His Michaelmas Mistress by Marly Mathews

leave, then,” Mr. Browne said, hastily backing out of the room.
    Freddie watched him go with a bit of amusement in his heart. He didn’t know who the man was more afraid of, him, or the poachers.
    “Oh, aye. They will have to change their drawers,” Tiny chuckled.
    “They shan’t know what hit them,” Lucky laughed. “After we catch them, they shall beg us to take them to the local magistrates.”
    “Julia’s Uncle Edward is one of the local magistrates,” Freddie sighed heavily. “He’s definitely one of the big wigs in the area. And those that look at him roaming his grounds in his banyan would probably never guess it. Still, if I catch them, you’re right, Lucky, they will be begging us to take them to go before the local magistrates,” he chuckled.
    “Those buggers will be screaming bloody murder,” Tiny said. “They’ll take one look at Freddie, and faint dead away.”
    “No,” Freddie countered. “They’ll take one look at your face and faint dead away, mate.” He smirked. “It seems to do that to people. They take one look and keel over.”
    Tiny grinned. “He is finally coming round, Lucky. We only have to work on him a little bit more, and he’ll be back to the bloody bastard we all know and love so much.”
    “Don’t forget I’m a bloody bastard…” he paused, “but Felix, you’re an arsehole.”
    “That I am,” Tiny laughed in his loud way. “I make no bones about it.”
    “I only have one question, Freddie,” Lucky said slowly.
    “Aye?” Freddie said.
    “Aren’t we supposed to be acting like proper lords? Would proper lords go gadding about their estates hunting for poaching gangs?”
    “It’s my estate. That means, I can do whatever the ruddy hell I want, doesn’t it? I am lord of this domain. We’re not in the Army anymore, lads.”
    “If we were in the Army, you’d be our superior, Lucky,” Tiny pointed out.
    Lucky grinned. “That used to be such fun.”
    “Oh, aye, you could be such a sodding upstart,” Freddie said.
    They all laughed, finished off their breakfast, and prepared to go blackguard hunting.
    Freddie finally had something to distract him from how badly his heart ached for Julia. He couldn’t live like this much longer. He would have to battle for her heart, and if he was pressed too hard, he would steal her away and make her marry him, because he didn’t know if she’d allow him to woo her this time around.
    The courting might not happen, but the claiming would.

Chapter Six
     
    Beatrice was trying desperately to keep her composure.
    Julia could see her left eyebrow twitching every few minutes. She knew why her mama would keep herself from saying anything, everyone was so relieved to see her out of her bedchamber that they were all walking on eggshells around her. Even her brother was on his best behaviour.
    “Do you have any thoughts of what you shall do today, dear?” Beatrice asked, in a sweet voice, while she stared at her with her eyebrow twitching, and her eyes darting furtively to the footmen standing nearby.
    “I think I might start the day off with some shooting or some archery,” she mused, sipping at her tea, “and then, I rather thought I might take a drive in my curricle, if the weather holds.”
    “Drive? Race, more like,” Richard snorted. “Are those chaps you race against active on Tuesdays?”
    “Why do you care, dear?” Beatrice asked. “And besides, your sister knows how to handle herself in that bloody contraption. I just worry that she is not in the right frame of mind to be driving it.”
    “My frame of mind is completely sound, Mama.”
    Her mother eyed her warily. “You are sitting here in your housecoat, with your hair quite untidy, and your face unwashed, and your eyes look quite wild. I do not think you are prepared for racing yet. Mayhap, you ought to simply take a nice little ride through the village, or better yet, why don’t you and Richard walk down to Lark Hall and call on Alice and Edward? I am