She expected him to push her away, but he did not. As a matter of fact, he stiffened.

He remained unmoving for a few seconds, which was very embarrassing. She felt suddenly stupid that she decided she ought to order him back to his room and never be seen by him again. He could go on to Tiny Town on his own while she rode her horse back home, never to be discovered by anyone until she died.

Alice pulled her head back, peeling her lips away from his. And just as when she was about to step away, his hand that had been holding hers tightened and pulled. She landed against his chest and as she opened her mouth to make an excuse as to how her lips accidentally landed on his, his mouth covered hers.

He was no longer immobile as he let go of her hand and wrapped his arms around her, crushing her against him even more. His mouth, which had been unresponsive, was now devouring hers, his tongue delving into her mouth, tasting hers.

She was overwhelmed for everything was new to her. But at the same time, the act was natural it was almost familiar. Odd, really, that she knew how to do it when she had never done so before.

Her hands crawled up his shoulders, slid behind his neck and higher to clasp his hair. She stood on her toes, pressing her hips against his, not entirely sure what she wanted or how they could possibly proceed.

Was there more?

Of course, there was more. She knew that. But would it be even more beautiful than this?

Alice was already feeling warm, but why was she turning too hot?

This was not definitely normal, she thought in passing as Harold's hand slid down to her lower back, his hips grinding against hers until she felt the sign of his arousal.

One of them had to stop and as though he read her thoughts, he gently pulled away and stood an arm's length away from her.

As they caught their breath, their eyes met.

Neither of them looked foxed, but they had to act like it if they wanted to save themselves from the awkward tension.

Alice closed her eyes and murmured, "I feel quite dizzy."

"I shall retire," she heard him say. He cleared his throat and when she opened her eyes, he was already on his way to the door. But then he stopped and turned.

Alice swallowed.

He looked at her and asked, "Can I bring the wine?"

Fixing her face to be very unreadable, she shook her head. "No."

He gave her a curt nod. "Good night."

Alice locked the door after he closed it and cursed under her breath.

What had they done?

Taking a long breath, she turned and walked back to the wine and drank straight from the bottle. Gulping the liquid down and feeling the warmth it brought as it traveled down her throat, Alice winced.

Why did she have to be devastated?

She was not married.

He was not married.

They committed no sin.

It was merely a kiss.

She took another gulp of wine and sashayed to bed.

It was merely a kiss.

And a very good one at that.

*****

Breakfast was utterly quiet.

Alice was stubbornly acting nonchalant, believing there was nothing to be ashamed of. She kissed him first. He did the same, just a little better. They were even. No law spoke of any consequence after a kiss.

Harold cleared his throat, the third time that morning.

She sighed and looked at him. He would not meet her eyes. It seemed that the wall behind her was more interesting.

"Well, what is it?" she asked.

"What?" he asked, his green eyes veering toward her for a moment before they flew back to the ugly wall.

"I do not have the flu," she told him.

He frowned as his gaze returned to hers. "Whatever do you mean?"

"You have been clearing your throat since we started breaking fast," she pointed out. "I am certain I did not pass you anything last night when we kissed."

He was obviously stupefied by the mention of the kiss.

She raised her brows. "What is the matter, my lord?"

He blinked. "Nothing."

Alice smiled. "Good. Now, would you stop clearing your throat? I cannot concentrate on my meal."

He cleared his throat and nodded.

Alice sighed and shook her head.

"Fret not about the kiss. We were foxed. I barely remember it."

He blinked and stared at her wryly. "You barely remember it?"

She feigned indifference. "Yes. Why? Do you?"

His jaw tightened as he stiffly said, "As a matter of fact, I have almost forgotten if you did not mention it."

"Ah, it must be my fault then. I am sincerely sorry that you have to be reminded by it."

The smile on his face was mocking. "Shall we both agree, then, to forget it ever happened?"

"Of course, my lord. Unless you wish to repeat it without the wine."

He forced a wider smile. "I would dare not hope for it."

Alice nodded. "Then we agree that the kiss never happened."

"Good."

"Bloody awesome," she said through her teeth.

"Are you angry?"

"No, my lord, I am in a hurry. We should be on our way to Tiny Town."

His eyes narrowed. "Ah, my apologies. I shall not drag us then." He wiped his mouth with the napkin and stood. "I am done with my meal. I will be waiting by the stables."

Alice offered a forced smile and a curt nod. She sighed when she was finally alone.

That turned out rather well, she thought.

*****

As they left Dartridge, they passed by a stream.

The light from the nearest lamppost reflected on the water, giving it a golden sparkle as it flowed gently.

They traveled along its length as they did so, Alice felt quite lost. It had been a long time since she had been to Dartridge. She knew they were headed to White Rocks, but unlike the Dark Forest, she was not certain how to navigate through the rock formations when they reached it.

