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Straddled over the top rail, Faith shoved a burnished blonde curl brushing her cheek behind her ear.

“How did you think I made my way there, my lord?”

“I…ah…” In point of fact, Constantine hadn’t once considered it.

Chagrin chafed his conscience. He was the worst sort of inconsiderate blackguard.

“Not all of us have coaches and carriages, gigs and curricles, or horses at our disposal, my lord.”

Or the funds to hire a hackney to and from work every day.

After hopping to the ground, she held her hand out, and he stared at it blankly. “The basket, if you please?”

“Oh. Yes.” He jiggled it up and down. “It’s quite heavy. Pip always packs too much food.”

“I think I can manage,” Faith said dryly.

He passed it to her and then, laying one hand atop the top rail, vaulted over the fence. As he collected the basket once more, he pointed to a gnarled oak tree atop a knoll.

The upper branches had been one of his favorite places to hide as a child when he wanted time alone. He’d intruded on Faith’s time alone, but only because he wanted to talk with her in private and without interruptions.

Neither were likely to occur inside the mansion.

“We can eat there, Faith. It’s a bit of a hike, but the view is splendid. It overlooks Tiplewater Beck on the far side, sheep and cattle on the other, and you can see Bishop’s Knoll in the distance.”

“What about Gilly?” Putting a hand to her forehead to shield her eyes, she searched the adjacent fields.

“He’ll find his way home.” He always did. Gilly would explore for a bit before he’d return to the house or stables.

Faith made a sound between a grunt and a snort as she stomped up the incline.

No one would ever call her a proper lady.

Thank God.

What did Constantine want with a proper lady anyway?

He trailed behind, trying to sort out his thoughts and determine what he would say. The gentle sway of Faith’s trim hips as she ascended the hillock with ease mesmerized him.

A jay’s harsh call echoed from the woodlands bordering the far meadows. Another jay answered with an equally raucous reply.

Wildlife abounded in the woodlands and meadows.

This is where Constantine first fell in love with nature as a tyke, and with butterflies and moths later. Ironically, he wasn’t too keen on their larva, but that was a carefully guarded secret. Worms, grubs, larvae, caterpillars…anything long that crawled, especially snakes, gave him the shivers.

Halfway up the hillside, Faith paused. Hands on her hips, she swept her gaze across the area. Low on the horizon, the sun peeked forth in its glorious splendor like a shy debutante at her first ball.

Would Faith be bashful and nervous tonight?

He felt certain she’d never attended anything as grand and majestic as a ball hosted by the Duke and Duchess of Landrith.

No, he’d be right there at her side the entire time to assure Faith was not overwhelmed. Although, he doubted much dazed Faith Roth. She was the most intrepid, self-assured, and fearless woman he’d ever known who hadn’t been born into privilege, wealth, and station.

“I forgot how much I like the country,” she said. “I haven’t been outside London since leaving the academy where I was raised and educated.”

Constantine came alongside her. “A home and school for orphans?”

“Not exactly.” She scrunched her nose. “Haven House and Academy for the Enrichment of Young Women is where the toplofty dispose of unwanted female progeny. Illegitimate, orphaned, abandoned, inconvenient, the product of affairs, by-blows… It’s not cheap, but confidentiality and discretion are assured.”