Page 47 of The Duchess’ Little Miracle

“Very well,” William said, sitting up straight and crossing his legs, keeping his eyes firmly fixed on Alice and away from Seraphina sitting three feet to his left. “Let us establish the parameters. Is this subject larger than a tea caddy?”

Alice shook her head.

“Is it an object derived from nature, or was it manufactured by human hands?” Seraphina asked.

Alice paused, her brow furrowing slightly in concentration. “Nature,” she said softly.

“Is it living?” William demanded, shooting a side-glance at Seraphina. “I mean currently living, with a beating heart or active sap, not decaying cellular matter.”

Seraphina let out a huff, but her lips twitched.

Alice hesitated for a second, her eyes glittering with mischief, before giving a firm, definitive nod.

“Is it a plant?” Seraphina pressed.

Alice shook her head.

“A creature, then,” William said, rubbing his chin dramatically as he leaned forward. “Does it possess legs?”

Alice nodded.

“Four legs?”

Another nod.

“Is it... a caterpillar?” Seraphina guessed.

Alice shook her head with a curve of her lips, keeping her hands stubbornly tucked behind her back.

“A beetle?” William offered.

Alice shook her head again.

“We are failing miserably at this,” William muttered, resting his elbows on his knees and staring at her in exasperation. “Is it an insect?”

Another shake of the head.

Silence fell over the blanket as William and Seraphina exchanged a baffled look. For one straight minute, they threw out every logical possibility... a lizard, a field mouse, a ladybird, and each time, Alice merely shook her head, looking increasingly pleased with herself. She sat there like a little sphinx, her expression completely serene.

William was just about to throw his hands up in defeat when a muffled, wet, unmistakable sound echoed from behind Alice’s back.

Ribbit.

William froze mid-breath. His eyes widened, his head snapping toward Seraphina.

Seraphina’s jaw dropped slightly, her gaze locking onto William’s in equal shock.

Together, as if orchestrated by a single mind, both of them turned to Alice and asked in perfect unison. “Is it a toad?”

Alice’s face split into a triumphant grin. She brought her cupped hands forward, uncurling her small fingers to reveal a fat, mottled brown toad sitting contentedly on her palm, its throat pulsating as it blinked its golden eyes at them.

Seraphina let out a loud gasp, recoiling half an inch with her hand over her chest, before bursting into a breathless laugh. “Good heavens, Alice! Where on earth did you find it?”

William leaned back, chuckling. “You’ve been holding a toad behind your back this entire time? With your bare hands?”

Alice looked immensely satisfied, her small shoulders lifting in a proud little shrug. “You both win,” she murmured sweet-temperedly, looking down at her new friend with deep affection.

“Oh, I do not think we can claim this victory,” William declared, shaking his head with a dramatic shudder as he pointed a finger at the amphibian. “I think the toad wins, purely for betraying its own hiding place. We would have been sitting here until nightfall guessing beetles if he hadn’t spoken up.”