He grinned suddenly. “But I am so very loveable.”
Thea hated it when he did that. He never failed to ruin a perfectly good argument by saying something absolutely adorable. Trying her best to not laugh, she scowled darkly but ruined the effect by giggling. “Shut up. You are not.”
“Oh, yes, I am. I just proved it. I made you laugh.”
“It is your nose, that makes me laugh.”
“Tell me you love me.”
“No.”
“Theeeaahhh. Tell me you love me.”
She glared. “You are a bore and a boor.”
“I am a boorish bore, how about that. A lifetime achievement.”
Unable to halt it, Thea broke into a laugh and tried to smother it with her napkin. “I hate you.”
Freddie made kissing noises in her direction, which only made her laugh harder. “We are going out riding,” he announced, continuing to eat. “Today.”
“I amnotputting my hair up.”
“The Prince Regent plans to ride past.”
“Good for him. I am still not putting my hair up.”
Thus, later that morning, Thea clad herself in a riding habit with a hat upon her head and her raven black hair loose down her back. Freddie had already ordered their mounts saddled and spoke with the head groom as she walked from the house across the manicured lawn to the stable. She eyed her blue roan mare with the inevitable sidesaddle girthed to her back and sighed.
“Why can I not ride astride?” she complained to no one in particular.
“It is not proper,” Freddie replied, turning toward his own flame red gelding, the mount’s bridle held by an attending groom.
“Proper shmoper,” Thea muttered sourly as a groom assisted her to mount.
“I heard that.”
“Good.”
She reined the mare toward him as he swung easily into his saddle. “You do know you can also be damaged by riding astride, Freddie,” she said, her tone a warning, “if your horse were to, you know, buck upward.”
Laughing to herself as Freddie glanced down into his lap in dismay, Thea nudged the mare into a trot down the road, calling back over her shoulder, “In case you ever desire children.”
He caught up to her, scowling. “You are evil, woman.”
Thea smiled brightly. “Not evil, brother. I am right. That is far, far worse.”
“Everyone knows a woman can be, er, damaged by riding astride.”
“Everyone as inmenthink that,” Thea snorted. “Women are not so foolish.”
“Are we going to spend our time together arguing?”
Leaning over, Thea patted his cheek with her gloved hand. “Of course, brother dear.”
Laughing, Freddie seized her hand and kissed it. “You are so much like Mother.”
“How so?”
