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Richard
softly apologized, as he bent toward her ear. “But there was no
other way to free it.”
    “Thank you,” Kate murmured.
    “Gracious, Kate!” Penelope gasped. “What have
you done to your gown?”
    “Do not distress yourself, Lady Overton,”
Lady Faversham assured her. “Thanks to this strapping young lad,
your little chick is well and truly safe.”
    Lady Overton nodded, then bent to inspect the
damage. “Thank goodness it was only your dress and not Helen’s.
When I think of how much that gown cost, I grow positively
faint!”
    Kate flushed with embarrassment, wishing for
all of the world that she could somehow climb back up into the
coach and out of prying eyes.
    Thankfully, Lord Faversham began to organize
the hunt in earnest. Grooms brought their horses round and the dogs
barked and bounded around them, eager to begin the chase. Assisting
the ladies to mount was a bit of an endeavor, but they soon managed
it and set out at a rousing pace.
    Kate rode toward the rear of the hunting
party. Kate had no wish to witness the brutal death of some forest
creature all in the name of sport. It was also a very good position
from which to observe the rest of the riders.
    Helen rode beside the Earl of Devonshire,
leaning so far toward him from her saddle that Kate found it
amazing that her sister managed to keep her seat. Penelope moved up
to ride at the earl’s left, no doubt providing the nobleman with a
running discourse on Dorothea’s and Helen’s finer points.
    Viscount Marbury had attached himself to
Dorothea, who reveled in the man’s attentions. With her face
flushed with excitement and her lips curved into a smile, she
looked completely enraptured.
    The same could be said for Edgar Overton, as
well. He absolutely glowed as he rode beside Lords Winslow and
Faversham. Lord Winslow repeatedly glanced back at Helen and he
frowned in annoyance as the earl did his best to entertain her.
    Soon, the beaters flushed out a hutch of
rabbits and the men suddenly spurred their horses to pursue the
small quarry. Unfortunately, all four shots missed their mark and
the noblemen galloped off in hot pursuit, with the ladies trailing
behind. Even Lady Faversham smiled in delight, urging Kate to
quicken her pace and join the fun.
    Suddenly finding herself quite alone, Kate
drew her mount to a stop and gratefully slid to the ground. She
stood at the edge of a lush field of grass nearly waist high. Each
blade swayed and dipped in the wind and the sun shone down upon the
whole, making the field seem like a vast inland sea.
    Closing her eyes, Kate breathed in the sweet
scent of autumn flowers and the smells of the earth around her. The
air was fresh. The sky was a clear azure blue with little white
puffy clouds flowing lazily across its surface. Such perfection was
a rarity in this season, a brief glimpse of the passing summer
before winter set in. Kate reveled in the moment.
    Dropping the horse’s reins so that it could
graze, Kate flung out her arms and whirled around and around in
utter rapture. She lifted her face toward the sun and her heart
soared. She felt years younger, like a child again. For a few brief
moments, the strain of Kate’s daily life melted away and she smiled
with joy.
    Until she saw him. Halfway around in a turn,
Kate thought she heard someone chuckle and her eyes sprang open.
She caught sight of a horse and rider standing at the edge of the
wood. Immediately, she recognized Richard Warwick’s dark green coat
and her heart sank. No doubt he had observed her small moment of
abandon. Kate was mortified.
    Richard grinned as the little redhead flushed
with embarrassment and darted behind her horse for cover. What a
strange little thing Kate Overton was. Richard had the feeling that
beneath that prim and proper exterior beat the heart of a very
passionate woman. Someday, Kate might see past her meek and mild
manner and become a veritable tigress. Intrigued by that prospect,
Richard urged his horse forward