The pious tone made Dorothea’s eyes blaze. Lord Hazelmere’s tactics were proving extremely difficult to combat. As she could find no ready answer nor see any way of altering his resolve, she reluctantly fell into step beside him as he started down the path.

‘Incidentally,’ he continued conversationally, pursuing a subject guaranteed to keep her on the defensive, ‘satisfy my curiosity. Just why are you wandering alone in the woods, without the presence of even a nitwit maid?’

She had suspected this question might come, precisely because she had no good answer. The reprehensible creature was undoubtedly teasing her! Swallowing her irritation, she calmly replied, ‘I’m well known in this neighbourhood, and at my age can hardly be considered a young miss in need of constant chaperoning.’ Even to her ears it sounded lame.

The reprehensible creature chuckled. ‘My dear child, you’re not that old! And quite clearly you do need the protection of an attendant.’

As he had just proved the truth of that, she could hardly argue the point. But, her temper flying and caution disappearing with it, her unruly tongue marched ahead unheeding. ‘In future, Lord Hazelmere, whenever I’m tempted to walk your woods I’ll most certainly take an attendant!’

‘Very wise,’ he murmured, voice low.

Unattuned to the nuance of his tone, she did not stop to think before pointing out, in her most reasonable voice, ‘But I really can’t see the necessity. You said you would not mistake me for a village girl next time.’

‘Which merely means,’ he said in tones provocative enough to send a tingling shiver down her spine, ‘that next time I’ll know whose lips I’m kissing.’