“If that’s truly how you feel, then dismiss me,” Theodosia said simply. “I’ll return home, and you need never suffer my presence again.”
That got Olivia’s attention. She turned slowly, brow arched in disbelief. “I beg your pardon?”
“If you’re adamant that you don’t want a companion, send me home,” Theodosia repeated. “I don’t need the income, and I would happily return to managing my estate.”
Olivia studied her, as though trying to determine whether she was bluffing. “You cannot be serious.”
“I assure you, I am. Your brother offered me two thousand pounds to come to Town with him to be your companion,” she explained. “If you send me away, I go home two thousand pounds richer, and none the worse for the experience.”
“That is what he offered you to come?”
“He did,” Theodosia confirmed. “But truth be told, I accepted because I’ve never been to London. My mother used to speak so fondly of her time here. I suppose I wanted to see it for myself, just once.”
“And you would walk away without complaint?”
“I would,” Theodosia replied, unwavering.
A long pause followed, and the only sound was the soft ticking of the longcase clock at the end of the hallway.
“You’re not afraid to speak your mind, are you?” Olivia finally asked, sounding half-amused.
“It’s one of the many traits your brother finds aggravating,” Theodosia quipped.
To her great surprise, a smile ghosted across Olivia’s lips—small but genuine. “I do so enjoy vexing my brother. It’s one of life’s simpler pleasures.”
Olivia stepped back, her expression softening, and continued. “I think I might have underestimated you, Miss Theodosia. Perhaps we ought to start over.”
“I would like that very much.”
They resumed walking, the atmosphere between them noticeably lighter.
“I still don’t need a companion,” Olivia said. “But I might… benefit from a friend.”
“That’s good,” Theodosia replied with a smile, matching her stride. “Because I have no idea how to be a proper companion.”
Olivia laughed under her breath. “So tell me—what do you think of London so far?”
She perked up. “It’s unlike anything I’ve ever seen. So many people, so much movement. The buildings seem to stretch forever, and the townhouses… they’re breathtaking.”
Olivia’s smile grew. “Then I must take you to theMinerva Press Circulating Library. It is the largest circulating library in London, with over twenty thousand titles. You might even find a few scandalous French romances if you know where to look.”
“I’d enjoy that very much. And if we are to be friends, you must call me Dosia. It’s far easier to say than Theodosia, and I’ve never forgiven my parents for giving me such a long name.”
Olivia gave a genuine laugh at that. “It’s not that bad.”
“When I was younger,” Theodosia said wistfully, “I would have given anything to be named something simple. I used to pretend I was an Olivia, in fact.”
A faraway look entered Olivia’s eyes, her expression shadowed by something more vulnerable than before. “And I wished I could be anyone else.”
“Truly? But… you were the daughter of a marquess. A lady of rank, wealth, and influence.”
Olivia huffed. “And all the more isolated for it,” she said. “Everyone assumed I had everything. But it is lonely being where I am. You never truly know who’s sincere. Every smile might conceal a motive. Every compliment could be a calculation. And the expectations, they don’t just weigh on you, they smother you.”
“I suppose I hadn’t thought of it that way,” Theodosia responded.
They reached the top of the grand staircase, and Olivia came to a stop, turning to face her with a solemn expression. “You have more freedom than you realize, living in the countryside. There’s a kind of peace in being overlooked. In London, everything is a spectacle. You’re on display—like a specimen under glass. A single misstep, and the whispers begin. And once they do… they never really stop.”
“That sounds awful,” Theodosia murmured.
