Page 43 of A Highland Duke to Claim Her Heart

“That is very gratifying,” she said carefully.

“It is,” Lillian said, although her expression did not seem to be one of gratitude. It was conflicted and unhappy. “I was not expecting it.”

“Were you really not?” Cassandra was curious now. “It seems so obvious to me that his feelings for you are tender ones.”

“I suppose…” Lillian looked away. “But it cannot be. My family is poor, my father has lost everything, and I have no dowry to speak of. And Mr. Greybourne’s family, while respectable, has no fortune either. No matter what his feelings for me might be, a match between us would be imprudent for all involved.”

Cassandra frowned at her. “You have spoken of the imprudence of it, but you have not spoken at all about your feelings. Do you like Mr. Greybourne? If it were not for the money, would you welcome his attention? His courtship?”

Lillian hesitated, but the spark of delight that flickered through her eyes told Cassandra everything she needed to know.

“You do like him,” she said, not able to keep herself from smiling any longer. “That is wonderful, Lillian! He is a very amiable and reliable man, I know that the duke holds him in the highest esteem!”

“But it cannot be!” Lillian said, her voice growing increasingly distressed. “He needs an heiress, and I need a husband with some kind of fortune. I cannot be a governess forever, Cassandra. Well, I suppose I could, but it would be difficult. Annabelle will grow up one day, and then I will have to find another charge, move away from Calder…”

She looked away, but not before Cassandra saw the blur of tears in her eyes.

“I grew up not far from here, you know,” she murmured. “Calder is my home. I would wish to stay here forever. But if I cannot secure a match with a gentleman of means, then I will be forced to go to Inverness, or Edinburgh, and try to find work. I will be on my own, unprotected, poor…”

Cassandra said nothing to this. She knew first hand what it was like to travel to an unknown place, far from home, in order to begin an uncertain new life. She had traveled all the way to rural Scotland to marry a man she hardly knew.

But it was also not the same. Cassandra had been leaving home to marry a wealthy gentleman who would take care of her. Lillian would be leaving Calder in order to work for a pittance. She would, as she said, be alone and unprotected, which could be dangerous for a young woman.

“The duke…” she began slowly. “He will take care of you. He would not allow you to find yourself in a bad situation. I am sure that he would provide for you.”

Lillian shook her head. “I cannot ask that of him. He is already paying me far more than most governesses make. He knows my father, you see, and although he does not approve of his bad investments, he always took pity on me and my mother.”

“He is a very good man,” Cassandra said, a lump rising in her throat as she thought of how Ewan had looked the day before, bent over his daughter’s bedside, his brow creased with worry, his eyes filled with love. “And you do not have to ask him for help. He will provide it.”

But Lillian did not look convinced. “I must find a husband who can provide for me,” she said, and she sounded more determined now. “And I must not let myself get distracted by other… sentiments.”

“Are you sure?” Cassandra said, but Lillian’s expression had already settled into something so implacable that Cassandra knew she would not get through to her.

Anyway, she wasn’t sure if she was even right to encourage Lillian to accept Mr. Greybourne’s attention. She herself had married for practical financial and political reasons. Who was she to tell another woman to behave differently?

And yet…

When she tried to imagine how it would feel to be married to Christopher, to feel these tender things for Ewan while another man was her husband…

She did not even like to consider how terrible that would feel.

After they returned to the house, Cassandra went to check on Annabelle. The girl was resting, and after making sure that she was feeling better and was not in need of anything, Cassandra found that she very much wanted to be alone.

A long walk was exactly what she needed. But she was just coming down the stairs in her pelisse and walking boots when she heard her name being called, and she turned to see her father hurrying after her down the stairs.

“Are you going out?” he asked, and, before he could answer, he continued, “Good, I was also thinking of going for a walk. I shall accompany you.”

It took all of Cassandra’s training to hide her irritation. Forcing herself to smile, she nodded. “Of course, Father. You are welcome to join me.”

Once they were out of the castle gates, he cleared his throat and gave her a very serious look.

“You are doing well here, Cassandra,” he murmured, clasping his hands behind his back. “Better than I ever could have anticipated.”

Cassandra said nothing. She was used to her father’s backhanded compliments.

“When I first learned that Christopher was missing and you would be marrying the duke, I was worried,” he continued. “Of course, I was pleased you would become the duchess, but I was worried I had not prepared you for the role you were about to step into. And I feared you would not know how to handle a man as difficult and recalcitrant as the duke.”

“Is he recalcitrant?” Cassandra asked, a little surprised. “I have found him to know his own mind, yes, but not stubborn.”