Sarah’s enthusiasm was infectious, but Letitia didn’t dare let herself get her hopes up.
“That duke is a madman,” she reminded Sarah—but very quietly. She might not trust the Duke of Rutley’s motivations, but she wasn’t stupid enough to out and out insult a gentleman in his own home. No, that kind of thing was why they had invented whispering. “He came to ourhometo badger us into accepting the position.”
This did not have the effect that Letitia might have hoped for. Sarah sighed dreamily, then lifted her valise again.
“I know,” she said, stars in her eyes as she looked at the grand house. And this was just the view from the back, from the servants’ entrance. “He knew you weresowonderful as a governess that he neededyouspecifically. It’s like a?—”
“If you say ‘fairy tale,’ I am going to wallop you,” Letitia warned.
Sarah sniffed. “I was going to say ‘romantic novel,’” she said with affront, then giggled and darted out of the way as Letty smacked at her.
Despite this bit of silliness, they were both the very picture of decorum when the butler came to greet them mere moments after one of the kitchen maids admitted them.
“Good afternoon,” he said, voice pleasant but formal. “Miss Knightley and Miss Greystone, I presume?”
Sarah looked liable to faint over so grand a person as a duke’s butler knowing her name.
“Yes, indeed, sir,” she said, nodding eagerly. She was going to bobble her head right off. “And we are ever so grateful for the opportunity, Mr.—”
“Marling,” the man supplied, looking unwittingly charmed by Sarah’s eagerness. “And the pleasure is all ours, Miss Greystone, I am sure.”
There was no irony in his tone; he had not so much as glanced at Sarah’s missing hand. Letitia liked him immediately.
That was, until he went on.
“We shall get you situated in your quarters presently, but first, His Grace would like to greet you.”
It took nearly all of Letitia’s self-control not to groan aloud.
Sarah was nearly trembling with nerves and excitement as they were led through the halls of the house, which was, Letitia could admit, very nice. It was clean, well-maintained, and decked out in all the splendor that a dukedom could buy.
Which was, she allowed, a great deal of splendor.
The duke was sitting in a bright room full of windows, holding a newspaper with one leg casually crossed over the other. He looked perfectly posed to appear as a gentleman at ease... which, of course, made Letitia immediately suspect that he had been waiting for them quite avidly.
Of course, hehadrather given himself away by coming to her home and all but begging her to take the job.
“Oh, Your Grace, good day,” Sarah said at once, curtsying as deeply as she might have done for the king himself. Despite this show of deference, she was beaming in a far-too-familiar manner.
The duke, being what he was, grinned back with equal lack of formality.
“Good to see you again, Miss Greystone,” the duke replied. Out of the corner of her eye, Letitia saw the butler twitch slightly at thisagain, but he was too well-trained to do anything more. “And Miss Knightley.”
Letty wrangled her face into what might possibly pass for a smile.
“Your Grace,” she offered blandly.
And, because he was unquestionably one of the world’s most irritating people, he seemed simplydelightedby this passivity.
“Marling, please show Miss Greystone up to her room on the third floor. I shall speak briefly with Miss Knightley and then direct her to her rooms near the nursery.”
“Of course, Your Grace,” Marling said with a neat bow. “Miss Greystone?”
Sarah was practically hopping as she left the room after Marling. She didn’t even look back at Letitia once.
So much for loyalty.
She braced herself for the duke to say something that made her want to smack him, but instead, he stood politely to face her, his hands clasped behind his back.
