Nicole blinked, still hypnotized by the concerned blue eyes that were trained on her face. With a mental shake, she quickly tried to gather her wits about her as she took stock of the man in front of her in order to determine if he was friend or foe. However, she was immediately distracted as she realized that the word handsome did not do him justice. All thoughts to whether or not she was safe quickly flew from her mind.

Those intense blue eyes scrutinizing her were set in a strong, chiseled face with high cheekbones, an aristocratic nose and full, kissable lips that were currently set in a grim line. A high forehead was capped by a head of thick, reddish-brown curls that were cut short in the latest style of the younger generation. Yet crease lines were visible at the corners of his eyes and mouth, which bespoke many years of smiling and laughter, a trait which she was hard-pressed to find among the stiff, uppity Englishmen she was accustomed to.

She continued her perusal and tried to ascertain precisely how tall the man was. It was for certain that he was not of a short stature. Despite the fact that he was leaning over her and that she lay on the ground, Nicole could tell that he was about half a foot taller than her. And that was no mean feat since she was rather tall herself at 5’6.

His shoulders were broad and his arms muscled, all which she could easily see as he moved, the fabric of his shirt stretching taught. His fingers appeared to be callused, his skin a deep brown from many hours beneath a burning sun, both belying years of laborious work. However, from the few words he had spoken to her and the way he carried himself, she perceived him to be a gentleman.

Nicole almost smiled. The man intrigued her, there was no doubt about that, and she longed to ply him with questions. Years of lectures from her mother, however, bid her to hold her tongue. More likely than not she would have her chance to learn more of the man with the striking blue eyes.

Justin almost grinned as he watched the young woman in front of him sizing him up. He now knew what it felt like to be a horse or cow that was bought and sold at market; however, the gaze of her hazel eyes did not bother him, for it merely probed with curiosity. Which was of some surprise to him. He was used to females fainting or going into hysterics when presented with situations much less dangerous than the one this young miss now found herself in. But there was no sense of fear lurking in her eyes or in her body language, only that same intriguing curiosity.

He shook his head as if removing invisible cobwebs that had settled upon him. He wasn’t here to try to figure out the inner workings of some young hoyden who rode around in breeches and jumped from horse to horse! Why, if he had any responsibility for the young woman at all, he’d take her over his knee and give her an old-fashioned spanking for risking her life in such a manner. Anybody in their right mind would…

Justin felt his temper began to rise, and tried vainly to quiet it, but when he looked down at the young woman in front of him, he could only feel his displeasure growing. It was most likely that his conscious was pricked by the fact that there appeared to be nobody around to protect this young woman from harm. But whatever it was, the minute she opened her mouth to speak and break the silence that had settled upon them, he immediately beat her to the punch.

“What in the bloody hell did you think you were doing?” Justin yelled, his blue eyes flashing, “Have you no idea how much danger you put yourself in?”

Nicole felt her eyes widen at his words, her jaw dropping in shock at his obvious anger. Hadn’t she just helped avert disaster? Wasn’t she injured and in pain, all in an effort to save him and his companions? Where was the thanks that she deserved?

Instead, she got treated like a child! Scolded as if she had done something terrible, when in fact, she most certainly hadn’t, not by any means. Nicole immediately felt her temper begin to flare, annoyed that her help was being thrown right back in her face. As if putting her life in danger for somebody she didn’t even know was an unmentionable event that occurred on more than one occasion.

She snorted, frowning in annoyance at the nerve of the man in front of her. Handsome or not, she’d show him. She was not some weak female whose only concern was the latest London fashions and she most certainly was not afraid of a little danger when it presented itself. Why, she was probably more apt to handling dangerous situations than this man, this man who deemed it his right to scold her like a child.

Was he so arrogant to assume that just because she was a female, she was likely to fall apart at the least amount of stress life threw at her?

“Have you no sense at all?” the man raged, oblivious to her mood change, “You do not go jumping from one horse to another while traveling at such a breakneck speed. That is how you get yourself killed!”

“I was in complete control,” Nicole acidly stated as she inched herself into a sitting position and fixed the man with an icy glare. She tried to ignore the rush of pain that immediately infused her wounded shoulder.

“Somehow I doubt that,” the man spat, rolling his eyes as he surged to his feet.

