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As Elliot once said,Ophelia thought to herself,those kisses do not just feel like something of convenience.
She presumed he must have been thinking something similar, for as he looked at her there was a blush to his cheeks and his eyes wandered down her frame before he cleared his throat and looked away.
“Mrs Mouser, would you be able to show Ophelia the house, please, and to her chamber? I have some business to take care of.”
“Yes, of course.”
With these words, Ophelia was whisked away. Grace pulled on her arm and Mrs Mouser led the way through the nearest door. Ophelia kept glancing back over her shoulder at Elliot. For a minute, he held her gaze, with that tension still between them; then he turned his back and he was gone, hurrying off to his study.
Ophelia tried to tamp down her disappointment. After all, she knew Elliot had money troubles to deal with and he could now sort it with her dowry in his possession, but she’d rather hoped that she wouldn’t be parting from his side just yet.
“There is so much you need to see.” Grace giggled as she dragged Ophelia through the house.
The afternoon passed quickly. The tour of the house undertaken by Mrs Mouser was accompanied at all times by Grace, who offered up stories of what she and Elliot had gone through as children in each room of the house. Ophelia enjoyed hearing such stories, but she was soon dragged forward again, to different rooms.
“Of course, the rooms will have to be replenished now,” Mrs Mouser said, gesturing to the emptiness.
“Yes, they are quite… bare,” Ophelia said quietly. It was plain the state that Elliot’s finances were in, just from the emptiness of the house alone. There was but one chair in the withdrawing room, not big enough for two people, and the music room had only one small harpsichord inside it.
“New staff will have to be hired, too,” Mrs Mouser went on, leading their path from the music room to the kitchens down below. “Here is the heart of the house. As you can see, it is just myself and Yates at the minute.”
She gestured to the cook in the kitchen, who was so shocked at their entrance that he nearly dropped a ball of dough on the floor. Grace giggled, hiding the laugh behind her lips as she hovered behind Ophelia.
“Naturally, the staff should be your domain, Your Grace, but I can make recommendations if you like?”
“Yes, I would like that. Thank you, Mrs Mouser.” Ophelia was beginning to feel anxious. As a duchess, there would be much for her to do around this house, and if they were to bring the house up to a comfortable state, then a lot of new furniture would have to be prepared.
Ophelia had often run such matters at her father’s house, for Gertrude took to such things unnaturally, but Ophelia didn’t doubt the task would be harder in a home of this grand size.
By the time the tour was done, Ophelia and Grace were shown to a small dining room where they shared supper. Ophelia kept looking to the empty chair where Elliot should have sat, but the only answer she had from the housekeeper as to his whereabouts was that he was still attending to business in his study.
Turning her attention to Grace, Ophelia filled her time with finding out more about her sister. She learned of Grace’s passion for music and singing, in particular her love for the piano, and after supper had finished, Grace performed one of her pieces for Ophelia on the harpsichord. With such beautiful music to listen to, Ophelia felt quite free.
Sitting in the one chair in the room, she indulged in that freedom. This was her new life now, and it was far away from Gertrude and Lord Chester. They could not touch her here, nor her money. They could not hurt her.
I have determined my own future.
With this knowledge, once the music came to an end, she clapped warmly and bid Grace to play again.
When she retired for the night to her chamber, she stayed in her nightgown and sat staring into her vanity mirror. She fussed with her hair, trying to make it look nice, and lit two candles to offer some light. Then, she stared at the bedchamber door, waiting for Elliot to approach.
The hours moved on, though, and the door remained closed.
Maybe he will not come?
Chapter 11
“Enough of this,” Elliot muttered to himself as he stood outside of Ophelia’s door. He was dressed in his trousers and a loose shirt, standing beside the door that connected their two chambers. He had been thinking of this moment all afternoon, distracted from his work for he longed to know how this attraction between Ophelia and himself could feel if they indulged in it.
What it would be like to make love to that woman…
Yet the guilt raged on, too. As he had worked on his debts, allocating how her dowry was to pay them off, that remorse had built. Yes, maybe he had helped save her from a marriage she did not want, but it didn’t take away the fact that he was effectively usingher presence to gain her money. She had offered it up to him, but nothing would assuage the guilt.
“Stop this madness,” Elliot murmured, commanding his whirling thoughts to a halt. Lifting a hand to the door, he tapped softly.
“Come in,” Ophelia called to him.
Elliot opened the door slowly and stepped inside. To his delight, he found that Ophelia was waiting for him.
