The Major and the Country Miss. Dorothy Elbury

      ‘The pleasure will be mine, I assure you.’

      And, so saying, Maitland leapt nimbly down from the summerhouse and held out his hand. After a scarcely discernible hesitation, Georgianne placed her hand in his and allowed him to help her descend the three shallow steps on to the pathway. Why this simple action should have had the effect of setting up such a trembling inside her, she could not imagine but, when Maitland then chose to tuck her hand firmly into the crook of his arm, she was powerless to prevent the rosy blush that formed instantly upon her cheeks.

      Fortunately for Georgianne’s peace of mind, her escort seemed not to have noticed her brief moment of confusion. Indeed, as far as she could tell, he appeared to be heavily engrossed in studying the courtly behaviour of the pair of swans who were sailing majestically across the lake.

      ‘Such beautiful creatures,’ he observed chattily, as they turned off the path and strolled through the sunlit spinney, at the far end of which the church’s squat tower could be seen. ‘I’m told that they mate for life.’

      ‘A particular habit amongst a good many members of the bird family, I believe,’ replied Georgianne, with a sudden smile. ‘Strange, really, when one considers that their brains are said to be not nearly as well formed as our own.’