Free Rumors Among the Heather by Amanda Balfour

country
dance, surely. Although I do still object to the black,” he said as
his eyes raked Julie from head to toe, causing her face to
burn.
    Trying her best to
ignore him, Julie dropped her eyes to the list. Her heart skipped
when she noticed one of the names.” You have invited Dr. Siddons.
He is away in Germany, at a spa trying to recover his health. A new
doctor is taking his place. May I cross off his name?”
    “No, you may not. If
you’re through rearranging my guest list, I’d like to discuss my
nephew. How do you think he is coming with his lessons?” Matthew
asked sharply, making Julie stand to attention.
    “Ian is doing very
well. As you heard, his reading has greatly improved. He could read
all along, but I think his parents’ deaths depressed him, and
anything associated with them caused him to be afraid. His
mathematic skills are also on par with his age group. Overall he
does an excellent job, and I believe his other teachers failed to
look at anything else when they thought he couldn’t read. He is
quick and clever,” Julie said, as proudly as if he were her
own.
    “I see. What’s this
about riding lessons? He refused to go out of the castle before I
left, and when coaxed out, he cried at the thought of a horse.”
    “That’s all true, but
when we moved past his reading blocks, all his other walls started
to crumble.”
    “How extremely clever
you are, Miss Hastings. Is there nothing you can’t do? I believe
you could walk on water if you set your mind to the notion.”
    “I can’t walk on
water, but I’ve been known to wade in too deep,” she shot back.
They eyed each other, with neither batting an eyelash. At last she
broke the standoff. “If that is all, my lord, I will get started on
the invitations.”
    He dismissed her with
a nod.
    Julie turned to leave
but suddenly remembered another matter they should discuss and
turned back. “By the way, I’ve told Mr. Dunne to send his bill to
you. I hope you don’t object to my engaging him for Ian, but you
weren’t here when Ian decided to ride, and you said to use my
initiative.”
    “From what I’ve seen,
you could handle the task of teaching him yourself,” Matthew said
softly, reminding Julie of the last time he’d seen her ride.
    “I did think about it,
but I didn’t think you wanted your nephew to ride in my style,
exactly. You see, I taught myself. I thought you would want Ian to
ride correctly, since you’ll probably be taking him on hunts when
he’s older,” Julie responded.
    “I certainly hope my
nephew has better sense than to ride at breakneck speed across the
open countryside.”
    She ignored her
employer’s well-aimed barb. “I’ve been meaning to ask you, but it
slipped my mind until today. Would you be so kind as to buy Ian a
horse of his own to ride?”
    “He has a pony, I
believe,” Matthew said flatly.
    “He does have a pony,
but he has outgrown the mount. He has had a growth spurt and his
feet almost touch the ground. The other horses in your stable are
for more experienced riders or little old ladies. Ian needs a
gentle horse with spirit. One that would make riding fun,” Julie
finished.
    “Can he really ride
well enough to be trusted with a proper horse?” Matthew asked,
seemingly incredulous.
    “He’s having his
lesson now, so you must judge for yourself. He goes riding with me,
and I think he does very well, but it’s a little hard for him to
keep pace on a pony.”
    “Good lord. I hope
you’re not taking him on wild rides.”
    “You don’t have to
look so worried. I set my pace to his. I don’t plan on teaching him
any bad habits. I’ll leave that part of his education to you, Lord
Bonnleigh,” Julie spoke sharply but with a grin.
    “You are an impertinent young woman.”
    “Yes, my lord, it is one of my failings.”
    Lord Bonnleigh
dismissed her once more, but the next day a little black mare with
a white star on her forehead found her way to the island. She was
small, no more than