His Not So Sensible Miss (A Gentleman's Guide to Once Upon a Time - Book 3) (4 page)

Dillon was also comfortable with
himself. A feeling she had lost in recent years. He was practically
lounging on the blanket with one leg straight before him while he
leaned on one elbow while eating with the other hand. The man was
as confident as His Grace and the two were worlds apart.

Dillon finished his meal and set his
plate aside. “How old were you when your father died?” He twirled
the stem of the wine glass between his finger and thumb.

Emily set her plate aside and quirked
an eyebrow at him. “Is that your way of politely asking my
age?”

“
Possibly.”

She was never one to worry about age.
Besides, she was basically on the shelf so why would it mater? “I
am three and twenty. My father died when I was fifteen.” She tried
to gauge his age and guessed him to be about eight and twenty. “May
I make the same enquiry? How long have you been on this
earth?”

“
I am of an old age.
Thirty.”

Emily raised her eyes in mock shock.
“As ancient as all that? My goodness, shouldn’t Chambers have
pensioned you off by now?”

Dillon lifted the bottle and filled her
wine glass as well as his own. “Now that we have established our
ages, why don’t you tell me more about yourself.”

Emily thought about what she could say,
but the only interesting thing was about her father, which she
didn’t want to reveal. “There is really nothing to tell. My life is
quite simple, if not mundane.” She shrugged.

“
Surely there is something
that interests you. If you could do anything you wanted, with the
free time to do it, what would it be?”

Emily knew the answer immediately. “My
studies.” He looked at her oddly with a bit of a frown and his brow
wrinkled. Oh dear, did he now think her odd? Emily was well aware
that the appropriate pastime for young ladies was painting, playing
an instrument, shopping or needlework. None of those held her
attention.

“
What would you
study?”

Emily thought to change her answer for
a moment, but she had already revealed her passion and he might as
well know the whole truth about her before he decided if there were
going to be further meetings such as this. “At the moment I am
studying the history of Greece and its literature.” Her face heated
at remembering some of the most recent writings she had
studied.”

“
Why the embarrassment?”
Dillon chuckled. “Though I didn’t particularly care for Homer, I
understand others see the appeal.”

“
Oh, I have moved past
Homer,” Emily answered, even though perhaps she was offering too
much information. Surely he couldn’t know all of the Greek authors,
could he? Had she not been sheltered all of her life, she would
know what the laborer’s education consisted of while he was still a
youth. But, even her father’s students didn’t delve as deeply into
literature as she, so it was very unlikely Dillon knew some of the
particular authors she’d been reading.

“
Which legendary author are
you studying now?

“
Sappho,” she replied and
waited for a reason.

“
I am not familiar with
him.”

“
He is a she,” Emily
corrected.

“
My apologies.” He bowed his
head, though he continued to smile. “I struggled with my historical
studies so you have me at a disadvantage in this
discussion.”

Emily laughed. Relieved. She wasn’t
sure what type of reaction he would have if he had recalled
anything about Sappho.

“
What else have you studied,
or is it just the Greeks that hold your interest?”

“
Oh, this and that,” she
hedged. The more she told of herself the more he would realize how
boring she was, and she wanted Dillon to think of her as
interesting. Yet, she had no idea how to be interesting. She didn’t
have Claresta’s natural way of speaking with other people in any
situation, no matter who they were, that made people love her.
Frankly put, she was awkward in social environments, even those as
intimate as this.

“
I wouldn’t categorize Greek
literature as this and that.”

“
If you must know, I am
considered a bluestocking. My father was a scholar and I inherited
his desire for knowledge.

He grinned at her. “Thank
goodness.”

“
Pardon?” Emily couldn’t
begin to comprehend why he made such a statement.

“
I feared that once we got
past the preliminaries of getting to know one another our topics
would be reduced to shopping and current fashion.”

“
The only shopping advice
you will probably ever hear from me is which bookshops have the
best selections in London.”

Dillon chuckled. “Why
Greece?”

How thrilling that he wasn’t
appalled by her unladylike pastime. “I love history and it was the
next country on my list.”. Her guardian often warned that gentlemen
don’t always appreciate a woman with a mind and that it may be
necessary to hide it on occasions. Did that description only fit
the elite of the
ton
? Dillon didn’t seem to be put off by her interests, unless he
was only being polite.

“
You are unlike any woman
I’ve ever met.”

Though his tone indicated that he’d
just complimented her, she wasn’t entirely sure.

“
I might as well confess.”
His cheeks colored a bit and Emily suspected it wasn’t from the
cool air. “I have thought of nothing but seeing you again since the
day you appeared in the barn.”

Nobody had ever paid her such a
compliment.

“
Now I find you are
intelligent as well as lovely. It is a rare combination
indeed.”

How should one respond to such a
compliment? “Thank you.”

“
I would like to know you
better, Emily. Would you be objectionable to my wish?”

* * *

Dillon waited for her answer. What if
she rejected him? Had he spoken too soon? Should he have met with
her on a few more occasions before confessing anything? But their
meetings thus far had been unconventional to say the least. If
someone learned of their encounters, she could be ruined by
them.

“
I would not be adverse to
meeting with you,” she answered in a hushed tone, her face a lovely
pink.

Dillon sighed with relief. He had never
contemplated courting a lady, much less asking her permission, but
he was extremely glad he asked Emily. “Shall I speak to your uncle
and ask his permission to call on you?

