Page 56 of Enthralled in the Governess' Gaze
A lie, Edward knew, meant to help them get away from the Hutches. A believable one, at least. He slipped from Cressida’s grip and moved to hook Emily’s arm around his. He wished to do the same to Miss Clifford…to make it clear to Alvin that she was not for him. Edward knew he should not, however. It would make her more of a target for Cressida’s snide remarks and likely intensify Alvin’s interest in her.
“Good day to you both,” Edward said to the siblings before he quickly moved toward the shop’s door with Emily in tow. He glanced back to make sure Miss Clifford was following them and was relieved that she was close behind.
Cressida and Alvin were watching them go, neither looking happy.
Once the three of them were outside, Edward came to a stop and released a long breath.
“What an unfortunate turn of events,” Emily muttered. “I did not imagine we would run into them so soon.”
Edward nodded. “Neither did I. I suppose it was going to happen sooner or later, though. At least it is over with now.” He looked toward Miss Clifford, who appeared troubled, her brow furrowed. “Are you all right?”
She met his gaze, looking almost surprised by his question, but nodded. “Yes, my lord.”
“Are you certain?” he pressed. “Mr Hutches’ comments were unseemly.”
She gave him a small smile that did not quite reach her eyes. “He was quite rude, my lord, yes. However, it is not my place to speak ill of a gentleman.”
That almost made Edward chuckle. He knew her well enough at this point that he was quite certain she would happily speak ill of Alvin in a more private setting. She was very aware of their being in public, however, and was minding her tongue. His respect for her only seemed to grow when they were around each other, even though he would have very much enjoyed watching her put Hutches in his place.
“Do you still feel like going for tea?” he asked.
Emily sighed. “We might as well, though I doubt I will be able to enjoy it quite so much now.”
Edward understood exactly what she meant, but still, he did not want Cressida and Alvin to ruin their entire afternoon. It was too much for him to give after all that they had taken from him already.
“Come along, then,” he said, turning to lead them down the street toward the tea house. “Let us not linger and risk them coming back out.”
The three made their way along together, determined to salvage their afternoon, but Edward knew it would be nearly impossible for him to shake the pall that Cressida’s presence had left over him. She was like a dark cloud, blocking out any remnants of the sun…and he feared he would be haunted by her rejection for the remainder of his life.
Chapter 29
Later that week, Victoria made her way downstairs with a letter clenched in her hand. She wanted to give it to the kitchen maid to mail out. The two had made an arrangement with each other, and whenever the maid went out for supplies, she would take Victoria’s letters with her.
Victoria had been missing her family terribly over the last few days. She always missed them, but since her encounter with Cressida and Mr Hutches, the pain of loss had grown even greater.
When she reached the bottom of the stairs, she turned to head in the direction of the kitchen but came to a sudden stop when she nearly ran into Lord Harford. He appeared as startled to see her as she was to see him. He was dressed to go out and appeared to be heading straight for the front door.
“Oh, Miss Clifford,” he said, a small tremor in his voice. “What a pleasant surprise. Where are you headed to at this time of day?”
Victoria blinked, struggling to find her words before she finally managed to mutter, “I was on my way to the kitchen, my lord.”
“I see.” He glanced down, and his gaze landed on the letter in her hands.
Too late to hide it completely, Victoria at least made sure he could not see the address written on it.
“I should be going, my lord,” she quickly said, moving to try and dodge around him.
He proved faster, however, and stepped in her path, blocking her way.
“I can mail that out for you,” he told her. “I am going out anyway.”
Victoria sucked in a breath, her mind scrambling to come up with some excuse to give him so he would not get hold of the letter.
“That really is not necessary,” she replied with a forced smile. “I would not wish to trouble you.”
She tried to get around him again, but he once more blocked her.
“It’s really no problem,” he insisted. “It will not take me any kind of effort.”