He now seemed to be oblivious to the fact that she was in pain, as if the caring, kind front he had shown her a few moments previous was all just an act. Oh, did that infuriate her even more!

“I have been around horses my entire life. I learned to ride almost right after I learned how to walk, so do not tell me that I was not in control,” Nicole practically yelled, her eyes emitting hazel fire as she attempted to scramble to her feet, despite the fact that her body was wracked with pain.

“Do not move,” the man harshly stated, much to her surprise, coming back to her side in an instant, “You had quite of fall in case you don’t remember in that scrambled brain of yours.”

“I am not a china doll that breaks at the slightest movement,” Nicole sarcastically retorted, trying to get her temper under control, “And I certainly have my wits about me, kind sir, so do not suggest otherwise.”

“You still need to rest for a minute and let me have a look at your injury. You’re bleeding and I need to see if the cut is just superficial or if it may need some stitching,” the man insisted as he placed his hands on her shoulders and forced her back into a sitting position. She rewarded him with a scathing glare for his efforts. He rolled his eyes, muttering a curse under his breath.

“Take your hands off me,” she ground out, fixing him with a challenging gaze. He raised a questioning eyebrow in response.

“Not until you promise me you will sit still for a few minutes and let me look at your injury,” the man retorted, his lips set in a grim, determined line.

Nicole pursed her lips as she crossed her arms over her chest in anger, annoyed that this man could get under her skin so easily. And she didn’t even know his name! She looked up into his face, intent on giving him a reply in the negative, if only to make him mad, the stubbornness in her refusing to back down.

But she didn’t quite realize how close they actually were, and the minute she looked up at him, she lost all ability to think, let alone speak. She watched as his gaze quickly dipped to her lips before returning to her eyes. Nicole felt her heartbeat quicken, some of her anger ebbing, replaced by a feeling she couldn’t name.

Justin couldn’t stop staring at the young woman in front of him. Yes, she made his temper boil like none other, but he couldn’t deny the fact that she was quite pretty and that it had been a long time since he had found a woman who had caught his attention. Of course, that did not mean he could do more than just look. As far as he knew, looking at a pretty young woman was not a crime in England, but to do more would mean either the shackles of marriage or a possible offspring, neither of which he wanted.

He sighed as his gaze dipped to her lips. They were ripe and red, as if begging to be kissed and suddenly he found it hard to swallow. The look she was giving him, however, bespoke of her innocence and it quickly forced him to consider the consequences of stealing a kiss…

“Justin?” another male voice suddenly questioned, interrupting the charged silence that had descended over them a few moments before.

“Yes, what is it Dexter?” the Justin responded as he quickly stood up and strode in his friend’s direction. He wanted to put as much distance between himself and the young woman as was possible at the moment.

Nicole immediately felt a sense of loss when the blue-eyed stranger got up and left her sitting where she had fallen. But she quickly pushed that feeling aside as she listened to the conversation between the two men, who were, most obviously, friends.

“Wallace has been shot. We’d best find someplace with a doctor and soon or else he might not make it,” the newcomer known as Dexter, commented. Nicole listened intently, trying to remain inconspicuous now that the man known as Justin was no longer paying attention to her.

“Where is he?” Justin demanded, frowning.

“He lies where he fell, being cared for by Sofie,” Dexter explained, shifting from foot to foot under his friend’s enquiring stare. Justin swore.

“You left her alone? Unprotected?” Justin cried, his eyes flashing with anger, “Have you lost your senses Dex?!? After what we have just been through, you have left her alone and…”

“Do you honestly think this was my doing? If that sister of your’s wasn’t so bloody stubborn about every damn thing, I wouldn’t be standing here in front of you right now,” Dexter retorted with a roll of his eyes.

“Sofie told you to come find me?” Justin asked, amusement suddenly coloring his tone and dissolving his anger.

“Yes, and she informed me if I didn’t go, she would shoot me with whatever gun she could get her hands on,” Dexter dryly explained.

Justin immediately began to laugh. Trust his sister to go and order everybody about when the situation clearly called for a man to take charge. Of course, his sister was not one who took lightly to somebody taking control of her, something he had become well aware of growing up with her.

“I don’t see what is funny about this situation,” Dexter growled as he crossed his arms over his chest, “If I had it my way, why I’d…”

“Marry her?” Justin suddenly questioned, then immediately bit his tongue. This was no time to be bringing up the subject of Dexter’s newfound fascination with Sofie.

