Dark Passions

31.

They finally made it down to the dining hall, rushing in, holding hands and exchanging guilty looks for taking so long. Derek waved away the footman hovering to help Meredith sit down, preferring to help her himself. "Our apologies for the delay," he said, looking from Kate to Marcus, before seating himself at the table.

"I'm glad you could join us tonight," Kate smiled. She looked at Marcus. "Some nights I end up dining alone."

"I do not doubt that," he said, winking at Derek.

Meredith was saved from further teasing by the arrival of the chilled cucumber soup, and the topic was changed. Marcus began to entertain them with amusing stories from court, and the latest gossip. His dry wit and observations were cuttingly accurate. "You aren't missing much, Derek."

"No, I thought not."

"But may I say, Kate, that you would be a breath of fresh air if you decided to return for a season?" Marcus grinned as he raised his glass of wine in her direction.

"Marcus, you have not changed a whit since I last saw you. You always knew how to charm a woman!" she laughed. "However, I'm afraid my days at court are done."

"Beautiful women are always welcome," he said gallantly.

"You truly are hopeless," she said, smiling at him.

"And as much as you haven't missed anything being here in the country, Derek, you really have to bring Meredith to London after you are wed." He looked at Meredith.

She smiled at his enthusiasm. "I don't know if that will work..."

"Just once - to show you off. You would be the toast of the season."

Derek took Meredith's hand, his thumb caressing her palm as they exchanged glances. The usual heat spiked between them, as their eyes locked.

"We waited long enough for you two to get to dinner," Marcus teased. "Do not start up again now..."

"Sorry," Derek replied. "We'll try to stay focused on the conversation."

"Oh, and if you're worried about Lady Addison causing trouble, I had heard that she was betrothed to the Duke of Trent.."

Derek choked on a sip of wine at the name, and Marcus held up his hand. "Ah, but that's not the best part - apparently as soon as she found out about the betrothal, she ran off to America with some other man before her father was even aware of what happened."

"She what?" Meredith asked in shock.

"Left England - hopefully for good," he added wryly.

"Well, let's drink to that - it's the best news I've heard in years," Derek proposed.

⚜️⚜️⚜️

Early the next morning, Derek leaned over a sleepy, tousled, Meredith in bed, sweeping a soft kiss across her lips. "I need to take Satan for a run. I'll see if Marcus wants to join me. We'll be back by lunch."
Meredith took a peek towards the window, seeing gloomy clouds for a change, instead of the usual sunshine of the last fortnight. "It's going to rain, Derek, are you sure?"

"The cool air will be a nice change - very invigorating."

"All right, maybe Isobel will be here by lunch as well," she murmured, not quite awake. "Be careful, Derek. It may be storming soon."

He kissed her again, resisting the urge to crawl back into bed with her warm, fragrant body. "I will, my love. But don't forget, the weather was stormy when I met you - that was my lucky day." He smiled tenderly at her. "Now, go back to sleep. You need your rest."