"Perhaps we could take a few moments to plan our journey," Alice suggested, steering Camel toward the inviting sound of gentle water.

"We do not have the time, my lady."

"I know, my lord, but you ought to know that I do not particularly know the way. It had been long ago since I traveled to Tiny Town. The man we talked to earlier was not quite sober enough to be trusted." Of course, she knew the way. She knew the faster and easier way to Tiny Town and this was not it. "And I want to see the stream."

"You can look at the stream as we go along," he protested.

"Then go on," she said over her shoulder. "I am sure to catch up on you and Benjamin."

He let out a breath of impatience, but he followed her anyway.

She hopped off Camel and tethered the horse to a nearby stump. He did the same and stared at her as she bent down to pick up a few stones.

"We are here," she said, her brows furrowed in concentration. "And this is White Rocks."

"And?" he prodded when she did not continue.

She tilted her head to the right. "I am not quite sure if we shall pass by Gailey first or not."

"Gailey Village?"

"Yes."

He scratched his head. "And why does it matter?"

"We cannot let the horses travel through White Rocks without food and water."

"They said White Rocks is merely a few miles away."

"But we cannot be certain how long it would take us to get through it. I know the Dark Forest, but I cannot say the same for White Rocks."

He pointed at something between the White Rocks and the Dartridge stones. "Are there any estates in this area?"

"I am only certain of one. Henry House," she uttered wryly.

"I know the Lord of Henry."

"We are not stopping by Henry House."

"Why not? If you are not certain we can feed the horses before reaching White Rocks, we might as well stop by some friends."

"I am not chummy with the Lord of Henry or any of the people inside that estate."

"But I am."

She stomped her foot. "I am not setting my foot in Henry House."

"Why the bloody hell not?"

"Their son is a mortal enemy."

"What? Who? Sebastian?"

"Yes," she replied. "Perhaps we can find someone along the way. Or we could go back to Dartridge and gather supplies for the horses."

"That would merely drag us down." He placed his hands on his hips. "Why are you not friends with Sebastian?"

"We are not not friends. We are enemies."

"Very well, why are you enemies with Sebastian?"

"He is the man who has to live his life with a broken finger."

Harold's eyes widened as he remembered her story. "You cannot be bloody serious."

"I am utterly serious, my lord. We cannot set food in Henry House."

He shook his head. "I am certain Sebastian is not in residence. He must be in Wickhurst or Willowfair where he enjoys the crowd. The Lord of Henry once mentioned how his son rarely comes home."

"Still, we cannot—"

"Alice," he said, stopping her protest. "Are you deliberately slowing us down?"

"What? Of course not."

"Then can we just go to Henry House, feed the horses and get as much information on how to get through White Rocks from a trusted acquaintance of mine? I promise you that the Lord of Henry does not even know of his son's broken finger."

Alice sighed. "Very well. But we cannot stay long. We feed the horses, get directions and then we shall be on our way."

"Agreed."

She nodded and turned to face the stream, taking a silent, peaceful moment to gaze at the golden stream of water.

"It is rare to find these around the Town," she murmured under her breath. "It still amazes me how beautiful they are."

"We have one near Wickhurst," Harold provided. "Within the woods. The giant holes above give it the best colors, but I dare say this one is magnificent. It is golden."

She turned to look at him. "It's the lamppost."

"I know," he grinned, his emerald green eyes a distraction.

Alice looked away. "I wish to see it one day—Wickhurst Woods. I heard many good stories."

"It is amongst my favorite places." He walked near the edge of the stream, bent down and tested the water. "It's cold. The one in Wickhurst can be warm as the light of the sun from aboveground reflects on it." He straightened and smiled at her. "If you end up marrying Martin, you will have the chance to go there. He loves hunting in Wickhurst Woods."

Alice felt a sudden bitter taste in her tongue. She turned around sharply. "We must get going then. You do not wish for my groom to marry a different bride, do you?"

"What is the matter now?" he asked behind her.

"Nothing, my lord," she answered, untethering Camel. Nothing, really, Alice thought.

Nothing but the fact that she wanted to tell him that she just realized that she may want him instead of Martin and it was making her angry because he clearly did not want anything to do with her.

*****

Truth be told, Harold was not certain how he managed to go this far since last night.

Not only had he not been able to sleep after that bloody kiss, his mind had thought of nothing else but dragging Alice back to Dartridge. There, he would take her back to that room and lock themselves in until he could think sanely again.

He had spent the rest of the night wondering why she kissed him. He refused to accept that she was merely foxed.

Why did he leave? Why did he not just lock the door? Dragged her to bed?