Dexter’s face paled and he looked like he had just swallowed something that did not agree with him. Was he that transparent? Over the course of their journey the past few days, he had come to realize that maybe the sisterly affection he held for Sofie was not sisterly affection at all, but rather some sort of fascination and attraction that went way beyond the boundaries of sisterly.

He was still trying to come to grips with this realization himself, but for Justin, Sofie’s elder brother and his best friend, to notice his changed attitude toward the young woman was quite another matter entirely. Growing up, Sofie had always been his partner in crime as they had ganged up on Justin and some of the other children from neighboring plantations. She was like the sister he never had, coming from a family of four boys himself, and it had been that way ever since he could remember.

But recently, something about the way her eyes sparkled and the laugh that was distinctly her’s put him on edge and had his skin tingling with awareness. He couldn’t go anywhere she was without being fully aware of exactly where she stood, the expression upon her face and who she was conversing with. It was bordering on absurd, this sudden fascination with a woman he had, until recently, considered a sister.

He shook his head, disgusted with himself as he searched for an answer to Justin’s off-hand suggestion. He certainly wasn’t being serious, was he?

Nicole tried to pretend as if she wasn’t listening in on their conversation, which was rather hard to accomplish as they were only standing a few feet away from her and were not talking in the quietest of tones. But it didn’t seem to matter how she acted anyway, for they were quite oblivious to her presence.

The two men’s accents ascertained the fact that they were indeed foreigners and from her limited experience, Nicole guessed they were Americans. The idea made her curiosity increase a notch as she wondered why on earth two Americans would be traveling this route to London, which was most certainly their destination. And on top of that, who had attacked the group of travelers? True, highwaymen still lingered on the more deserted roads, however, this road that ran by her parents’ property and led to London was anything but that as it saw travelers almost on a daily basis. And moreover, highwaymen typically struck at night, when they could take the travelers by surprise.

Unfortunately, she had no answer to her musings. But boy would she love to get some straight answers out of the two men who stood not far away from her, arguing in heated tones, their voices now too quiet for her to hear. And her preference would be that those answers not come from that blue-eyed devil who made her heart race for no apparent reason.

True, she owed him gratitude for helping her, but it was not as if she couldn’t handle herself. At least that’s what she kept telling herself. But the fact that she had actually fainted, something she rarely ever did, made her think twice about exactly how much danger she was capable of handling by herself.

“Just drop it Justin,” Dexter finally ground out.

He was fed up with the direction the conversation was taking as his friend tried to get him to admit his feelings for Sofie. But he himself still had no idea where his feelings lay and what exactly they meant, so he couldn’t give Justin a straight answer. And that bugged him.

He sighed. His eyes took in unfamiliar surroundings, knowing that they were now in quite a fix. Until his eyes landed on what had most likely been keeping Justin from returning to where Wallace lay injured.

A woman. And not just any. Dexter was not blind to the fact that the woman sitting a few feet away in the unusual attire of breeches and a tunic was beautiful. A delicately boned face was home to a pair of large hazel eyes that had just a touch of a tilt, making them appear somewhat exotic. A small button nose stood proudly above a pair of full red lips that most likely could drive a man crazy. A high, regal forehead was capped by a head of dark chestnut hair, which was windblown and hung down her back in loose, alluring curls.

She didn’t appear to be all that tall, but from what Dexter could tell, she was taller than most females of his acquaintance. And the breeches and tunic left little to the imagination that she was a well-developed woman and not a miss still in the school room. Her waist was narrow, her hips wide and the calves that were incased in riding boots looked to be curved with muscle.

Dexter knew that the woman was beautiful and that he should have been wanting to make her acquaintance then and there. But Sofie was all that was on his mind at that moment. And that bothered him.

Abruptly he turned away and focused his attention back on what Justin was rambling on about. His friend paid the young woman no attention, in fact, was pointedly ignoring her, which he found odd. It wasn’t like Justin to act like a cad around any woman whether she be slave, peasant, or lady, but he certainly wasn’t acting the gentleman around this particular female.

It was all rather odd. But far be it for him to question Justin’s motives. His friend had sound reasoning in his head, so if he wanted to act like an ass and ignore the young woman sitting a few feet away, far be it for him to interfere and question his friend’s motives.

