“We’ll never know until he tries,” he suggested. But Adam would wager that Lord Samuel would not sell horseflesh that had been a gift to his sons from their aunt. “How are your children?”
Adam’s gaze fell on Lord Samuel’s twins as they helped themselves to punch.
“Blessedly at home under the dowager’s watchful eye. Oh, look at the mess they are making,” Lady Morgan complained.
“Yes,” he said. “My daughter is here this year.”
“Yes, I saw her earlier in the hall with Mrs. Warner.” Lady Morgan leaned closer. “You are to be commended, my lord. Your daughter is a delight. She reminds me so much of your late wife. So excitable.”
Adam tried not to wince. “She’s young yet.”
“True.” Lady Morgan pursed her lips. “Have you given any thought to employing a companion or governess to guide her education in the coming years?”
“She has enough servants at home.”
“Country maids do not know how to prepare a girl for securing a husband.”
Adam looked at Lady Morgan in alarm. “She’s barely ten years old.”
“There is never enough time in a girl’s life to learn all she needs before becoming a woman. The responsibilities of running a household and supporting one’s spouse in their pursuits can be overwhelming for women of any age.”
“I suppose.”
Just then, Rebecca appeared on the lawn some distance away. She was alone. Adam hadn’t seen much more than the back of her head for the entire day. She had been bent over her writing table earlier that morning, and Adam had paused at the doorway, hesitant to interrupt her work. He was pleased to hear that she’d spent a little time with his daughter. He had hoped for that.
What he wasn’t pleased to realize was that Rebecca was barely spending any time enjoying herself or the party. For the life of him, he couldn’t remember if in the past she’d been any other way. But the rest of the family had been having fun without her—strolling about the lawns and laughing together endlessly.
Rebecca glanced Adam’s way once but continued on without stopping to talk. When she disappeared into the shrubbery beyond the gathering, Adam was intrigued. Did she not intend to spend one moment being idle?
Adam excused himself from Lady Morgan and followed after Rebecca.
He almost missed her at first. Rebecca had squeezed herself into a gap in a hedge.
He doubled back and stared. “What the devil are you doing?”
“Shh,” she hissed. “You’ll spoil everything.”
Taken aback by her statement, he looked away briefly and spotted Lord Samuel’s twins racing in his direction. They did not seem as if they would stop, so he sucked in his breath and raised his arms. They swept around him like the tide, excusing themselves, but raced on without stopping. He lowered his arms slowly, afraid they’d return at any minute.
A soft laugh reached his ears, and he turned. Rebecca eased from the shrubbery, flicking twigs and such from her shoulders and hair, but grinning. “I think your presence distracted them, Rafferty. Well done!”
“Are you playing hide and seek?”
She nodded. “Second time today. Do you never play games with Ava?”
“Tea parties,” he confessed slowly. “It’s a little embarrassing.”
“Not to her. A little silliness now and then is good for the soul.”
She brushed off her hands and turned to face the manor.
“Where are you going now?”
“I’m going back inside.”
“That’s cheating. Going inside is cheating,” Adam protested.
“Well, no. Not exactly. We play by different rules than others might. The twins are given one chance to notice me, but if they don’t spot me the first time they pass, I’m allowed to move to a more comfortable place. They know I’ll return to my parlor eventually.”