Another tear fell and then another. Frantically and furiously, she kept wiping them away, but then they wouldn’t stop coming.
A sob escaped her mouth, and for the first time in a long time, she allowed the full weight of her misery and disappointment to wash over her. She was forever meeting with obstacles too high and yet she continued to pursue her dreams.
What was the matter with her? Why couldn’t she learn?
Just then, the door to the study shook, causing her to jump away from it.
“Miss Sharpe?” The muffled voice of Dr. Hall called from the other side of the oak door. “Miss Sharpe, are you in there?”
She shook her head, knowing fully well that he couldn’t see her, but still having a need to answer. After another shake or two, the door handle stilled and Grace could hear footsteps fade away into the music on the other side.
Thank goodness she had locked the door, she mused as she bit her bottom lip. For whatever Dr. Hall thought to say to her, she would have been all the worse off if he found her crying.
He truly was an unfeeling man, just as his aunt had described him. Mrs. Fletcher, better known as the Witch of Glencoe, had been a close friend of Grace’s ever since she had arrived in Scotland. When she had confided in the older woman that she wished to study medicine, it was Mrs. Fletcher who had first suggested her nephew. When Grace hesitated, as he was an attractive sort close to her own age, the old woman had reassured her that there was nothing to fear from Dr. Hall, as he was incapable of possessing amorous feelings. He was an incompatible soul, which was just fine with Grace, as she always considered herself incompatible too, and she had become confident in the idea of studying under him.
But not anymore.
Grace exhaled slowly through her nose, taking deep breaths to calm herself down. She could not let yet another setback ruin her evening. This was a celebration for Aunt Belle, her seventy-sixth birthday after all, which, according to Grace’s eldest sister Hope, was a very important milestone.
Moving around the room, she sought out the small cart that Aunt Belle kept next to her desk. Reaching for a crystal decanter filled with water, she poured herself a glass and dipped her fingertips in, moving the liquid around her face before moving toward the fireplace.
In a few moments, once her face was dry and not so red, she would return to the ballroom and avoid both Dr. Hall and Dr. Barkley, lest her true feelings be exposed as they were far too close to the surface.
Instead, she would stand next to her aunt and offer what support she could for the rest of the evening and tomorrow… Well, tomorrow she would come up with a new plan. Somehow,some way, she would figure out how to see her dreams come true.
Even if it was the last thing she ever did.
Chapter One
Four Months Later…
Dr. James Hallpeered out the window of his home that sat one street over from the Woodside Crescent in Glasgow as a black coach carriage carrying a number of trunks came to park behind one of the fashionable houses. Within moments, two male servants, dressed in dark blue coats, began unpacking the vehicle, as a number of maids and footmen exited through the back door of the terrace house and began helping unload all that had been carried from Lismore Hall.
James frowned, dropping his hand from the sheer window hanging as he turned around to face his mentor, Dr. Barkley, who was finishing his breakfast of poached eggs and toast, seemingly completely unaware of what a mess he had caused.
“This will be a travesty. You must know that,” James said as he moved around the dining room table, taking a seat at the head of the table to finish his coffee.
“You’re far too concerned with the rest of the world, James. You always have been,” Dr. Barkley said, taking a sip of his tea.
James glared at him and the older man lifted his brow as he swallowed.
“I’m not concerned about what others will think of me, although I will not pretend that inviting a lady to shadow me won’t cause a certain stir in my professional life, but surely youmust admit that this little experiment of yours will only lead to failure. On both our parts.”
“If either of you fail, I will put the blame solely at your feet.”
“Why is that?”
“Because it will be your failure as a teacher to guide a student.” He pointed his fork at James. “You’ve had dozens of successful students when you were teaching at the university.”
“But I never had a lady student.”
“And as I’ve assured you, at least a dozen times over, Miss Sharpe is as bright a mind as any.” The old doctor placed his teacup on the small saucer before him. When he spoke next, his tone was gentle, if not a little sad. “Besides, that’s not entirely true, is it?”
“What isn’t true?”
“You’ve had a female student before.”
James’s hand paused midair, the coffee in his cup nearly spilling out, as a familiar misery crept up his spine. It wasn’t fair for him to bring her up and James was actually surprised that Dr. Barkley had even done so as they never spoke on the topic of Catriona.
