Duty to Love by Morgan King Page A

to
side and snorting with delight upon seeing her mistress.
    Years
ago she and James had chosen the name to vex Arthur who thought animals, even
pets, should have serious names, like his own horse, Hunter, or like Thor. Snail
was not only a frivolous name; it was a deliberately ironic reminder of the
speed at which Amelia loved to ride. Amelia had intended to rename her horse
Horizon or Horry for short, but by then it was too late. Snail had stuck.
    She
nuzzled her face into Snail's neck, stroking his mane in warm greeting. Arthur
must have arranged to have him moved to his stables even before the wedding. It
shouldn't have surprised her. He was always thinking of others. His every
gesture to her was filled with caring. Whatever her feelings she couldn't
possibly regret being his wife.
    ****
    Arthur
woke slowly, his mind drifting between memories of Amelia naked, and the
possible benefits to opening his eyes and seeing Amelia naked. After a little
thought, he opened his eyes.
    It
took him a minute or two of blinking, rubbing his eyes, looking around and
assessing the situation before he started to panic. Of course, he would never
expect or demand to know where his new wife was at all times. It was just that
she had chosen to leave before either he or James awoke, and what might have
driven her to do so worried him. Unlike him, she had
not awoken keen to expand their new-found intimacy.  
    His
morning erection died an instant death.
    Should
he wake James or just go and find her? He had no intention of leaving her alone
if she intended to brood or was having second thoughts. Neither he nor she was
in the marriage alone; they were in this together. With
James.
    “James,
wake up.” He gave his brother a sharp kick. Army life had clearly not changed
his sleeping habits.
    “What?”
James sat up, instantly scrabbling for coherent thought.
    “Amelia's
left us, and we need to go find her.”
    “Left
us? No, she can't have done. What did you say to her?”
    “Calm
down. I didn't say anything to her. I've only just woken up myself. And she's
not here.”
    “Maybe
she's just seeing to her early morning. . .” James clearly had to search for
the right words, then gave up trying to find them. “You
know.”
    “No,
I would have noticed if she'd only recently left. Look, I'm getting dressed to
find her, even if it's at the breakfast table. This just doesn't feel right.”
    “All right, all right! I'm coming.”
    A
quick search of the dining room, followed by the other downstairs rooms open
for regular use, proved fruitless.
    “The
kitchen?” asked James.
    “Wait
here.” There was no way they could both go trooping into the kitchen without it
appearing decidedly odd. It was bad enough he was clearly looking for his wife.
    Arthur
could see that Amelia wasn't in the kitchen as soon as he opened the door and
all activity ceased. He'd turned on his heel when cook spoke “Miss Whitmore
came in this morning as well, my Lord. Are you wanting breakfast? Roeburn nor Mary never came to say either
of you'd be wanting it served, Sir.”
    “She
is Lady Hentonbury .” Was it so hard to believe? She
was his wife now, God damn it.
    “Beg
pardon, my Lord,” Cook stammered. “Seeing her in the kitchen, it made me forget
you'd all grown up.”
    “That's
all right. Maybe we'll return to the good old days of breakfast in the kitchen
and out the door before the earl knows what's happening. Although that might be
a little tricky, being the earl myself these days.” Arthur didn't wait to see
how his attempt at humor was taken. He was the earl and had no need of
justifying a quick departure. He could guess where Amelia had gone and needed
Hunter saddled in haste.
    Returning
to James he said, “She went to the stables first thing.”
    “The river?”
    “The river.”
    ****
    The
sound of horses approaching roused Amelia from contemplation. She looked up
from the blade of grass that she'd been studying intently as she twined it
through her