Callie Hutton (7 page)

“Miss Chambers is no longer your governess. We will abide by my schedule which does not allow for strolls out
doors
during regular schoolroom time.” Miss Jennings raised her chin a notch,
her face red
.

“Lady Charlotte!”

Merry entered the nursery in the midst of an apparent mutiny by her former charges.

Both girls hurried to her side, hugging her fiercely.

“Miss Jennings doesn’t do things as you do.
S
he won’t let us go for a walk.” Clare gazed up at Merry, tears brimming her eyes. She stuck her thumb in her mouth and rested her head along Merry’s hip.

“Miss Jennings is now your governess, and she will surely do things differently
, pet
.
” She ran her fingers through the young girl’s silky curls. “
But it’s part of your growth, and j
ourney toward womanhood
,
to be exposed to other routines.” She bent and eyed Charlotte. “And I believe you owe Miss Jennings an apology for the way you spoke to her just now.”

The governess moved forward, lips in a thin line. “Thank you Miss Chambers, but I am capable of handling my charges.” She turned her attention to the girls, still clinging to Merry. “Ladies, you will write a composition on proper manners. I will expect to see the finished essay before dinner.”

Heat flooded Merry’s face at the dismissal. Was the woman purposely attempting to make Merry dislike her? Or was it just her nature to be so abrupt? Someone else besides the girls needed to do an essay on proper manners.

At a
nudge
from Merry, Charlotte mumbled “Sorry,
Miss Jennings.
” The girls released Merry and trudged toward the table.

“Miss Chambers, may I speak with you outside, please?”

Merry
gave her a curt nod and
spun on
h
er heel to leave
the room. She waited
on the other side of
the doorway for Miss Jennings.

“I understand the young ladies have an attachment to you, however, now that I am in charge, I would appreciate you only coming to the nursery upon invitation. Perhaps you may join them for their afternoon tea.”

All manner of insulting words raced through Merry’s head, but realizing Miss Jennings only spoke the truth, albeit in a not very nice way, she merely nodded. “I apologize for disturbing you. I shall return for afternoon tea.”

“Not today,” Miss Jennings said.

Merry raised her eyebrows, afraid to open her mouth, less her vicious thoughts spew forth.

“They are being punished for poor manners. Although, I don’t expect their manner
s to improve until they’ve had
good
English
lessons on deportment.”

After a moment of stunned silence at the wo
man’s impudence, Merry asked, “D
o you speak German, Miss Jennings?”

The woman’s eyes widened. “No, I do not. Every properly brought up young lady should know French
and Italian
.
It is not necessary
for one
to
acquire knowledge of
the
more advanced
languages.
”

“Good
.
w
ü
nsche ein tausend Floh zum ihrem Bett kommen.
”

Leaving
the
confused
governess
not understanding Merry just wished her a thousand
fleas
in her bed
, Merry hurried away from the nursery, taking gulps of air to control her anger.

She charged down the stairs, muttering to herself until she reached the bottom of the staircase, swung left, and walked into a brick wall.

Penrose grasped her by the arms to keep her from falling backwards. Merry yelped and tried to
retreat
, but he held her firm.

“Are you all right, Miss Chambers?”
             
She
looked into those deep
brown
eyes, now full of concern. The
hint
of Bay rum and brandy drifted toward her. Plus another scent that she’d already identified as Penrose. Merry struggled to contain her emotions, and replied in a shaky voice,
“I am perfectly well, thank you, Your Grace.”

He released her, still watching her with a guarded expression.
With trembling fingers,
s
he patted the sides and back of her hair, barely noticing it had almost
fallen
completely down again.

“You don’t look well. Your face is flushed, and your breathing is quite rapid.”

“I just came down the stairs too fast. If you will excuse me.” She shifted to go around him, but he stepped into her path.

“
It’s
more than you hurrying. Something has upset you.”

Reconciled to having this conversation, Merry drew back and crossed her arms
, still shaken from her encounter with Miss Jennings
. “I’m afraid my attachment to the girls is stronger than I realized.”

Then to her abject horror, she burst into tears.

Penrose placed his hand on her lower back and moved her toward the library. “Send some tea in, Jasper.” The footman standing at the door
nodded and headed in the direction of
the kitchen.

The
duke
drew a handkerchief from his pocket and handed
it
to Merry.
He led her to a comfortable chair in front of the fireplace where she sob
bed
into the cloth. The embarrassment of Miss Jennings
’
set
-down was nothing compared to the complete humiliation of breaking down
before
the
duke
. Sobbing like a school girl, she cried for her dear friends who’d died too young, for the beautiful daughters they left behind, and for the sadness in the girls eyes when she left them at the nursery.

After a few minutes, her sobs turned to soft hiccups, as a tea tray was carried in and placed on the table before her. The duke, who sat in the chair across, eyed her carefully.

She peeked at him over the handkerchief wondering if she could run from the room without making a complete cake of herself.