As she sat there, Nicole tried to pretend like she hadn’t noticed the man known as Dexter scrutinizing her, his eyes taking in her dusty, unladylike attire. She felt a blush rise to her cheeks, for some reason horrified that he was seeing her like this, when very few people knew of her penchant for wearing breeches and a tunic when she rode by herself. However, despite the embarrassment, Dexter’s gaze didn’t jolt her as Justin’s did.

Something about that blue gaze unnerved her and sent shivers down her spine. Both men were handsome but when Justin looked at her, something inside her moved. She didn’t understand it, and didn’t really want to understand it. She just wanted to be back at the manor house where she wouldn’t feel so confused and so at a disadvantage.

She tried to move again, but pain, unwelcome, shot up her arm and with an almost inaudible groan, she sank back into a sitting position. Damn her for getting into such an impossible situation. She’d need help to get back home and that was something that stung at her pride.

At the moment, though, the two men seemed oblivious to her presence.

“Now, do you have any idea where we are?” Dexter finally questioned as he finished assuring Justin that Sofie was perfectly safe and that he had left a gun with her, at the ready in case she needed it.

“I would say at least an hour south of London,” Justin responded with a sigh as he ran an agitated hand through his curls, “Nowhere near to a town big enough to employ a doctor, not to mention the fact that the carriage is now unfit for traveling anywhere as it is.”

“What about that manor house and surrounding village we passed a few miles back?” Dexter questioned, a frown beginning to mar his features as the situation become direr and direr for Wallace.

“Halifax Manor employs a doctor whenever the family is in residence, such as now,” Nicole suddenly spoke up, thus grabbing the attention of both men.

“Are you sure?” the man named Dexter demanded as he came closer and finally allowed her a clear view of his person.

He was just about as handsome as the man named Justin, except in a less-intimidating way. A few inches shorter than his companion, Dexter had jet-black hair, which was completely straight and, again, cut in the latest shorter style. High cheekbones were the highlight of his defined face, his thin lips and smaller, broad nose mere accents. His eyes were an intense bright green, however, when she looked at him, Nicole could detect a sense of friendliness etched in their depths rather than the haughty disdain shining in the blue orbs of his companion.

The well-defined muscles in his arms and legs screamed of hard, laborious work and the dark skin many a days spent in the afternoon sun. She was not sure which man was stronger, Justin or Dexter, only that they both would most likely be able to hold their own in a fight. But the thing she liked about Dexter was the fact that he seemed friendlier and far more tolerable than his friend Justin.

Especially since he did not make her heart race like the blue-eyed demon who was currently staring at her, curiosity written clearly on his face.

“Absolutely,” she confirmed, as she angrily pushed that last thought to the back of her mind, “The family has yet to depart to London for the Season.”

“Well, would the family be willing to lend out the services of their doctor?” the man named Dexter continued, his eyes filled with hope, “We are greatly in need of help at this moment. The life of our driver hangs on the line.”

“Certainly,” Nicole responded as she tried to rise to her feet, ignoring the glare the man named Justin sent in her direction for disobeying her orders.

She was very grateful to Dexter when he walked over and lent his assistance. He quickly put an arm around her waist and helped her to her shaky feet, quickly taking in the blood that had stained the upper right shoulder portion of her tunic. Unbeknownst to her, he sent a questioning glare in Justin’s direction, who merely shook his head and rolled his eyes in response.

That response was enough to tell Dexter that Justin and this woman had had an argument or some sort of disagreement at the least. Justin was usually not one to get upset, but when push came to shove, he had a rash temper that he could wield with deadly accuracy. It was usually kept under tight wraps, which also told Dexter that this woman had a temper of her own and could hold her own against his friend. A grin reached his lips and he had to fight to keep from laughing.

“Thank you,” Nicole gratefully stated as she adjusted her tunic, aware that pain still radiated from her shoulder and that she’d do well to have her parents’ physician take a look at it as soon as they reached the manor house.

“You’re welcome Miss…” Dexter trailed off, waiting for a name to put to the woman’s face. He ignored the glare that Justin sent in his direction.

“Lady Nicole Ashby,” Nicole responded, inwardly smiling as she saw Justin’s mouth fall open in shock at the revelation, “My parents are the Duke and Duchess of Halifax and their manor house is the one you speak of.”

