the trees curling downwards and over the banks all around them like a fairy grotto.

In the summer, tiny white mushrooms would sprout all over the edges of the woods like little lights in the dark.

He loved it here. It was everything he wished he could cultivate in life—beauty, nature, and silence.

Alicia’s footsteps were more careful now as she held onto the trees as they made their way further down.

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