"Last time I looked," she said cheekily.
Somewhere in the background someone groaned. Henry was fairly sure it was Mrs. Simpson.
Dunford blinked a few times at the bizarre creature standing in front of him. She was wearing a pair of baggy men's breeches and a serviceable white, cotton shirt which, if the number of muddy streaks on her person were any indication, had recently been serviced. Her brown hair was unbound, freshly brushed, and flowing down her back. Rather beautiful hair it was, very feminine and somewhat at odds with the rest of her appearance. He couldn't quite decide if she was attractive or merely interesting or if she might even be beautiful if she weren't wearing something quite so shapeless. But there was no way he was going to make a closer inspection anytime soon because the girl smelled decidedly...unfeminine.
Quite honestly, Dunford didn't want to get within three feet of her.
Henry had been wearing eau de piglet since morning and had grown quite used to it. She saw the new Lord Stannage frown and figured he was probably reacting to her rather unorthodox attire. Well, there was nothing to do about that now, thanks to his early arrival and the giant pig's untimely appearance, so she decided to make the best of it and smiled again, wanting to lull him into thinking she was pleased to see him.
Dunford cleared his throat. "Forgive my surprise, Miss Barrett, but—"
"Henry. Please call me Henry. Everybody does."
"Henry, then. Please do forgive my surprise, but I was told only that someone named Henry was in charge, and so naturally I assumed..."
"Pay it no mind," she said with a wave of her hand. "Happens all the time. It often works to my advantage."
"I'm sure it does," he murmured, discreetly taking a step away from her.
She put her hands on her hips and squinted across the lawn at the stables to make sure the farmhand was securing the pig properly. Dunford watched her surreptitiously, thinking there had to be another Henry, that this girl couldn't possibly be in charge. For God's sake, she didn't look a day over fifteen.
She turned back to him with a rather sudden movement. "This is not a common occurrence, I have to say. We're building a new pigpen, and the pigs are in the stables only as a temporary measure."
"I see." She certainly sounded as if she were in charge, Dunford thought.
"Right. Well, we're about halfway done." Henry grinned. “Famous that you arrived when you did, my lord, for we could use another pair of hands."
Somewhere behind her someone coughed, and this time she was certain it was Mrs. Simpson.
Fine time for Simpy to get an attack of conscience, Henry thought, mentally rolling her eyes. She smiled again at Dunford and said, "I'd like to see the pigpen done as soon as possible. We don't want a repeat of this afternoon's unfortunate incident, do we?"
This time Dunford had no choice but to acknowledge that this creature was indeed running the estate. "I understand you're in charge here," he finally said.
Henry shrugged. "More or less."
"Aren't you a little, er... young?"
"Probably," Henry replied without thinking. Darn, wrong thing to say. That would only give him an excuse to get rid of her. "But I'm really the best man for the job," she quickly added. "I've been running Stannage Park for years."
"Woman," Dunford murmured.
"Excuse me?"
"Woman. The best woman for the job." His eyes glinted with humor. "You are a woman, are you not?"
Henry, completely missing the fact that he was teasing her, blushed painfully pink. "There's not a man in Cornwall who could do a better job than I do," she muttered.
"I'm sure you're right," Dunford said. "Pigs notwithstanding. But enough of this. Stannage Park looks quite splendidly run. I'm sure you're doing a good job. In fact, perhaps you should be the one to introduce me to the estate." Then he let loose what had to be his most lethal weapon: his smile.
Henry tried very hard not to melt at the sheer force of his grin. She'd never had occasion to meet a man who was quite as much of a... of a man, really, as this one, and she didn't like the way her stomach was fluttering one bit. He didn't look the least bit affected by her presence, she noted with irritation, other than that he obviously found her quite odd. Well, he wouldn't see her swooning all over him. "Certainly," she replied smoothly. "I'd be happy to. Shall we start right now?"
"Henry!" Mrs. Simpson said, rushing over to her side. "His Lordship has just traveled all the way from London. I'm sure he'll want to repair himself. He'll be hungry, too."
Dunford flashed them another one of those deadly smiles. "Famished."
"If I had just inherited an estate, I'd want to see it right away," Henry said loftily. "I'd want to know all about it."
Dunford's eyes narrowed suspiciously. "To be certain, I do want to learn all about Stannage Park, but I don't see why I cannot begin tomorrow morning after I have eaten and rested." He turned back to Henry and inclined his head just a fraction of an inch. "And bathed."
Henry's face burned beet red as she realized the new Lord Stannage was telling her as politely as he could that she stank. "Of course, my lord," she said in a glacial tone. "Your wish is, of course, my command. You are the new lord here, of course."
Dunford thought he might throttle her if she inserted one more "of course" into her speech. Just what was she up to? And why was she suddenly so resentful of him? She'd been all smiles and welcomes just a few minutes earlier. "I cannot tell you how delighted I am to have you at my disposal, Miss Barrett. I'm sorry, er, Henry. And from your rather pretty speech, I can only deduce you are at my complete disposal. How intriguing." He smiled blandly at her and followed Mrs. Simpson into the house.