Page 1 of A Virgin for the Icy Highlander
1
“How can it be that we only have one month left?” Grace whispered to herself more than to friends, frowning at that distant, unwelcoming border.
In the honeyed light of the late November afternoon, she sat on the wall outside the kirk of the small border town of Lockton with her two dearest friends, Maddie and Lilian. They were waiting for the seamstress to be done with her last few patrons before they could go in to check on the progress of their ‘finishing gowns.’
It was the season for it, with the school year at Horndean School for Ladies coming to a close in a month, and the eldest of them destined never to return.
“All these years. Gone in the blink of an eye,” Maddie murmured.
Lilian took an uneasy breath, her expression reflecting Grace’s inner discomfort. “It has passed all too swiftly. I do not know if I am… ready to go b-backthere.”
The subtle stutter drew Grace’s eye, and she reached across Maddie to take Lilian’s hand, holding it tight. Her friend rarely stuttered now, but when she was in fear or distress, her old habit seemed to return. So, she wasn’t happy going to back to London either.
Maddie puffed out her chest. “Iam tempted to dress as a man and journey directly to Cambridge once our finishing ceremony is over, so I might insist on being allowed to study. I shall steal a name and an identity, and become a student of science, with no one any the wiser.” She sighed, closing her hazel eyes behind her spectacles as if imagining the glory of it.
Lilian swallowed. She mustered a nervous smile while twirling a lock of white-blonde hair around her forefinger—a soothing habit. “I am considering asking Miss Sutton if I might stay, to help teach or look after the other ladies. My brother would not mind it, I am sure.”
“What a fabulous idea!” Grace cheered.
Indeed, she hoped that Miss Sutton would accept Lilian’s request, so there was no risk of the outside world squashing her friend, undoing all the good work of the last three years.
Maddie nodded in effusive agreement. “I cannot think of anyone better, particularly for the younger ladies. Miss Sutton would be delighted to keep you, without a doubt.”
That seemed to lift Lilian’s spirits. Her easy smile returned, pinkening her rosy cheeks, putting sparkles back in her big blue eyes.
“But what of you?” Lilian asked, looking at Grace. “What do you wish to do after we leave?”
Grace puffed a lock of dark hair away from her face. “I will be expected to find a husband, of course,” she muttered. “But I believe I would most like to join you in your adventures at Cambridge, Maddie. Then, I shall never have to endure any man’s scorn or vulgarity or remarks again. That would make everyone happy.”
“How scandalous.” Maddie grinned. “I fear we shall not be rich, but I vow to take care of you, and when I make great discoveries, I shall always name you as my inspiration.”
Grace grimaced, her shoulder slumping. “I shouldn’t have tortured myself. That sounds like perfection, but it will never work.” She kicked her heel against the wall, dislodging a scab of lichen. “According to Marianne, my father has an array of old men lined up already.”
“Your sister said that, specifically?” Lilian chewed on her lip in consternation.
Marianne, Grace’s older sister, was the only one who had bothered to write consistently over the past three years. Although Grace still didn’t know whether she should be grateful or not that Marianne had sent her that warning about her father’s plans.
“She did,” Grace replied, thinking of one old man in particular, shuddering.
She had not forgotten the incident with the Earl of Huston that had sent her to Horndean in the first place, though there wassomesatisfaction in knowing that her father thought she was having a terrible time, being whipped into wifely shape, while she was actually having the most wonderful years of her life.
So much so that she did not want to return to London and Society at all.
She told her friends that. “The only thing I miss is the dancing. I always adored it; it was the rest of the balls I didn’t care for. Still, I think it rather unfair that I was only permitted a year-and-a-half after my debut to find a husband before my father decided to find one for me.”
Maddie’s expression darkened. “You don’t think that disgusting Earl will be waiting for you, do you?”
“I hope not,” Grace replied, swallowing down a sour mouthful of concern before jumping off the wall. “Come on, we ought to see if the dresses are ready for us. It is almost five.”
As they were hurrying, in case the shop closed before they could reach it—Grace saw Miss Sutton, who appeared to have stopped dead in the middle of the street for no reason at all. She had her back to the trio, bobbing her head, humming under her breath.
“Miss Sutton?” Grace said, resting a tentative hand on her headmistress’s shoulder.
The founder ofHorndean Boarding School for Ladies who Need a Second Chance, as she officially called it, jumped, before whirling around with a bright smile on her pretty face. She was no older than thirty, though it was an easy fact to forget, when she had achieved so much in such a short time and ruled her school so capably. She was more of a big sister than a headmistress.
“Do you hear that?” she asked, swaying a little.
At that moment, Grace became aware of music drifting up the narrow alleyway that branched off to the right. She would have missed it entirely had Miss Sutton not stopped still in front of it, directing their attention.
