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‘Well, no. There was no plotting involved,’ Norma replied. ‘We were invited to dine and accepted. Morgan asked you, not me.’
Sissy didn’t reply before she left the room and disappeared to her bed chamber, but not to get ready for the picnic. That was something she most definitely was going to attend no matter how much Norma refused to lie for her. But when Morgan’s carriage arrived to collect her, Sissy was shocked to find that Morgan had come himself to fetch her.
‘You cannot send him on his way, it is rude,’ Norma hissed.
‘And you would know all about considering one’s feelings, wouldn’t you?’ Sissy snapped coldly.
Disgusted, she swiftly changed. With barely anything more than a brief glance at her curls, she gathered her shawl and sailed out of the room. Norma followed her but Sissy didn’t bother to even look at her aunt. Consequently, the atmosphere between them was rather strained when Morgan stepped into the house.
‘I thought I would come and fetch you and take the carriage for a drive,’ he offered when he had bowed a greeting and told Sissy how stunning she looked.
In reality, she looked strained, uncomfortable, and distinctly out of sorts with her aunt. Norma looked equally awkward and more than a little subdued. Morgan wanted to ask what had gone wrong but was aware of the curious looks they were getting from the locals.
‘My mother is in the carriage,’ Morgan offered. ‘Shall we?’
He didn’t mention that he had felt compelled to come and fetch Sissy himself because he suspected she was going to try to send her apologies at the last moment. He had no intention of giving her the chance to have second thoughts about today. It was, after all, nothing more than a picnic.
Sissy gasped when she descended the steps at the front of her house and saw not just Morgan’s carriage, but a large cart piled high with all sorts of furniture, baskets, and servants. There was a veritable army of staff piled as haphazardly as the contents of the cart, all clutching various bits of paraphernalia for the picnic.
‘This reminds me so much of the picnics we used to have when your father was alive, dear,’ Norma murmured with a whimsical smile.
Sissy didn’t bother to answer. Instead, she climbed aboard and greeted Alicia who was tucked comfortably beneath a knee blanket.
‘I am sure we have caused enough of a spectacle today, Morgan. Let’s get on our way, shall we?’ Alicia threw a worried look at her son.
Morgan climbed aboard and took a seat beside Sissy. He struggled not to stare at her. Sissy looked captivating bathed in the morning sunshine. A riot of auburn ringlets danced and bobbed about the delicate porcelain features on top of which was a fine straw hat. To him she looked stunning, truly refined. It was difficult to comprehend that she was essentially as poor as a church mouse. As far as he was concerned that made her even more appealing because there was nothing pretentious about her. What he saw was someone who was polite and genteel but only because she had been raised to be that way.
‘How have you been this morning?’ Morgan asked Sissy once Alicia had engaged Norma in desultory conversation. They were discussing various landmarks on the landscape as it rolled past and their personal reminiscences about their visits there.
‘Fine, thank you.’ Sissy was aware of Norma looking at them but turned her gaze out of the window beside Morgan.
‘What’s wrong?’ Morgan whispered for her ears alone. ‘Something is.’
‘It is nothing.’ To try to prove it, Sissy offered him a brave smile, but it went nowhere near her eyes and disappeared as soon as it had been attempted.
‘Did you have second thoughts about coming today?’ Morgan whispered.
Sissy didn’t want to lie to him but she could see no reason to be honest either. She had wanted to send her apologies but when she had seen Morgan’s carriage pull up outside, and the curtains twitching up and down the street, a defiant part of her she barely recognised refused to cower away like she was guilty of something.
‘Sordid gossip is all that is wrong with me,’ she whispered out of the corner of her mouth.
‘Bad?’
‘Enough for me to do my shopping elsewhere,’ Sissy murm
ured.
Morgan frowned thoughtfully at her but with Norma and Alicia lapsing into temporary silence as well, was refrained from asking her for further detail.
‘Then I shall have to do the same,’ Morgan assured her.
‘One would assume that you would do your shopping further afield, like in town or something given it has to feed the estate,’ Sissy murmured.
‘Most of our shopping is delivered, my dear. Because our orders are so large, we get a lot delivered to the orangery. The staff bring it to the house from there,’ Alicia explained.
Sissy nodded.
‘Sissy went to the shops this morning,’ Norma offered. ‘It appears that Morgan’s purchase of the house has everyone gossiping.’
