Page 60 of The Earl and His Lady

Lucas bid the man good morning before heading back to the house. He and Virginia had agreed to the outing the night before. She had three families who worked as tenant farmers, and a pension cottage, to visit.

The day was fine for the errand, too. The sky was bluer than gray, the clouds wispy and white. Lucas planned to ride later in the afternoon to inspect the fields now that the household matters were well in hand.

When the hour to meet Virginia came, Lucas waited in the hallway, gloves in hand and hat on his head. The black band was around his arm, as it had been every time he’d left the house since Sunday.

“I hope you’ve not been waiting long.”

Lucas’s gaze went to the stairs as he heard Virginia’s voice. He never tired of seeing her. She’d changed clothing since breakfast. Now she wore a walking dress of light gray, black gloves, and a straw bonnet with a black band. It was less embellished than her other dresses, appropriate for visiting tenants. She carried a parasol, too. Her cheeks were rosy again, her step lighter. It was easy enough to tell this was an errand she looked forward to. Lucas didn’t dare allow himself to think that her pleasure stemmed from spending time with him.

Ignoring the way his heart’s rhythm increased at her approach, Lucas pulled on his gloves. “Not at all. I am only eager to be outdoors again, and the day is very fine.”

What an inane thing to say. Am I a boy of sixteen or a peer of thirty-three? He nearly huffed at himself, but schooled his features and instead offered her his arm.

Virginia smiled up at him, not at all put off by his remark on the weather. “I have been glancing out the window all morning in anticipation. It’s wonderful the sun has made a reappearance.”

It was more wonderful how her smile lit up his whole day. But he refrained from saying so.

I am no better than a schoolboy.

A footman appeared from the hall with a basket. “My lady. From Cook.”

“Ah, thank you, Stephan.” Virginia took the basket and, at Lucas’s questioning look, lifted the cloth from the top to show him its contents.

“Biscuits,” he said. “And a great many. I hope those aren’t for us.”

She laughed and lowered the cloth. “No, though if you wanted one I might spare it. They’re for the tenant children. I always take them sweets.”

“A joyful task indeed. Shall we?” Her tender heart was yet another reason his feelings for her strengthened daily.

In minutes, they were outside and he was driving the gig, following her instructions to come to the first of the tenant cottages. They were well-built and appeared no more than a few years old.

Children played in one yard, kneeling beneath the shade of a tree, while a woman sat outside the door working a butter churn. The woman stopped her work and came to her feet when the gig came to a stop.

Lucas jumped out. He tipped his hat to the woman before reaching up to help Virginia descend.

The woman used the corner of her apron to wipe perspiration from her forehead as they approached.

“Hello, Mrs. Martin. How are you this fine summer day?” Virginia asked when they were steps away.

“Very well, my lady. Thank you.”

“My lord, may I present Mrs. George Martin, wife to one of our tenants. Mrs. Martin, this is my husband, Lord Calvert, Earl of Annesbury.”

Mrs. Martin dipped a curtsy. “A pleasure, my lord.”

“You have all the children here today? Except the older boys, I see.” Virginia nodded to the gaggle of little ones who watched her with rapt attention, their eyes directed at the basket on her arm.

“Yes, my lady. Mine and Mrs. Simmons’s, and Mrs. Johnson’s eldest girl is helping me mind them. Mrs. Simmons is helping to nurse Mrs. Johnson’s children today to give the poor lady a rest. There’s illness in the home. It’s all the poor weather, my lady. It doesn’t give a body time to get well.”

“Dear me. I didn’t realize the Simmons family was ill.” Virginia looked to the children and waved over an older girl, probably no more than twelve. “Sarah? Would you come take this basket? It’s terribly heavy. If you and the other children could see to lightening it by a cookie apiece, I’d be grateful.”

The little miss hurried forward, a smile on her face. “Yes, my lady.” She took the basket and curtsied before hurrying back to the others, all their little faces split in half by their grins.

But Lucas stayed focused on the topic of conversation. “What is it that ails the family, Mrs. Martin?” he asked, concerned. Summer was not usually a time for serious sicknesses. Perhaps the difficult weather did have something to do with it.

“The apothecary’s been to see them,” Mrs. Martin said, creases appearing on her brow. “He said it’s not too serious, but suspects the scarlet fever, only he used a fancier name for it.”

Lucas’s blood went cold. His muscles stiffened, and his eyes went to the children. If there were members of the infected family in that group, might they not carry it with them? The basket was passed around from one child to another, and he watched each of them carefully. Did that little boy appear to move more slowly? Did he look pale?