"I am looking for Miss Woodsley. Apparently, she has gone riding with your groom. Did you know anything about this?"

"I've told the groom to be at her disposal whenever she should wish to ride. I understand riding is a favorite pastime with her, and her mare finally arrived and is now stabled here. She does not need to ask me to take her own horse out." Lord Harrowden continued to wear a smile that he must have known would grate.

Selena said, “However, she should be asking me if she has permission to go out. I am, after all, her governess. Yes, she is chaperoned in this instance, but she is only sixteen.”

“If you are not able to keep a rein on her, it is only natural that she will give you the slip.” Lord Harrowden shrugged. “She is of such a playful nature.”

Although Selena knew full well she did not have to justify herself, the words spilled out of their own accord. “I was reading to Lady Harrowden, and that is why I was unable to keep track of Miss Woodsley’s whereabouts.”

Her explanation only brought about another irritating smile. "As I warned you, Miss Lockhart, your position is not an easy one. Alas, there is no remedy, although I might offer you some consolation.”

Lord Harrowden’s insinuations alone were making her position intolerable, even without his attention on her. Selena turned without giving a reply and left to find the countess, fearing reproach. How Lady Harrowden expected her to keep an eye on Rebecca when she was at the countess’s constant beck and call was a feat beyond her. She simply could not be in two places at once.

Selena relayed the information to Lady Harrowden that Rebecca had gone off, and the countess sighed and began pulling off her gloves. Selena was too uncomfortable sitting still in the drawing room with an irate employer, and she went to the corridor to wait for her charge. She sat on a small dark wooden bench next to the wall, and when Lord Harrowden strolled back into the corridor, she turned her back on him rather than quit her post.

“So that’s how you want to play?” Lord Harrowden laughed. He did not leave the corridor, but he did not try to engage Selena in conversation, and for that she was glad.

A quarter of an hour later, Rebecca walked through the front door, her cheeks rosy and the tips of her ears red. She looked fresh and radiant, and entirely too tempting a morsel for the earl, who had remained—it seemed—for no other purpose than to wait for her.

Selena walked forward, intercepting his path. "Rebecca, could you please let me know when you're going out riding next time? Lady Harrowden is waiting for us to go to town. Did you not remember we were supposed to set out?"

Rebecca shrugged as she pulled off her gloves. "Oh, as to that…We can set out now if you'd like. It's just that I need something to eat first. Can you order me some tea?"