Earl of Billington and Miss Lyndon

Chapter 02

Ellie tilted her head and pretended to think of the idea. "It might hurt a little bit when these shoes pass through your swollen ankles, but as you said, you're not a weak person, so it can definitely endure a bit of pain."

"What are you talking about?"

Ellie started pulling the guy's boots. Not too harsh - he could never be that cruel. He only pulled a little to show that the shoe could not come off without being ripped off with a knife. Ellie held her breath.

The man screamed, and Ellie regretted giving him such a lesson, for at that very moment her nose smelled strong whiskey.

"How much whiskey do you drink?"

ellie asked as she turned her face to breathe fresh air.

"Not too much" the man said. "They haven't created a drink strong enough to..."

"Oh, that's right," Ellie bursts. "I'm not pulling that hard."

Ellie was surprised because the man was laughing.

"My dear," said the man in a tone that told Ellie very clearly that she was a true playboy,

"You're not the worst thing that's happened to me this late."

Ellie felt her hair bristling at the careless praise that the man was giving her. He was grateful that his big bonnet hat was hiding his red cheek, then he returned his attention to the man's ankle.

" Have you changed your mind about cutting your boots?"

The man immediately placed the knife in Ellie's palm as the answer.

"I know there must be a reason why I always carry this thing. I just don't know what the reason is, until now."

The knife was a bit dull, until Ellie had to grit her teeth while trying to cut the man's boots. Ellie poked up for a moment.

"Tell me that..."

"Ow!"

"...piercing you," added Ellie finishing her sentence. "Sorry."

"Very admirable," said the man, his tone full of irony. "heard your sad tone of voice."

Ellie tried to hide her laughter again.

"Oh, come on," the man grumbled. "Laughter only. God knows that my life is worth laughing."

"My name is Miss Deliana Lybdon."

The man's eyes warmed.

"Thank you for telling me that important information, Miss Lyndon. It's not every day I let a foreign woman tear my shoes."

"It's not every day that I almost fall because of a man who fell from a tree, a foreign man" Ellie added.

"Ah yes, I guess I should introduce myself as well." The man tilted his head in a gesture that reminded Ellie that the man was still drunk.

"Charles Wycombe, at your service, Miss Lyndon. Earl of Billington." Then he grumbled. "At least that's the way it is."

Ellie looked at him without blinking. Billington's? This man was one of the most in-demand bachelors until Ellie found out about him, and Ellie wasn't even on any of the most in-demand women's lists. From the rumors that sounded, this man was a true playboy. Ellie had heard this man talked about in village meetings, although as an unmarried woman she was never told the latest gossip. Ellie assumed this man's reputation must be so bad that Ellie couldn't hear it.

Ellie also heard that this man was very rich, even richer than her sister's husband, Victoria, who was named Earl of Macclesfield. Ellie could not simply judge, as she had never seen the man's financial statements, and she asserted herself to never speculate on someone's finances without seeing any real evidence. But he knew for sure, that Billington's estate was indeed very spacious and old.

And about thirty kilometers from where they stand now.

"What are you doing here at Bellfield?" ellie asked without holding her mouth.

"Just visit my childhood memories."

Ellie pointed a branch above them with her head.

"So this is your favorite tree?"

"I used to climb it with Macclesfield."

Ellie finished cutting Charles's shoes and put down his knife.

"Robert?" ask Ellie

Charles looked at it with a suspicious, even slightly protective look.

"You call him by his little name? He just got married."

"Yes. With my brother."

"And the earth is getting smaller," murmured Charles "It's good to be acquainted with you."

"You might want to think twice about it" Ellie said. As bad as Ellie could have taken those boots off of charles' swollen feet.