Once a Duchess (4 page)

“Excellent, as usual, Mrs. Smith!” the man boomed. His wife nodded her agreement.

Isabelle’s heart swelled with pride and delight at the extra coin. “Thank you kindly, sir.” She bobbed a curtsy in her giddiness.

As she returned to the kitchen to reload her tray, heat crept up her neck as she realized what she’d done. She was a gently born woman who had just curtsied to a carpenter.

Never did Isabelle think she’d see the day where she’d make a cake of herself over a few pennies tossed in her direction, but that was before she was a ruined woman, before her brother had cast her aside. She might have been born to a softer life, but that life was long gone. She slammed open the kitchen door and filled more bowls.

This
was her life now. She cooked in the kitchen of a middle-of-nowhere inn to keep a roof over her head and food on her and Bessie’s plates. Fortunately, Mr. Davies didn’t mind if she took home some of the leftovers from her evening’s efforts. She’d eaten more beef stew and mutton than she cared to think about, but at least she could count on having one hearty meal at night and a bit of bread in the morning.

With her tray once again laden, she made another round through the common room. Her smile was not as bright this time, but she still collected some coins from the jolly patrons.

On her next return trip to the kitchen, Mr. Davies ran her to ground. “Get the food down the hall for the gentlemen now,” he said. His voice was still clipped, but his relaxed posture indicated that he felt better about the state of the common room. The grumbles had given way to convivial laughter as neighbors broke bread with one another.

Isabelle loaded down a wheeled cart for the patrons in the private dining room. She felt not the least bit concerned about encountering someone who might know her. First of all, though Marshall had introduced her to a few of his friends, she had encountered only a tiny portion of the
haute ton
. Those she had not met would have known her only by name, not on sight, and Isabelle used a false name here. Further, if by some remote chance there was someone she’d met in that dining room, she understood the way the privileged class operated. A nobleman might pay attention to the servants in his own house, but he never took notice of the servants in someone else’s home, much less a simple serving girl in a country inn. Her position was the perfect disguise.

She filled a covered serving dish with her beef stew and set a ladle alongside. A roasted chicken, along with an assortment of roasted vegetables, asparagus in crème sauce, two loaves of bread, fresh butter, and a slab of cheese also made their way to the tray, along with a bottle of Madeira, another of port, and a decanter of brandy. She then found room for the dishes, utensils, and glasses the meal required, and rolled the heavy cart down the hall.

The noise of the common room faded as she moved toward the dining room. She knocked on the door, waited for the perfunctory, “Enter,” opened the door, and pushed in the cart. Warm air rolled out. While the dining room afforded the upper class the privacy they demanded, there were drawbacks to the enclosed space — namely its oppressive stuffiness. The dishes on the cart tinkled and rattled against each other, a sound that had been previously drowned out by the multitude of voices.

Two men sat close together at the far end of the gleaming table, their heads bent over maps and other papers.

One had a commanding air that captured her attention at once. Broad shoulders, straight back, black hair, a firm jaw, and strong nose. He did not so much as look in her direction, but Isabelle instantly recognized the chiseled profile.

Marshall.

Shock numbed her face and limbs, while her heart launched into a panicked gallop. Her fists tightened around the cart handle, white knuckles threatening to burst through her skin.

What was he doing here?
Stay calm,
she ordered herself. She took in great gulps of air, and concentrated on acting like a serving girl. Her position was her disguise, she reminded herself.

Marshall’s companion, a ginger-haired fellow Isabelle did not recognize, groaned when she came in. “Finally! We’re famished. I thought we were being starved out.”

“Apologies, m’lord,” Isabelle said. It was a wonder she could talk with her heart in her throat. “There’s a dreadful crush of people wanting supper tonight.” She forced her limbs into motion, lifting the dishes from the cart to set the near end of the table for two.

“Still, it was bloody inconsiderate of you to leave us neglected.” The man’s lips pursed in a petulant, effeminate fashion.

“Give over, Hornsby,” Marshall said in a flat tone. “Mr. Davies told us there would be a wait.”

A flash of tenderness unexpectedly tugged at her heart at the sound of his voice. He was tired, she realized. She remembered that tone in his voice after he’d spent many hours in the greenhouse with his plants or working at his desk.