“My lady,” the man known as Dexter stated as he took hold of her hand and respectfully bowed over it, “Dexter O’Keefe at your service, and this is…”

“Justin Bennington,” the blue-eyed man gruffly responded as he took her hand and bowed over it, sending a stiff smile in her direction.

Inside, however, he was fuming.

How dare she not tell him who she was. A lady of her station in English society should not be riding around in men’s clothing, jumping horses, wielding guns and putting herself in an immense amount of danger, at least in his opinion. Back home, his father would never have allowed anything of such nature to pass, not where Sofie was concerned.

Then again, there were things Sofie had done that their father didn’t even know about. And most of it had occurred when he and Dexter had been present and quite capable of stopping her antics, yet they hadn’t. He sighed. These two women were too much alike.

Were all females like this? So stubborn, short-tempered, wild and reckless? Was it their ultimate goal in life to scare the wits out of the men that truly cared about them by endangering themselves in any way possible? And why did they have to be so damn blasted gorgeous, fiery, challenging and altogether…

Justin quickly squelched that last thought as he realized that his musings had migrated from the topic of women in general to the spirited English miss who stood not a few feet from him. She was a puzzle, that she certainly was and a very intriguing one at that. However, he had enough to deal with already without adding a woman to the mix. Especially now since they were practically stranded in the middle of the woods with no means of transporting themselves to London, their final destination.

They really had no choice but to accept her help, as much as Justin didn’t want it. But he couldn’t very well allow Wallace, whom he had come to care for, die just because he was stubborn and one certain willful lass got under his skin so easily. He sighed in resignation.

“You are not from England,” Nicole commented, a statement rather than a question.

“No, we are Americans traveling here on business relating to the shipping line that the two of us own,” Justin reluctantly replied, waving a loose hand at himself and Dexter. Dexter looked somewhat puzzled at his friend’s reply, wondering why he had decided to lie about their actual reason for being in England.

“And you did not dock in London?” Nicole asked, surprised.

“No, we felt it would be safer to dock in a more southern port and then travel by land into London, since Justin is also here on personal reasons regarding a few estranged family members who are rumored to live in London,” Dexter supplied, ignoring the glare his friend was sending in his direction, seeing no reason why the information could not be shared.

“I do not know if I have ever met or know of any Bennington’s who reside in the London area, at least among the social circles I frequent,” Nicole commented as she cocked her head to the side in thought, “Though I cannot say for certain that there is not a family by that name in the lower London circles.”

“Well perhaps we will discover some information once we get to London, but for now, we must get Wallace to the doctor,” Dexter concluded as he turned back from the direction he had come, “Do you need assistance?”

Nicole opened her mouth to retort, but Justin, once again, beat her to the punch. He, unlike her, had noticed her mare ambling up towards them and thought to place her upon the horse and ride behind her. Dexter, he figured, could ride the stallion that had been pulling the carriage and was now happily munching on grass.

“I’ll help you onto your horse and we can ride back to where my sister is,” Justin announced, giving her no room for argument as he strode over, picked her up like she weighed nothing and deposited her in her saddle.

“Why you…” Nicole began, but got no farther as Justin hoisted himself into the saddle behind her and put his arms around her waist as he easily plucked the reins from her hands.

She was rendered mute as her back came into contact with the hard contours and sinewy muscle of the American’s chest. His arms around her waist made her feel like she was caged. Never before had she been held thusly by a man who was not a relation to her, and she had no idea how to respond.

Dexter watched an array of emotions cross the young woman’s hazel eyes, and almost laughed in response. If the young woman and Justin were going to battle with each other, well Justin had just won that round. But that didn’t mean that the lovely Lady Ashby would not give Justin hell for taking such charge in a situation which she had obviously thought was completely under her command and control.

Without saying a word, Dexter climbed atop the carriage stallion and immediately began to lead the way to where he had left Sofie. This journey, he mused to himself with a smile, just kept getting more and more interesting and he was happy that he had obliged his friend and come along for it. Lord knew what other mischief Justin could get himself into on this needle-in-a-haystack search he was on.

Suddenly, a high-pitched shriek split through the calm afternoon air.

“Sofie,” Dexter breathed, his eyes widening as his heart began to beat at a rapid pace.

