“You haven’t bored me in the least. In fact, I can honestly say you are the least boring woman I have ever met.”
When he smiled, she made a face. “Well, it certainly was not my intention to entertain you. Perhaps we should ride?”
Entering the park, they guided their horses onto a wide gravel path flanked by elms and oaks. But they had gone barely ten yards when they saw two riders approaching.
Recognizing both gentlemen, Heath paused politely to greet them, but Lily urged her mare past them, leaving him to deal with his friends.
And as soon as he caught up to her, she broke into an easy canter.
“I’m certain you understand why I would rather not meet anyone in your illustrious circles,” she explained before he could take her to task for riding on without him.
“Yes, but I would prefer that you wait for me next time,” Heath chided. “You should have an escort when you ride anywhere in London.”
“A pity that I cannot oblige,” she replied sweetly, spurring her horse into a faster canter. “You see, I mean to leave you in my dust.”
Heath couldn’t help but grin at her provocation. “Is that a challenge to race, Miss Loring?”
“Most certainly,” she called over her shoulder.
Bending over the mare’s neck, she asked for more speed, and Heath knew that if he wanted to keep Lily in sight, he would have to accept her challenge.
He dug his heels into his mount’s sides, and soon they were both galloping along the path, heedless of the impropriety of racing through a public park.
He managed to close some of the distance between them, yet he was distracted by the simple pleasure of watching Lily ride. She was a hellion in the saddle, that was strikingly clear. And then she threw her head back and laughed with sheer exuberance.
At the sound of her joyful laughter, Heath felt a sharp tug of sheer lust rippling in his gut.
Realizing that he would never win their race if he didn’t focus, though, he put all his effort into the match. Even so, she gradually drew away from him. And when they finally reached the end of the path at the far end of the park, Lily was ahead by nearly two lengths.
When she pulled up, her spirited mare was snorting and prancing in excitement, and Lily herself was a bit breathless.
“That was utterly delightful!” she exclaimed, patting the mare’s neck.
Heath drew rein ruefully, aware that he hadn’t been bested that badly in a horse race since he and Marcus and Drew were boys. He was even more aware of his exhilaration at watching Lily. She was utterly delightful, Heath thought. Delightful and vibrant and intoxicatingly alive.
He couldn’t see the upper part of her face because of that damned veil, but her ripe mouth alone was enough to rouse a stimulating fantasy in his mind: making love to Lily and setting all that marvelous passion free. He had no doubt what she would be like in his bed. Hot, passionate, eager, wild.
The thought made him hard at once, which regrettably made his doeskin riding breeches painfully tight. Hence, Heath was glad for the slower pace when they turned back the way they had come and kept to a walk to cool their sweating horses.
They had reached the juncture of a new path when Heath found himself hailed again by more of his acquaintances. This time it was two ladies driving a dashing phaeton.
“You are quite popular this morning, my lord,” Lily murmured, flashing him a mischievous smile before turning her horse down the side path.
By the time Heath had suffered the ladies’ effusive regards, Lily was nowhere in sight. Impatiently he set out after her, a niggling concern for her safety chafing at him. Even though she seemed well able to take care of herself, an unaccompanied young lady could be a target for any manner of riffraff.
He followed the path Lily had taken, moving off it now and then to make certain she wasn’t hiding behind a thicket or concealed in a stand of trees. But there was no sign of her anywhere. She had disappeared.
Heath combed the entire park twice to no avail. Twenty minutes later, he finally returned to the park entrance and found her patiently waiting for him.
His relief vied with vexation, although
her enchanting smile almost made him forget his ire.
“What kept you, Lord Claybourne? I have been waiting for simply ages.”
Her tone was teasing, provocative, and it made Heath want to drag Lily off her mare and onto his lap so he could kiss her senseless. But he settled for saying mildly, “I was searching for you, of course. I couldn’t credit that you would be so unwise as to ride alone. It can be dangerous for you.”
“Perhaps, but I decided to start as I mean to go on. I won’t make it easy for you to win points by always acquiescing passively to your tactics, my lord.” Her saucy smile broadened. “What will our judges think when you confess that you lost your quarry? It should prove amusing, seeing you explain how I managed to escape your escort.”