Twice a Rake Read Online Free Page B

and be back downstairs before Hobbes came looking for her to inform her of Norcutt’s arrival, only to have to stop short in order to avoid smacking head first into the man in question himself. “Oh, Lord Norcutt,” Aurora mumbled. “I did not realize you had already arrived.”
    He executed a low bow. “Miss Hyatt. Good morning to you. I trust you are well rested and ready for our jaunt through the park.” His eager smile abruptly became an irritant. She should just write their story and be done with him, send him on his merry way to some other, less interesting miss who could suffer his attentions with more decorum than she.
    But that, she must admit, would require focusing less of her efforts and imagination on Lord Quinton’s story. Not what she had any intention of doing, at least for the time being.
    Still, stringing Lord Norcutt along behind her was not terribly becoming.
    It wasn’t as though she was setting her cap for him, though. She just wasn’t discouraging his attentions. Not yet.
    She would.
    She must.
    “Quite, my lord,” she finally responded. “I have been so looking forward to our afternoon.” She prayed God would not smote her down for such an impudent lie as he placed her gloved hand in the crook of his arm and he led her to his curricle.
    She only remembered she still had her journal with her when she realized her other hand was forced to hold both her journal and her parasol, thereby making the task of opening and holding the parasol aloft impossible. Aurora tried.
    And failed.
    And tripped in the process, nearly falling down the steps in front of Hyatt House, and landing flat on her face on Berkeley Square in front of everyone out for a walk, ride, or for any other reason, and pulling Lord Norcutt with her in the process. It would have happened, as well, if not for the fact that his rather staunch and sturdy frame pulled back against her and saved them both from utter catastrophe.
    But at least her journal was safe.
    Norcutt took the parasol from her hands at that point. “Might I be of some assistance, Miss Hyatt?” He opened it and held it above her head, shading her already-too-dark complexion from further darkening.
    It just would not do to look any more exotic than she already did, or at least that is what Aunt Sedgewick continually reminded her. Aurora didn’t care one whit about the demands of society. The shade of her skin, the darkness and waviness of her hair, the slight bend in her nose—all of this reminded her of her mother. For that purpose alone, Aurora was tempted to sit out in the sun as often as possible, watching her skin brown as other misses ducked to hide from its rays in fear of random freckles peppering their perfect English rose complexions.
    But Father continually reminded her how it would not do to flaunt her mother’s Greek heritage in the faces of the ton , that she already suffered a dearth of suitors possibly due to just such a cause. Never mind the fact that her scarcity of suitors might have something to do with her habit of running them off before they could make an offer.
    Instead, she turned her most gracious smile on Lord Norcutt. “Thank you so very much, my lord. I daresay I would have made an utter cake of myself if not for your heroic efforts.” She tried not to gag on the words as they left her mouth. It proved difficult, but she achieved success.
    Then he assisted her up into the silly contraption (one that men only owned in order to show the ladies they escorted off to the best of their ability—for she could think of no other practical purpose for the blasted things), followed along behind her, and they were off.
    Supposedly.
    Never in her life had Aurora experienced a horse walking so slowly, let alone two of them together. “Are your horses feeling quite the thing, my lord?” They had to be as old as Moses to be moving so slow. A group of toddlers could pass them by, circle the park, and come back to them before they reached the end