As quickly as she detected the sensation, she fought to squash it out. He didn’t need or deserve her pity. It was idiotic to feel badly for the pampered duke, while she — thanks to
his
wrongful divorce — worked long hours in a hot, steamy kitchen to survive.

Isabelle kept her face lowered and turned away from the men as much as possible. Still, she identified Marshall’s movements by sound. That Hornsby person flailed around. He sounded messy. By contrast, Marshall made careful, deliberate motions. She heard the tap of a stack of papers being made neat, followed by the light, smooth scrape of his chair moving back from the table. His even footsteps came her way. Her heart pounded, and she dropped the ladle onto the table. She winced at the clatter.

“Something smells delicious,” Marshall said.

Isabelle paused. Should she say anything? No, she decided. Probably not. Servants shouldn’t engage in conversation with their betters.

“Is this the famous stew we heard so much about?” he asked. Marshall stood close beside her to examine the tureen’s contents. His imposing presence seemed to make the air heavier and more difficult to inhale.

Isabelle noted with another pang that he even looked as though he’d been working for hours. His coat was slung over the back of a chair. The sleeves of his cream-colored shirt were rolled up his forearms. He did that when he wrote a lot. An image sprung to mind of an afternoon at Hamhurst, shortly after they were married. She’d spent most of the day alone while he took care of estate work, and when she went to find him in his study, he had been sitting at his desk, looking much the way he did just now.

She also remembered what happened when she found him in the study, how she’d come to stand behind his chair and put her fingers into the soft hair at his nape, rubbing his neck, trying to distract him. And it had worked. Her cheeks burned at the brief memory.

“Is this not the famous stew?” Marshall’s voice held a note of teasing. He turned his head to look over his shoulder at her.

Isabelle sucked her breath and whirled away. “Ah, yes. Yes, my lord, it is,” she stammered.
Stupid!
She should have answered him right away. If she’d done that, he wouldn’t have paid her any attention whatsoever. Now she’d turned her back on a peer of the realm. She tried to cover the blunder by hastily setting out the rest of the food.

Hornsby moved around the table to the other side and looked first at the spread, and then at her. “There’s a tasty dish,” he said, dragging his eyes over her. Isabelle pretended not to notice. She could not imagine
any
man finding her attractive in her shapeless wool dress and stained apron. She’d been working for hours and probably smelled as much like beef stew as the food itself.

Marshall caught his friend’s entendre. “That will do, miss,” he said softly. “We’ll take care of ourselves from here. Madeira, Hornsby?”

How smoothly he redirected his friend’s attention, she thought, grateful for his intervention — and then annoyed at herself for feeling gratitude. The longer she stayed in his presence, the more eager she was to be away. Keeping her face ducked, she bobbed a curtsy. Just another moment and she’d be free. With shaking hands, she collected the cart and pushed.

And crashed into the door. The cart handle drove into her middle, pushing her breath out audibly.

Embarrassment washed over her. What an imbecilic blunder!

“What the devil?” Hornsby said.

She would not turn around and see how
he
reacted. “Apologies, my lords,” she said to the door. “I’m used to the swinging kitchen door. Terribly sorry.” Isabelle leaned across the cart to the doorknob, but couldn’t quite reach. She felt two pairs of aristocratic eyes on her, watching her make a buffoon of herself. She tried again, leaning farther. If she got up on her toes …

“Allow me.” Marshall’s hand landed on the knob a split-second after hers, pinning hers underneath its warmth.

A tingle coursed up her arm at his touch.

His eyes flew to her face. Isabelle kept her own resolutely downcast. Her gaze fell on his middle. He wore a maroon waistcoat with gold buttons. She followed them down to where waistcoat ended and his close-fitting brown trousers began, and instantly wished she hadn’t allowed her gaze to wander. The sight of his well-muscled thighs did nothing to ease her discomfiture.

“Look at me,” he said.

She shook her head, shame suffusing her entire being. She didn’t
have
to look at him. He knew, damn him. He knew. The least he could do was leave her with a scrap of her shredded pride and let her go without making a scene.

“Isabelle,” he said in a low voice meant only for her ears.