“I told you not to leave her alone you idiot!” Justin hissed from his place atop the mare, “My sister may be headstrong and stubborn, but that does not mean she can handle the likes of a man intent on doing her bodily harm!”

“Don’t tell me something I don’t already know!” Dexter hotly returned, anger coloring his cheeks before he set his mount into a gallop.

Justin immediately began to follow after his friend. His passenger, who had been mute for some time, immediately began to shout out directions through the forest that she obviously knew so well. He was thankful to her for she helped the three of them avoid a few pitfalls which would have most certainly done them and their horses harm.

Justin didn’t know how fast they galloped through the woods, nor did he pay attention to the tree branches that tugged at the arms he held protectively around Nicole Ashby. All he could think of was his sister, and making it to her side before any harm came to her. She was his sister for christ’s sake and if anything happened to her, then by god…

All of a sudden, Dexter stopped and Justin had to quickly pull on the mare’s reins to get her to stop. However, all thought of the mare, his passenger and Dexter left as he took in the sight in the clearing.

His sister sat on the ground, cradling Wallace’s head, who had been shot from their earlier run-in with highwaymen. Surrounding them was a group of men on horseback, all dressed in stable clothing, their weapons drawn, at the ready, and pointed at his sister and Wallace. Leading them was a young man dressed in fine clothing, a male version of Nicole Ashby, which would mean that this could be none other than her brother.

“I will ask you once more miss, where is my sister?” Marcus Ashby demanded, growing impatient and more worried as the minutes passed and there was still no sign of his wayward, headstrong sister.

“I already told you that I have never met your sister in my life!” the young woman spat, glaring daggers at the young man on horseback and wondering where her brother and Dexter could have gotten to, “And even if I had, where on earth would I be hiding her while I am taking care of my driver, who has been injured?”

“Leave her be,” Dexter suddenly cried as he brought his horse into sight of the group of men and their leader. Sofie looked like she wanted to kiss him right then and there for finally returning.

“Who are you?” Marcus demanded in a cold voice, glaring frigidly at the newcomer and wondering if there were going to be more men emerging through the forest. The same forest his sister’s personal guard Nahkeet said she had disappeared into about a half an hour back. “And what have you done with my sister?”

“I am right here Marcus, so let them be. They only seek our help,” Nicole finally spoke up as Justin urged Ginny forward into the dim light the forest allowed. Her brother’s frown, however, did not leave his face as he realized that she was not the only passenger on the horse.

“Bloody hell Nikki, where on earth have you been?!?” Marcus bellowed the minute he caught sight of her, “Nahkeet said you took off after a carriage nigh on half an hour ago and that once he heard shots fired, he came straight back to the manor for help. What happened? Are you hurt? And who is that man with you?”

“I am fine Marcus,” Nicole absently stated as she crossed her arms over her chest and tried to ignore the presence behind her.

“Thank the lord,” Marcus breathed, knowing he would not be able to forgive himself if anything happened to his youngest sister, “Now pray tell me what you were doing galloping after a carriage? You know that the terrain around here is uneven and that there are men still lurking about causing disturbances of the fragile peace we have here in England.”

“These people needed my help. They were being pursued by some highwaymen and there was no way I was going to sit back and not do anything to help. The shots you heard fired were from me, but only because I had no other choice in the matter,” Nicole explained, looking beseechingly at her brother. Marcus sighed as he finally dismounted and strode to his sister’s horse to help her do the same.

Again, Justin was one step ahead of both Nicole and her brother. He immediately removed his arms from around her waist and began to lower her to the ground where her brother stood waiting. Marcus quickly reached up and snatched Nicole away from the stranger, not trusting him in the least.

“I would highly suggest that you keep your hands to yourself and off my sister,” Marcus snapped as he glared at the man.

“Marcus, do behave yourself and act like the civilized being that I know you can sometimes be,” Nicole scolded, amusement coloring her tone at her brother’s barbaric demeanor. Justin had to bite his lip to keep from laughing. “Mr. Bennington means me no harm, so it will do you some good to sheath those claws of yours.”

“My apologies,” Marcus stiffly replied as Justin began to dismount.

“No need for such formalities, for I have a sister of my own and I know how much of a pain they can be and how much we must protect them,” Justin returned as he held out his hand in greeting, “Justin Bennington at your service m’lord.”