“No, don’t leave. Have
your
tea, it will calm your nerves.” His deep voice, kinder than she’d heard thus far
,
soothed her.

The man was a mind reader
, or was it so easy to discern her thoughts?
Merry took a deep breath and cleared her throat. “I apologize, Your Grace, for that outburst.”

He
abruptly nodded
and glanced at the teapot. Merry attempted to pour, but her shaking hands spilled the hot liquid over the
tray
. Penrose stilled her hand with his warm one, and took the teapot from her, pouring for both of them. “
Milk
and sugar?”

“Yes, please.
Two lumps.
” Her voice came out stuffy from crying. She must look a mess. With her fair skin, red blotches generally appeared on her face when she cried. Once again she attempted to smooth her hair, but gave up. She reached for her tea, and immediately felt calmer when the warm liquid slid down her throat.

*

Penrose studied the woman alongside him. Despite her disheveled appearance, he was once again struck by her beauty. Tears
gathered on
her full eyelashes, giving her a waiflike
look
. Every once in a while, she took a shuddering breath, still trying to get herself under control.
White even teeth chewed on her lower lip. Lips he would love to cover with his own, then slide his tongue along the seam until she opened, allowing him to plunder the depths of her warm, sweet mouth.

What the devil is wrong with
me
?
The woman is a termagant.

“Perhaps you can visit with the young ladies more often until both they and you are ready to go your separate ways.”

Miss Chambers shook her head sadly. “Miss Jennings has
set
a new schedule
,
and I’m afraid their time with me is quite limited.”

“I shall speak with her. I
t will certainly benefit
Lady Charlotte and Lady Clare
to have an easy, smooth transition.”

She reached out and touched his hand, then drew it back as if burned. “
I prefer
you do not, Your Grace. I don’t wish to cause problems.”

His skin tingled where her fingers had rested. Before he had time to consider that, a light tap on the partially opened door caught his attention.

“There you both are. I wanted to speak with Miss Chambers, but since she’s right here with you, I can
talk to you both at the same time.”

Penrose stood and waved
his mother
to his seat.

“Tea?” Miss Chambers asked.

“Yes, dear, that would be lovely.”

He moved to the fireplace, resting his arm on the mantle, waiting for his mother to continue.

“With it being the beginning of December, I would like to
start
preparations for our Christmas ball.” She leaned closer to Miss Chambers. “We always have a lovely ball on Christmas Eve. We invite all the gentry in the county, and several peers who are within driving distance. It’s such fun. The decorations are a huge undertaking, but I engage
a few
of the tenants’ sons to accompany our footmen to gather greens and berries. Then the wives and daughters
supply
baked goods from ingredients made available to them.
Some of them even help in the kitchen. But, Cook is very fussy as to whom she lets into her domain.” The dowager laughed, her eyes sparkling with excitement.

“That sounds lovely.” Miss Chambers’ blotches had faded, but now
a flush of
excitement decorated her cheeks.

“I don’t wish to
dampen your spirits, Mother, but Miss Chambers will most likely b
e at her new post by Christmas.
”

His mother’s eyes darted from Miss Chambers to him. “No, dear. Miss Chambers will definitely be here for Christmas.”

Penrose raised his eyebrows. “Indeed?”

“Of course. I’ve hire
d Miss Chambers
−
Merry as she’s asked me to call her
−
as my comp
anion.” She
smiled brightly.

His head swung toward Miss Chambers who shrugged and tilted her lips in a slight smile.

D
evil take it!

Chapter Five

Merry entered the drawing room to the so
und of Miss Jennings
,
tittering. Everyone had already gathered to await the dinner announcement.

“Miss Chambers, would you care for a sherry before dinner?”
Lord Brandon
sa
untered over to her. Dinner hadn’t even started
, yet
it was apparent he was
already
in his cups. Bloodshot eyes and a slight hesitation in his gait told the story.

“Thank you, no, my lord.”

Miss Jennings let out with another giggle at something the
duke
said. Merry glanced in her direction and swallowed a laugh. The woman w
ore
a
pink
gow
n more suited to a young miss.
R
osy cheeks on her otherwise sallow complexion grew as she flirted
−
there was no other word
−
with Penrose.

Heavens, where was the very proper governess who’d disparaged her? Merry’s gaze moved from the pink nightmare to His Gr
ace. Her heart almost stopped. No man should be that handsome.
His dark brown eyes above a strong jaw
almost had her giggling like Miss Jennings.
No padding had been
necessary
in the jacket that fit him like a glove, and his snug breeches outlined the taut muscles of his legs.

“They make quite a pair.”
Lord Brandon
leaned close to her ear, his
brandy
-laced breath wafting over her.

Merry started at his words, then chastised herself for staring. “Whatever do you mean?”

Lord Brandon
smirked and sip
ped
his drink. “I think Miss Jennings has her eye on my big brother. Although, with you in the room, I don’t see how the poor woman has a chance.”