She took a steadying breath and shook her head again, but this time it was a quick gesture of resolve as she gathered her courage. Then she raised her eyes.

The shock on his face at positively identifying her was most gratifying, she decided. His mouth fell open, but no words came out. A storm of emotion roiled in his dark eyes.

She met his gaze boldly and raised her chin,
daring
him to expose her.

“I told you she was a tasty one,” Hornsby said.

The interruption brought Marshall back to his senses. He blinked. His brown eyes went strangely flat as he stepped back and returned to the table without another word.

Isabelle got the door open, wrestled the cart through, and closed the door behind her. She took several deep breaths, waiting for her heart to stop racing before returning to the kitchen.

The cacophony of the common room was welcome after the debacle in the dining room. She wished the noise would envelop her so she could disappear into it. She suddenly felt very tired as she pushed into the kitchen.

Mr. Davies was in the kitchen again, trying to calm Sammy, who stood in front of him, hopping from foot to foot.

“Start over,” Mr. Davies said. “I couldn’t understand a word!”

With visible effort, Sammy fought to still himself, though his feet in their scuffed, oversized shoes continued to tap anxiously.

“I said,” he began, his huge eyes intent, “Sally can’t come. Pa just found out she’s got a belly full, and now he’s hollering and swearing to kill the man what did it. And me mam is hollering, trying to get Pa to be quiet. Sally’s crying, and says Pa had best not hurt a hair on her beau’s head, because she reckons she’s in love, and wants to marry him. So, Sally can’t come. She’s either planning a wedding or a funeral now. I don’t know which. I cut out of there.”

Mr. Davies growled. “So much for your sainted sister.”

For a moment, Isabelle forgot all about the insufferable man she used to be married to, who happened to be sitting in the dining room down the hall. She clamped a hand over her mouth, stifling a laugh at the precocious boy’s animated recitation. She let out an undignified snort, which drew Mr. Davies’ attention.

“Just you tonight, then,” he said.

Isabelle clucked her tongue and rolled the cart to its spot in the corner.

“I could ask Doris,” Sammy said.

“Here, who’s that, then?” Mr. Davies asked.

“Me other sister,” the boy explained.

Mr. Davies looked ready to spit. “Why didn’t you ask her while you were home?”

“Didn’t think about it.” Sammy’s chest puffed out. He proudly tapped it with a fist. “I just found out I’m going to be an uncle. That’s a big ’sponsibility.” He fixed first Mr. Davies and then Isabelle with a quelling look. “And didn’t neither of you offer your felicitations.”

“How remiss of us!” Isabelle inclined her head in a stately fashion. “Please accept my congratulations for your impending happiness, Uncle Samuel.”

“Cor, you go on, Miz Smith,” Sammy said, blushing furiously. “You sound just like them lady nobs.”

Isabelle winked at the boy. “Anyone else need stew, Mr. Davies?” she asked.

He stroked his hand first down one mutton chop sideburn and then the other. “Yeh,” he finally said. “New table o’ blokes in the middle. And the apothecary came in. He and his missus want supper, too.”

She loaded her tray with food and headed to the common room, hoping her former husband wouldn’t venture this way. Marshall showing up in the George’s private dining room in no way fit into her plans of a fresh start in life.

• • •

Several hours later, the supper crowd in the common dining room had finally begun to disperse. Those remaining had set about the more serious endeavor of becoming thoroughly sotted. Mr. Davies took over the trips up and down the cellar stairs to keep his customers in a steady stream of intoxicants.

The pots and pans had all been washed, dried, and hung on the rack over the butcher block. Now she sliced a roasted leg of mutton and another roast of beef for cold plates. The chambermaids could easily assemble a simple supper for any overnight guests coming in from the road after the kitchen was closed for the night.

The door swung inward to admit her employer. “About done there?” Mr. Davies asked. At Isabelle’s nod, he said, “Don’t forget the private dining room. Those dishes need collecting.”

“Yes, sir,” Isabelle said, her heart sinking in unease. She had kept herself industrious in the hopes that Mr. Davies would take care of the gentlemen himself. It had been hours since she first delivered supper to Marshall and his companion, though. They must have long since retired to their rooms.