“None of that lord stuff. I simply go by Marcus. Marcus Ashby,” the young man responded, grinning.

“A pleasure,” Justin stated, returning the grin for there was something about the man he instantly liked, “This is my friend Dexter O’Keefe, that over there is my sister Sofie, and Wallace, our driver, is the one whom has been injured and needs a doctor’s attention as soon as possible.”

“Nice to meet you,” Marcus politely responded as he shook hands with Dexter and nodded his head in greeting towards Sofie. “Now, I believe we should see about getting everybody to Halifax Manor so that your man may be attended to by our physician and so that you may all reside in comfort for the evening.”

“Is it a long ride to your home? I fear our driver is losing a lot of blood and I know that the rest of us are quite tired from the ordeal we just experienced earlier today,” Dexter commented after he had shaken the future duke’s hand.

“It shouldn’t take too long, what with all the horses we have,” Marcus responded as he motioned to a couple of the stable hands, “We will get your driver on his way to the manor house in the care of a couple of my groomsmen while we sort out the rest of the details. You traveled with luggage I assume?”

“Yes, it is all back in the carriage,” Justin explained as he warmed up to the English man, wondering why he liked the man so much already, yet felt he needed to do verbal battle with his sister.

“Well then we should retrieve your belongings and then we shall head to Halifax Manor where we can provide you with baths, hot meals and a comfortable bed to sleep in,” Marcus suggested once his men had got the injured driver on a horse and headed in the direction of Halifax Manor.

“Sounds agreeable to me,” Justin responded as he and Dexter turned in the direction of where the wreckage of the carriage lay. A couple of the stablemen began to follow, intent on helping the two foreign men with their task.

“Miss, if you will allow me?” Marcus quietly said as he held out a hand to Sofie, who still sat on the ground, somewhat in a daze from all that had transpired over the past hour or so.

“Thank you,” she softly replied once he had helped her to her feet and she had dusted off her skirt.

“I want to apologize for the way I acted towards you earlier,” the young man continued as he bowed over her hand and gave her a polite smile, “You must understand that I was only acting in the best interest of my sister, for I was worried that something truly terrible had happened to her.”

“I understand. My brother is the same way,” Sofie replied as she rewarded him with a warm smile before turning her attention to Nicole, who stood a few paces back, “Now, I do not think you and I have been formally introduced my lady.”

“Lady Nicole Ashby, but please, call me Nicole,” Nicole stated with a genuine smile as she briefly shook the American woman’s hand.

“Sofie Bennington,” Sofie responded, smiling in return as she knew, for some unknown reason, that she and this English lady were going to become very good friends.

“A pleasure to meet you,” Nicole replied as she linked arms with the young woman, “Now tell me, do you enjoy riding? For I fear it would be a rather long trip if you had to stick to walking.”

“Me? Walk? That’s laughable. I’ve been riding horses since I was a child, though I’d prefer to do it in the same attire you presently have on,” Sofie boldly stated, her eyes sparkling with merriment. Nicole laughed.

“Well I believe, Sofie Bennington, that you and I are going to get along famously,” Nicole concluded as she led the young woman towards Ginny.

“I certainly think you are right about that,” Sofie agreed as she took sight of the mare, “Now that, I can say without any doubt, is a beautiful horse. Is she yours?”

“She is indeed, and if you’d like, you may ride her back to Halifax Manor,” Nicole stated, fully confident that the young American woman knew just as much about horseflesh as she herself did.

“I’d be delighted,” Sofie replied.

The two women immediately began to talk to each other, the topic obviously being horses. Marcus walked away with a shake of his head and a roll of his eyes. As if his sister needed a friend who was cut from exactly the same mold! However, there was obviously nothing he could do to stop her if she wanted to befriend this American woman.

It was only a short time later that the bedraggled party began to make its way towards Halifax manor. Nicole sat in front of her brother on his horse as they led the way, Sofie, sitting atop Ginny, riding right next to them. Justin, who was a few paces behind and out of earshot, merely rolled his eyes and stayed silent.

It was not his business who his sister befriended, but damn if it wasn’t somebody whom he wanted no part of. A feeling which he could not explain in the least even if he tried. Well, he figured he would just have to make the best of the situation, come hell or high water. For he’d be damned if he let one willful English lass come between him and the family he was searching for.