Page 73 of Discovering Her Earl

When he saw her, he stood up straight and offered a smile and a bow.

“Good evening, Miss Bantham.”

“My lord.” She curtseyed thinking it odd to be so formal with someone she’d kissed. But surely it was the way it was done. She couldn’t go about calling him by his given name where anyone might hear.

Except they were alone at the moment so perhaps the formality was meant to keep distance between them.

“It’s a beautiful evening, is it not?” She nodded at the sun setting with a colorful display like fire across the horizon. She pulled her shawl closer to fend off the chilly air. Soon she wouldn’t have need for such things.

“It is. I’ve never seen the sky seem quite so big.”

“Yes. The ocean serves as a mirror. Reflecting back the beauty of the heavens.”

They stood in comfortable silence for a few moments, taking in the view even as the sun dipped below the horizon. When the colors on the water dimmed, he turned to her.

“Why am I here?” he asked.

“Do you mean in the broader scope of existence? Seeing such a powerful display often makes one feel small.” She knew, of course, what he was asking but decided to have fun with him.

He laughed as she expected.

“Why did you give your approval? Why did you allow me to come on the expedition? I didn’t sway you by kissing you, did I? I didn’t mean to—”

“You didn’t sway my decision. As I said, I had already decided.”

“But you hated me.”

“My uncle asked me to evaluate your abilities. While I might not have wanted you to join us initially, I had to consider your request fairly. You are worthy of this opportunity, Julian.”

“Thank you. I will do my best to ensure you don’t regret your decision.” His smile seemed more relaxed. If she’d still doubted his intentions, his reaction would have put her at ease.

He was a good person. He never meant to hurt her and had gone well beyond what was necessary to redeem himself.

“I doubt I will come to regret anything when it comes to you, my lord.” She cleared her throat when she realized what she’d said aloud. “I’m only glad I managed to see past my anger. I would have surely missed out on a wonderful friendship, had I not.”

Friendship? Were they friends? They had kissed. Did friends kiss? Or was she supposed to pretend the kiss hadn’t happened? How would she manage to ignore something like that?

After a few moments of silence, she decided it would be best to handle the situation straight on. They would be spending too much time together in limited space on their journey to Egypt.

“Please forgive me, I’m not certain how one interacts with someone they have kissed after the fact. It feels rather awkward and I don’t wish it to be.”

“Ah. Generally, one just ignores it and avoids the person so it never comes up again.”

“Is that what you want to do?” She hoped not.

“Heavens, no. I’m much too lazy for such things. Avoiding someone on a ship—though large as it is—seems like too much work.”

They shared a laugh and when it died down, he reached out to take her hand. His touch sent a tingle up her arm and directly to the pit of her stomach.

“Perhaps kissing you again would be the answer. No awkwardness. Just a man and a woman, sharing a moment during a dwindling sunset.”

She gestured to the deck they were standing on. “As large as the ship may be there are not many unmarried women onboard,” she pointed out. Like in Scotland, his options were limited.

He tilted his head and blinked at her.

“I wouldn’t care if there were hundreds of women on the ship. I want to kiss you because you are beautiful and I enjoy kissing you. Immensely. Especially since, as you’ve pointed out, I will suffer no risk of neck strain.”

His words were lovely. What woman wouldn’t want to hear a man desired her? But it was those very words that made her frown for they were completely unbelievable.