Isobel was still in deep thought when she felt a presence at her back, her spine going rigid as a voice whispered in her ear.
“Meet me in the library by midnight for your first lesson. Do not be late.”
She recognized the voice and considered chasing him away by ‘accidentally’ hitting him with her elbow, but the feeling of his breath against her skin had suddenly overwhelmed and confused her thoughts.
Her heart was racing too, due to the closeness, and the reaction was so foreign, she wondered if perhaps she had truly fallen ill. It wasn’t until Richard had stepped away from her that sheregained some of her strength, and she frowned, wondering what it was about this arrogant man that affected her so greatly.
“Oh, good morning, Your Grace,” Deborah greeted with a smile.
Bridget smiled too, a genuine one, at the sight of the Duke, curtseying demurely as she peered up at him through her lashes.
“What a delight it is to see you, Your Grace. I’d hoped we would cross paths eventually.”
“I can’t imagine how you missed him previously, when he has a knack for appearing where he isn’t exactly wanted,” Isobel muttered with a roll of her eyes.
Richard’s cold gaze slid over to her, and she pursed her lips together, blinking innocently and drawing a small scoff from him.
“My apologies, Miss Wightman. I have been occupied by a rather… troublesome situation, and my focus is required to handle it appropriately. But when I can gain some freedom from my duties, I will seek you out, personally.” He said to Bridget with a smile.
The way he interacted with Bridget made a surprising sight to Isobel, who would never have guessed that this cold Duke had a charming side. It irritated her for some reason, and rather than continue to witness it, she quickly spoke up,
“I, too, have duties to attend to. I bid you all a good day.”
Before anyone could respond, she gathered her skirts and walked away, unease spreading within her as she wondered what would happen when she saw Richard again tonight.
Isobel wished she could have forgotten that she’d been told to meet the Duke at midnight.
Instead, the invitation has remained at the forefront of her mind, casting every other thought and concern aside until she was focused on nothing other than glancing at the clock to check the time.
Dinner was a bustling affair, with many people voicing how eager they were to witness Valerie get married. She received many cheers and well-wishes that left a bitter taste in her mouth because she felt undeserving of their attention and kindness.
Valerie should be where she was seated. She should be the center of attention. But instead, she was still unconscious and possibly in pain because someone had tried to hurt her for some reason that Isobel needed to uncover.
The rambunctious laughter and ceaseless chatter made her long for her own family, to see her siblings again soon. Her decision to become a nun had barely been contested, but she had felt a little twinge of disappointment as she wondered if perhaps shemight’ve liked to be just as happy as her brother and sisters were, with their husbands and wife.
If all went well, Valerie would be married next week, and Isobel… she would still be alone.
After dinner, she retired to her room, turning down invitations to sing as her aunt played the piano. They pestered her continuously and seemed very surprised when she opposed them stubbornly.
“I suppose Valerie doesn’t refuse them often enough,” she tutted as she closed her door, after she had managed to chase the others away, finally.
There was still some time before she was to meet Richard — much to Isobel’s frustration — and so she pondered on what to do in order to pass the time. She considered drafting a list of potential suspects, but she did not know enough names — other than the few she had learned by chance — or even found enough people suspicious to draft a list.
Still, she pulled a piece of paper from the desk drawer she had seen Richard retrieve some earlier, then she wrote down two names. She stared at the rather vacant list for a moment, then she tucked it away in the drawer.
Then she lay on her bed, imagining what life would be like once this assignment was over. Although it had only been a day since she had arrived, she was quite eager to leave, already tired of feeling out of place.
The guest seemed nice, but Isobel believed it was only because they thought she was someone else. The flaw lay within herself, which was why London’s high society had rejected her after a singular glance.
She bore no shame over how she was raised or who she was, but she couldn’t help but feel as though she had disappointed her siblings and her parents.
The thoughts swirling in her mind left her feeling even more exhausted than she already was, and she did not realize that she was falling asleep until it was too late.
Eventually, she awoke with a start, her heart racing as she sat up in bed, trying to convince her mind to work as it should. The house sounded quiet, and just as she noted how late it must be, she recalled the engagement she had for tonight.
“Oh no,” she mumbled, quickly climbing out of her bed and running out of the room.
In the hallway, she realized she did not know where the library was and had forgotten to ask where it might be, groaning lowly as she began to hurry in search of it.