The smile fell from her
lips.

What had he said wrong? “Would your
uncle reject me?”

Emily took a deep breath and looked up
at him. “I believe he would.”

He needed to explain who he was so she
would know her uncle probably wouldn’t mind. Dillon opened his
mouth to speak, but Emily held up her hand to silence
him.

“
My aunt and uncle believe
that once I go to London I will make a great match. They refuse to
understand the impossibility given my family
circumstances.”

Dillon nodded. Would he now learn what
the circumstances were exactly?

“
They have asked me, no told
me, not to become attached or friendly with any local
gentlemen.”

He understood her dilemma, but once she
knew who he really was perhaps he could change her mind.

“
I know what awaits me, but
I have ceased arguing with them. I have decided that when I return
in the summer, without the betrothal they hoped for, they’ll
realize the truth of my circumstances.”

“
Your circumstances cannot
be so poor.” Would she offer more information? Had Ellings not been
her guardian, the situation would be simpler. But her connection to
the duke made him wonder what he didn’t know about her.

“
As I have told you, I have
nothing to offer but myself. No wealth, no estate, no title. What
else does one wed for? I am simply Emily.”

“
Then you are rejecting my
request?” Dillon was almost afraid of the answer.

“
No, not at all,” she stated
emphatically. “I only wish to keep it a secret. I’m tired of
arguing with my aunt and uncle and it would be easier this
way.”

“
You would see me in
secret?” Perhaps she wasn’t as sensible as he thought. Didn’t she
realize the danger in their being caught? Didn’t she realize the
danger in his attraction to her?

“
Yes, if you would be
willing. I don’t have many opportunities to meet men while living
with my guardian.”

Of that, Dillon didn’t
doubt.

“
I like knowing you as
Dillon and that you fix roofs. I like that you know me as Emily and
am studying Greek literature. I would like to know you better
without my aunt and uncle’s interference.”

They would learn more about each other
in this manner than if they had the backgrounds completely laid
before them and he was sitting in the parlor of the ducal mansion.
“Very well. I find the entire idea charming.” In that he was most
sincere.

“
The only difficulty is I
can only meet with you in the day.”

“
I don’t see a difficulty in
that.”

“
You have a roof to finish,
and who knows what else.” She gestured around the grounds
surrounding his cottage. “I won’t keep you from you
work.”

His time was not his own, and Dillon
seemed to forget. Or at least Emily didn’t think his time was his
own. “You are correct. I will rise very early each day to get a
full day’s work in and then we can meet in the
afternoon.”

“
You wouldn’t
mind?

“
I would work the night
through, if necessary.

* * *

Emily could have sat on her mare and
simply watched Dillon work. He had a build not unlike the Greek
statues she had once seen. Though he was fully clothed, the linen
shirt did not mask the strain of the muscles of his arms and back.
Dillon had rolled his shirt sleeves to his elbows, and she admired
the strength in his forearms and hands as he pulled the old wood
from the barn. His legs and buttocks were just as impressive,
straining against the material as he would bend, stoop and stand.
The man was muscular everywhere, without an ounce of softness to
him. Yes, if he were to stand unclothed next to the statue of Mars,
no doubt Mars would be found lacking.

Just the thought of seeing Dillon in
such a state brought a rush of heat to her cheeks, and Emily had an
odd feeling in the pit of her stomach. She even had the sudden urge
to fan herself, but controlled this impulse. Such thoughts of
Dillon were highly improper. Still, it didn’t keep her from
admiring his form as he labored and she remained quiet to his
presence.

Dillon straightened and threw a piece
of wood over the side into a growing pile of debris. Lifting his
arms above his head, Dillon stretched and he turned to survey the
work he’d accomplished.

The sight sucked the air right out of
her lungs and she quickly inhaled. The man was magnificent indeed.
His shirt was plastered against this chest and flat abdomen from
the sweat of his work. How could she help but admire
him?

* * *

Dillon had been looking forward to
Emily’s visit, but was also somewhat apprehensive now. After she
had left the day before, he returned to his father’s library and
taken all the books on Greece, its history, literature, everything
he could find. Thank goodness his father horded books on all
subjects and had two full rooms dedicated as a library that was
nearly overflowing into a third.

The information on Sappho and the
island of Lesbos left him somewhat disturbed. All day as he worked
at the pulling the old roof from the barn he wondered about Emily
and if there was any particular reason she chose that time and
place in history to study. Was there a specific reason Sappho
interested her and was it related, in any way, to her reason for
not wanting a season in London or a betrothal? Dillon was almost
afraid to know the truth.

Young ladies should know
nothing of the immoral tendencies that he’d read about. He wondered
if Emily even understood what had been written. It involved all
manners of relationships between consenting couples, even some of
the same gender. He had heard of certain houses of ill-repute in
London that catered to those adult desires, away from the eyes of
the
ton
and
conducted in secrecy because anyone caught involved in such a
relationship would be ruined beyond repair. Much worse than a young
woman being found alone with a rake.

Then again, how much exposure had Emily
had to the opposite sex? Perhaps she was curious as to the nature
of relationships. She was an intelligent woman, after all. But was
she finding herself more attracted to women than men? He certainly
hoped that was not the case.

First, her guardian would never stand
for such a situation, and second, there was no place for her to
indulge in those desires other than the secreted rooms in
Cheapside.