The regret that came after he left her room did not help the endless hours of anxiety and anticipation he went through as he thought of ways on how he should discuss the matter with her when morning came.

But to his utmost astonishment, she brushed off the incident with no interest on what he was thinking or planning. She even had the appetite to finish her breakfast!

Most women would have demanded something, but Alice Archibald chose to be indifferent and move forward. She talked about the kiss as she would about all things ordinary.

If she wanted him last night, she surely did not want him that morning.

Yet now she was angry when he suggested the idea of her marrying Martin.

He wondered if this morning had merely been a façade.

Perhaps she was as affected by the kiss as him.

Mayhap she spent sleepless hours thinking she was going crazy as well.

If that were so, she was not showing any sign of anything at all now.

It frustrated Harold that he could barely understand her and understand her at the same time. She was confusing.

And she was also beautiful. And smart. And—people may strongly object on this—but she was also quite funny.

After having had a taste of what she could offer, Harold had to now always check himself. Her presence would was no longer an innocent encounter for him for his mind would always wander back to that kiss and the very tempting promise that could have come after it.

If he could not control himself and allow his mind to wander further, he would only begin to ask himself why he could not have her instead.

She may be all those things he believed her to be, but she was not for him.

Someone like her was meant for someone not an Everard.

*****

It did not take them long to reach Henry House where they were immediately welcomed after Harold introduced himself.

Alice refused to enter the estate, but when the Lord of Henry insisted to see her, giving them the impression that Harold was correct and the master of the estate was not aware of any incident of a woman snapping his son's finger at a ball years ago, she dutifully obliged.

After a short introduction, Alice boldly asked the Lord of Henry, a bald, lanky man, if she could make use of one of the many guest chambers to freshen up.

It was a rather odd request, but she badly needed to empty her bladder.

"You are welcome to make use of one of the chambers for as long as you want, my dear," the Lord of Henry retorted, ringing the bell. In no time, a servant appeared to escort her out of the drawing room.

"Come back for tea and snacks," Harold called after her.

"I shall be quick," she replied, excusing herself.

"This way, my lady," said the maid, guiding her down the hall.

They climbed up the grand staircase. The servant ushered her to the west wing and down another long corridor and into a bedchamber where she privately utilized the commode, glad that she was in her trousers instead of a busy layered dress.

When she was done, she found the servant already waiting for her outside the bedchamber.

"Are you certain you do not need anything else, milady?"

"No, I am fine, thank you." She was in a hurry to return to the drawing room. She could not risk for Henry to discover that she had misled him through a longer route to Tiny Town. It was best that she was there before they discussed how to traverse through White Rocks which was her only concern.

As the servant guided her back down the long corridor, a voice called out, "Alice?"

Alice stopped and stood frozen as she searched for the voice. She found him standing at the top of the staircase.

Bloody hell.

"What the bloody hell are you doing here?" Sebastian demanded.

*****

Harold was eager to leave. They could not waste any more time to reach Tiny Town.

If Alice could only return fast, they could be done with this in no time.

"I am surprised, but I cannot say I am not glad that you thought of coming by," said the Lord of Henry, drawing Harold's attention. "How is your father?"

"Still the same old man from the last time you saw him."

"That was... oh Lord... five years ago!"

Harold smiled. "Exactly."

The man's laughter echoed around the drawing room. "By the by, how long will you be staying?"

"Oh, we merely meant to allow the horses some time to rest and be fed if that is all right. And then we shall be on our way to Tiny Town."

The man's eyes widened.

"Oh, no, my lord. Lady Alice and I are not eloping. We intend to go to Tiny Town for business," Harold immediately corrected.

The old man chuckled. "Well, if that is what you say, you sure do know how to reach your business the long way."

The smile on Harold's face slowly faded. "The long way?"

The Lord of Henry frowned. "Did you not say you came from Langworthy?"

He nodded. "Yes."

"Well, unless you had a different business to attend to in Dartridge, you should have taken the route through Mecklenberg and Carnfield Haverston."

At that moment, any trace of a smile had already vanished from Harold's face.

"Lady Alice suggested we take this route."

"Ah, then she must have been thinking it would be nice that you see White Rocks. It may be a longer route to Tiny Town, but the sight will be worth it. Gailey is a pretty village, too. You should enjoy a night's stay there." The man stood up and poured them more drinks. "Her mother must have so much confidence in you, my boy, for her to have allowed her daughter to travel with you on this long journey." He looked around the room while Harold tried his best to stay calm, restraining himself from storming out of the room to search for Alice and strangle her neck. "Did you not say you needed directions? I should have a map here somewhere. Tiny Town is merely a day or two away, depending on how you can safely navigate your way through White Rocks..."

He was no longer listening.

All he wanted to do was find Alice so he could wrap his hands round her pretty neck.