At night, she recalled his hand on her leg, and how he had touched her right before Bethany had interrupted them.
Her face flushing warm at the memory, Collette dismissed the image and gathered her books onto her bed, crossing her legs beneath her.
All this, and she’d yet to have met his mother and brother, and until Addison was certain his mother had received his letter, they’d decided to hold off on sending any announcements to the Gazette.
Which only served to delay the inevitable, so Collette wasn’t about to complain. It meant a few more days of simply being Miss Collette Jones, illegitimate teacher, formerly of Miss Primm’s Private Seminary for the Education of Ladies.
Who, if she didn’t get to work, would fall behind on the studies with which she’d been tasked.
Miss Robins, the etiquette instructor Chase hired, had departed just before nuncheon, but not before dolling out a few hours’ worth of homework, something Collette hadn’t expected from a simple course in etiquette.
Collette had glanced throughDebrett’sbefore, when she’d wanted to look up a particular nobleman’s actual title, but never had she considered that she’d be expected to memorize parts of it.
Diana had gotten off easy by marrying Greystone last spring.
Collette sighed and then flipped through the pages before stopping at the page she’d marked.Brierton, Bedwell, (Duke).SinceDebrett’swas stingy when it came to her favorite duke, she closed it and opened the other book which was part of her homework: John Burke’sDictionary of the Peerage and Baronetage. Although criticized for some inaccuracies, Burke’s book provided a reader with far more detailed information than Debrett’s.
Again, she’d placed markers between the most interesting pages.
Bedwell, Duke of, (Addison Holden Brierton) Marquess of St. Alastair, Earl of Samson, Baron Desart, lord-lieutenant and high steward of Bedwellshire, Born February 19th, 1801. Succeeded to the family honors upon the demise of his father in 1822.
Reading through, she noted that all of his ancestors from as far back as 1619 not a single one of them had been born to a man who was lower than an earl. Even if she had been legitimate, she would be a duchess born to the lowest title.
Motto,honor at all costs.
The entry listed the locations of both his town residence and country seat, but she knew from speaking with Addison that he held title to several other properties.
A book of great importance amongst theTon,and yet it revealed very little about the actual man—about the caring he felt for his brother and the respect he afforded his mother, about the delightful stories he’d written and had yet to write, and that he had the ability to turn her bones to jelly with a single glance.
Collette deliberately dismissed such thoughts and set her mind to memorizing the list of names and dates of her future relations until, exhausted, she set the book aside and fell backward onto one of her pillows.
She might have been sacked from Miss Primm’s, but as far as these studies were concerned, she was determined not to fail.
Laying in gentle repose, Collette closed her eyes and inhaled a deep breath.
She would master these lessons, enjoy the new wardrobe Bethany had ordered for her, and do her best not to collapse under the pressure of all that would be expected of her.
She’d refused to fail Bethany, or Chaswick, and especially Addison.
But most importantly of all, she would not fail herself.
* * *
Addison glancedaround the vast but sparsely furnished room, taking in the paintings that lined the walls, many of which he’d viewed before but in far less enchanting company.
Almost two weeks had passed since Collette accepted Addison’s proposal and he’d yet to have been left alone with her again. Even when he’d taken her driving, Lady Chaswick had insisted a maid ride along.
Every. Single. Time.
Trouble was, before becoming a devoted married man, the baron himself had been something of a rake, which unfortunately, meant he was privy to all the tricks.
Rather than lament their circumstances, however, Addison had taken it upon himself to escort his fiancée to some of his favorite places in London. Always with chaperones in tow—often Lord and Lady Chaswick themselves.
And he was enjoying himself.
Collette had a way of introducing him to new ideas about these old places, and the knowledge she’d shared from her study of Latin had already widened his perspective.
He never knew what to expect, and something about that was particularly freeing.
