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chance to get acquainted?”
    Judith considered the matter. “If I was a cat, I should want to jump into his lap and purr.”
    Antonia laughed. “He has the same effect on me.’’ She was grateful that her two best friends got on well.  It would have been awkward if they had taken each other in dislike.
    Uncoiling herself from the window seat, Antonia rang for her maid. “I had better dress or I’ll be late. Adam and I are going to ride up to the high country this morning. Will you join us?”
    Judith shook her head. “The housekeeper and I are scheduled to discuss the state of the linens. That will take much longer than it should, but Mrs. Heaver doesn’t like to be rushed.’’
    “You needn’t do that, Judith. You’re my companion, not some sort of superior servant.”
    “It makes me feel useful.” Judith smiled as she withdrew. Antonia’s excellent managerial talents were concentrated on the estate, not the household. Even the best of housekeepers needed to know that someone was keeping a thoughtful eye on her,  At Thornleigh, that someone was Judith Winslow.
    * * * *
    An hour later, Antonia pulled off her riding hat and laughed in sheer exuberance, letting the wind tear apart her carefully arranged coiffure. The manor house was set in a dale, the fertile area that surrounds a small river, and she and Adam had ridden up the dale to the high country.
    At the top they halted at one of the great “edges,” the Derbyshire name for the stone ridges that tower above the valleys. To the south the spa of Buxton was visible, while north lay the heights of Kinder Scout, the highest point in the Peak District. Far above them, a hawk drifted in the wind with graceful majesty. “Surely, Adam, India had nothing to match this.”
    Effortlessly controlling his restive horse, Adam glanced across at her with a smile. He had always been a superb rider, and the years had not changed that. “Every land has its own special beauties that can’t be compared to any other, and the Peaks are one of the glories of England.’’
    His gaze returned to the dramatic, treeless green hills, where the bones of the earth occasionally showed through, adding softly, “And they are home.”
    Antonia’s father had decided to leave Thornleigh to his daughter as soon as she was born, but it had been Adam’s home every bit as much as hers.  She was glad that he still felt the same way about the land that she did. Through the years of her childhood, Antonia and Adam had explored the Derbyshire hills and dales together.  Sometimes they packed food and disappeared for a whole day, returning wind-burned and content as darkness fell. 
    As they ambled their horses along the spine of the ridge, Antonia asked, “Could you afford to buy an estate in this area? I understand that quite a nice property on the other side of Buxton will be coming on the market soon.’’
    At his inquiring glance, she looked stricken. “Sorry, I forgot that I shouldn’t say anything that hints at money.”
    He laughed. Like her, he rode hatless, and the breeze ruffled his sun-streaked brown hair. “It is many years too late to begin standing on ceremony with me. Tony. In fact, I am something of a nabob, but as I said before, it is a little too soon to know exactly what I will do.’’
    The trail narrowed and Adam concentrated on guiding his horse safely between the stones. “I intend to continue in the India trade. It looks like the East India Company will not have its monopoly renewed when the original charter expires in a few years, and that will open all sorts of possibilities. But I’m also interested in investing closer to home.”
    “What kind of investments?” Antonia asked as the path widened enough so they could ride abreast again.
    “Steam engines,” he answered promptly. “Steam is still in its infancy, but it’s been powering mining machinery for years.  Now it’s driving ships.  Soon there will be steam-powered land vehicles. There’s a