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and come back to them before
they reached the end of the street at this rate. She would clearly
be well into her dotage before he returned her to Hyatt
House.
    “ They are doing rather
well. Thank you for inquiring.” Lord Norcutt held the reins so
tightly she imagined his knuckles must be whitening beneath his
gloves. She wasn’t entirely certain he was still
breathing.
    He started to say something, then
stopped himself to fidget with the reins. Again, he opened his
mouth and took a massive breath of air, only to close it again with
a “Hmm.”
    His nervous energy could be due to any
number of things—none of which Aurora presently wished
for.
    By the time they reached the end of
the street and the horses began to turn, Norcutt turned to face
her. “Miss Hyatt, I hoped to speak with you today before we are
joined by Lord Merrick and Lady Rebecca. You see…I…” His grey eyes
filled with tears that threatened to spill over.
    She had to stop him. She couldn’t
allow him to go through with this. It would make them both terribly
uncomfortable, and there was little in the world Aurora detested
more than to be uncomfortable.
    But he continued before she could cut
in. “I am in love with Lady Rebecca,” he said with a violence she
had never expected possible from such a staid and stoic
man.
    Not to mention a statement she never
expected to be uttered by him. Was he not attempting to court
Aurora? Lord Norcutt had shown every indication of a growing
attachment to Aurora, not to Rebecca.
    She was, to be plain,
stunned.
    And relieved and delighted and
thanking every god known to every civilization in her history books
that he would not be offering for her that day.
    Because really, throwing out
gentlemen’s hopes and dreams like they were used bathwater was not
now and would never be her chosen manner of spending an
afternoon.
    Sometimes it did prove to be a
necessity. But not today.
    “ I see. And does Lady
Rebecca know of your tendre ?”
    “ No, she does not.” His
typically monotone voice had become animated and lively. In fact,
Aurora feared he might burst into either tears or song at any
moment. Neither of which was an appealing option. How terribly sad
for him, since Rebecca would never entertain his offer.
    “ Yet, when you could have
invited Lady Rebecca to ride with you through Hyde Park this
afternoon, instead you offered such an invitation to me. Not only
that, but you sat by and watched as Lord Merrick issued just the
invitation you ought to have done to Lady Rebecca. That all strikes
me as a bit odd, my lord. How might you think Lady Rebecca will
react to a faux pas of that caliber?”
    “ I’ve come to you, Miss
Hyatt, because I’m in desperate need of your assistance. His Grace,
the Duke of Aylesbury has granted me permission to pursue an
attachment with his daughter. But I am uncertain how to proceed.”
He delivered his impassioned plea with the most ardent eyes she had
ever seen. It almost broke her heart.
    Almost.
    “ That is a most lamentable
predicament, my lord. And you believe I can assist you how,
precisely?”
    “ It is common knowledge
amongst those in the know that Lady Rebecca is your most especial
friend. I was hoping…I wanted to ask you to give me some hope. To
speak with her about me, and discover if my feelings might be
returned.” In his enthusiasm, he took both of her gloved hands into
his own and squeezed them tightly before remembering himself and
dropping them to her lap just as suddenly. “Lord Merrick agreed to
aid me in my cause. He invited Lady Rebecca to ride with him so
that I might at least catch a glimpse of her during our excursion
today while I courted your favor in my endeavor.”
    “ Indeed.” She wasn’t quite
agreeing to his suggestion. It was more that she could not fathom
what else to say.
    Her intentions didn’t matter, though,
as Lord Norcutt took her response to mean what he wanted it to
mean. “Oh, thank you, Miss Hyatt. I am certain that once you