Braden shook his head. “Not after that traumatic experience at Eskbank. Frankly, I think Kade will be more comfortable with a woman teaching him. I told Nick that last month.”
She darted a questioning look at Nick.
He nodded. “It was Braden’s idea to acquire a female teacher for Kade, and I now understand why he was so insistent. But it was my idea to have you also teach deportment to my other brothers.”
When she began to scowl, he held up a hand. “We will defer that subject for now.”
“Or forever,” she muttered.
The knot inside his chest began to unravel. It seemed like she might be willing to take the job, after all.
Royal sighed. “It seems like we do need a woman’s influence around this blasted place after all.”
Nick raised his eyebrows. “Well, Miss Knight, what do you think? Are you up to the challenge?”
She frowned, clearly debating with herself. “Subject to Kade’s needs and wishes, I will have full control over course material and teaching methods?”
He nodded, knowing he could trust her to treat Kade gently.
“And you will see to it that Mr. MacDonald will cease his campaign against me?”
“He will, but if he doesn’t, I will,” Braden said sternly.
His brothers seemed to join Nick in holding their collective breath, waiting for her decision. When she finally met Nick’s gaze, her expression was both wry and resigned.
“Then, yes, Lord Arnprior,” she said. “I will accept the position.”
Chapter Nine
Victoria corrected Kade’s fingering on the keys of the Broadwood grand piano. “Try that. And perhaps it might help to slow down while you’re starting out, since it’s such a challenging piece.”
The boy gave her a comical grimace. “My music teacher in Glasgow used to tell me that I always pushed too hard when starting a new piece of music. He said I needed to learn patience if I truly wished to excel.”
She smiled. “Don’t tell anyone, but I’ve always thought patience is overrated. I don’t think there’s anything wrong in tackling something head-on and with enthusiasm.”
Victoria invariably approached a new composition, especially something as technically complex as Beethoven’s Sonata Twenty-one, with a sense of excitement that made her forget everything but mastering the challenge.
“I won’t tell Nick you said that,” Kade said with a chuckle. “He’d be shocked to hear my governess encouraging me to rebel against one of the cardinal virtues.”
She leaned closer on the padded piano bench, as if sharing a confidence. “We’ll make it our little secret, shall we? We can be rebels together.”
The shy pleasure in his smile warmed her more than the roaring fire in the hearth.
“I’m so glad you came all this way to teach me,” he said, returning his attention to the music stacked on top of the piano. “I hate that Nick worries about me. But he seems to feel better knowing I’ve got you to look after me. Not that I truly need anyone to look after me,” he hastily added. “I’m not a baby.”
“Indeed no,” she said gravely. “In fact, I believe I spot a few gray hairs sprouting on the top of your head.”
Kade snickered.
In truth, he was little more than a boy, and a very sensitive one at that. Every time she thought about the trauma he’d suffered she wanted to cry or rage at the heavens. She could hardly imagine that anyone could inflict so much harm on a child, though that was a foolishly naïve view of the world. Her own experience had taught her that cruelty lurked everywhere, even among the highest ranks of society. Victoria could almost believe that wealthy, powerful men like Thomas Fletcher were the worst, because they often used their privilege to abuse others.
As Kade began again, his fingers dancing over the keys, she fetched an Argand lamp from the sideboard and carefully placed it on the piano.
They were in the private family drawing room, waiting for the others to come upstairs after dinner. Since dusk came so early to the Highlands at this time of year, the Kendricks kept sensible—if unfashionable—country hours. She and Kade had already gotten into the habit of excusing themselves before the sweets course, going upstairs to spend time at the piano before the tea tray arrived and the brothers joined them.
She’d taken up the position of tutor with a sort of grim determination, unable to turn her back on Kade after listening to Braden’s horrific tale. She would have done it for the boy’s sake, of course, but there was another element that had caught her by surprise—her inability to say no to Arnprior. He’d clearly been devastated by Kade’s plight, his grief and fury all but shimmering around him like a dark halo. He’d controlled his reaction with admirable discipline, but Victoria wasn’t fooled. That he blamed himself for what happened to Kade was obvious. That he felt rather helpless in managing the situation was apparent, too.
So, when he’d quietly asked her to stay, she’d said yes. She wouldn’t have been able to live with herself if she’d turned her back on the Kendrick family when there was even a remote chance she could help. Not even if it meant spending the winter holed up in a drafty, remote castle with what must be the most stubborn group of men in Scotland.
