Page 25 of A Lady to Reveal (Sherton Sisters 4)

Adelina’s expressive face appeared mutinous for a moment, but then she capitulated.

“My apologies, Jonesy, I meant you no disrespect. But the wait is torturing me.”

Felicity laughed over the dramatic turn of phrase. “I understand, my dear. I know it’s hard to wait for something so longed for, but if we keep ourselves busy enough, I promise you, the days will go by quickly. And remember, we still have much to plan for their arrival. While it might have been better for you to have not been told, I do think you would wish to have some things planned to celebrate their homecoming.”

“Well that’s true, Jonesy,” the child agreed quickly. “And I would have hated it if you knew and didn’t tell me.”

Felicity grinned. “That would have been most disloyal of me, wouldn’t it?”

She heard a snort behind them and remembered that the duke was paying close attention to their conversation. Heat filled her once more, but Felicity again chose to ignore the strange reactions the man caused her. Turning her attention back to Adelina, Felicity kept her engaged in coming up with ideas for entertaining her brothers all the way back to the house.

True to her words, the days did fly by, at least for Felicity. Adelina complained at times that she couldn’t bear the wait another moment, but before they were thoroughly beside themselves, the day dawned for the brothers to arrive. Even Felicity was excited. She supposed it was a contagious sentiment. She had little to no experience with boys, and she admitted to herself that she was actually a trifle nervous about how she was to interact with the young gentlemen. She also wondered how her position in the household might be altered upon their arrival.

But that was a concern for another day. Surely, the duke realized he had sons who might return home one day when he hired her, so Felicity wasn’t going to allow herself to dwell on her worries. She just wondered if she might be a trifle redundant if Adelina were off with her brothers all day.

“Don’t you have anything more festive to wear, Jonesy?” Adelina asked as she surveyed her companion’s attire the morning of the brothers’ expected arrival.

Felicity laughed, not in the least offended. She had only packed sober gowns and not many of them. In her role as an impoverished young woman seeking employment, ball gowns were far from welcome.

“I do not, my lady,” she answered simply.

“Could you perhaps do something more interesting with your hair, then?” Adelina asked next.

Felicity’s skills with hair styling probably wouldn’t allow for it for one thing, but that was not what she told the child.

“Adelina, my dear, your brothers are not of an age that they will even notice my hair or gown, I’m most certain. And if they were, I would absolutely not wish to engage their interest. So no, I do not need to change my hair or clothes.”

The girl appeared nonplussed and even a little hurt by her companion’s words, so Felicity hurried to reassure her.

“We are doing everything we could possibly think of to make sure your brothers feel welcomed home. I promise you, they will be pleased to see us however we are gowned. They will have been travelling for two days and will most likely be tired and hungry. And perhaps bored silly. We will have our work cut out for us to engage their interest, but I am not willing to look a mess just because you are anxious about it. As I told you before, this is the best style for my hair. You have learned to endure it. They will, too.”

Adelina appeared undecided about her reaction for a brief moment, but then she finally laughed.

“Am I being completely ridiculous, Jonesy?”

“Not completely,” Felicity replied with a smile. “I know how excited you are to see your brothers. I cannot believe you haven’t seen them for so long,” she added before it struck her that she might not see her own sisters for the same or longer. Felicity quickly swallowed down the lump that formed in her throat over the thought. That was something she would have to take up with herself when she had a moment alone. Now was certainly not the time.

“What time do you think they’ll arrive?” Adelina was nearly vibrating with her excitement.

“Lady Adelina, my dear girl, you are going to have to strive to get through the day. I’m afraid it might not be until nightfall, as they do have a long way to travel.”

The child’s face fell, and she appeared to be on the verge of tears, causing Felicity to regret her honesty.

“Perhaps, we could go in search of your father and find out if they sent word as to their itinerary. While things can go wrong, the weather has been fair, and they would no doubt be travelling on well worn roads, there’s no reason to expect they would encounter many delays.”

Felicity had been making every effort to avoid the duke since their excursion to the village, so she surprised even herself with her suggestion. But it was the only way they could possibly know for sure, and Felicity couldn’t bear to make the child to sit on tenterhooks for the entire day.

Adelina danced before her as they went in search of the duke. She almost barged into the library when they arrived but with a glance at Felicity, the girl contained herself and knocked vigorously.

She pranced in upon the duke’s call to enter.

“Father, we’ve come to find out if you’ve received word from Gardner. Do you have any idea what time we might be able to expect them?”

“Good day, my daughter,” Rathnelly greeted with a warm smile before he answered. “I did hear from the boys’ tutor. They sent a messenger from the inn they stayed at last night. They expect to be here before dark.”

Adelina’s face fell. “Jonesy was right, then,” she said mournfully. “I was hoping they’d arrive this morning.”

“Don’t you remember when you came home from school?” Rathnelly asked with a frown.

Adelina shrugged, and Felicity stepped in to offer an explanation. “Our hearts are often less than reasonable, Your Grace. She was merely hopeful.” She put her hand out toward Adelina. “Come along. Let us find the maps and guess which route they might have taken. If His Grace could tell us which inn they stayed at, we might be able to calculate their arrival.”

Felicity’s gaze encountered that of the duke, and she frowned over what she saw on his face. He appeared to be torn between admiration and suspicion. But she couldn’t fathom what could be suspicious about what she had said. She mentally shrugged and led the child away as soon as he had told them the name of the village where they had spent the night.

As they walked away, it crossed Felicity’s mind to wonder why the duke was always so very busy. While a dukedom was surely more complicated than an earl’s responsibilities, she would never have thought it would be quite that occupying. She wondered if she ought to feel sorry for him or somehow offer her assistance before dismissing the thought. It was unlikely he would welcome her intrusion.

Gracie,

I’m sorry my letters have become less frequent. It’s hard to find the time with such an inquisitive charge. I do miss you still, though, I promise.

Do you think I could become a clerk next? I do think it would be quite in keeping with my temperament. But it is likely I would need an even better disguise. Don’t have apoplexy, I’m mostly jesting.

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