AllFreeNovel
Share Us
When they finally arrived at the townhouse, Olivia headed up the stairs to her room where she waited for her maid, who had arrived just a short time earlier in a separate carriage, to attend to her. She took a bath and donned a fresh, clean nightdress, but all of her movements were wooden, as if she was a puppet on strings, being led around. When she was finally left alone in her bed, her tears were her companion. She wept for her father, and for her sisters, and for the estate, but most of all, she wept for Miles.
It was almost ironic, considering she had been so reticent about wedding the duke in the first place, that she should be so aggrieved that the marriage hadn’t taken place.
For two days, Olivia’s sisters seemed content to allow her to wallow in her own self-misery with only a novel for company that generally lay untouched on her bedside table. By the third morning, Calliope entered the room like a whirlwind. She dismissed her maid when she was getting ready to open her curtains for the day and her sister marched over and threw the drapes apart herself. Sunlight instantly filled the room.
“What a glorious day it is, Livy!” she announced.
Olivia groaned and pulled the duvet over her head. “Go away,” she mumbled.
Within moments, the covering was pulled out of her grasp and Calliope had jumped on the bed and put her face directly above hers. “There shall be no more moping about. Tonight, there is a masked ball at Vauxhall, andweare going!”
Olivia stared at the canopy above her and thought that sounded about as pleasant as sticking a needle in her eye. “Must I?”
“Yes,” her sister returned firmly. “You know if Minty was here she would have pushed you to leave this room before now, so you should be grateful Isa and I allowed you a reprieve for as long as we have, but it’s time to get up and face the day. The invitation arrived this morning and even Isadora is encouraging us to attend!”
Olivia’s lips curved upward. “While I appreciate your combined sensitivity on my behalf, I just don’t think I can pretend as though everything is fine. I fear I would be very poor company, indeed.”
“It doesn’t matter if you engage in polite conversation. I just want you to come with me.” Calliope lifted a brow. “Surely that isn’t too much to ask?”
She adopted an exaggerated pout and Olivia couldn’t help but laugh. It sounded rusty, since it seemed forever that she’d done so. That’s when she knew she’d lost the battle. “Very well.”
“Huzzah!” Callie threw her arms around her and gave her a huge hug, and then she crawled off the bed and went to Olivia’s wardrobe. After a moment of riffling through the dresses, she pulled forth a dark blue satin with a gold ribbon about the empire waist. “I don’t believe you’ve worn this yet, and it will look perfect with your coloring!”
Olivia might have agreed to go with her sister to Vauxhall, but that didn’t mean she could summon up the proper excitement about attending. “Whatever you decide is fine with me.”
Calliope winked. “Then that’s the one. I do so enjoy it when I get my way.”
With that, she waltzed out of the room while Olivia attempted to find the proper motivation to drag herself out of bed.
* * *
Miles was aboutto rouse his mother from her slumber and show her what he’d found, but when he entered the wing that led to the bedchambers, he skidded to a halt. Miss Stillwater was standing in the middle of the hall. She was wearing a nightdress, and her hair was unbound.
He approached her cautiously. “My lady, what are you doing out of your room?”
She turned and offered a bright smile. “Your Grace, there you are! I was looking for you.”
“It’s quite early,” he said evenly. “Perhaps you should return to your chamber.”
“If only you will come with me,” she said with a sly smile. “How ever shall I beget your heir otherwise?”
This is where he had to tread carefully. “You claimed you were already carrying my child.”
She waved a hand and offered a slight giggle. “A slight untruth to ensure you chose me over that other woman. I was always meant to be a duchess, you see.” She gathered her nightdress and splayed the material to the sides and did a slight pirouette. “Don’t you think I shall be grand in the role?”
“Indeed,” he returned evenly. “But even the best duchesses need their proper rest.”
A maid came rushing around the corner but halted when she spied the master and Miss Stillwater. Her eyes widened, but Miles held out a hand to Miss Stillwater, as if he might be soothing a spooked horse, as his focus shifted briefly to the maid. “Perhaps you might prepare a tincture for the lady? She requires some help going back to sleep.”
“O’ course.” She rushed to do his bidding while Miss Stillwater allowed Miles to lead her back to her room.
It didn’t take long before the maid had returned with the housekeeper, Mrs. Harper, in tow. The former was carrying a steaming cup of liquid. “Your Grace, I apologize for the disruption to your evening.” As an aside to him, she said, “This is not the first time I have seen this sort of behavior. One of the villagers had the same ailment and there were many times I had to prepare something special to ensure she could… rest easy. But I fear there was only so much that could be done.”
Miles nodded in understanding.
In turn, Miss Stillwater’s eyes brightened when she spied the lady. “Is it time for my medicine again?”
“Yes, my lady.” The housekeeper’s voice was firm, but kind. “Let’s get you tucked in, shall we?”
