“I asked her to have the cook prepare a special meal for all of us tonight, to celebrate your homecoming and for Christine. She acted as if it was a great inconvenience and out of the question.”
“Wedidarrive with no warning,” he admitted. “In a day or two, I imagine everything will settle down.” He reached out and touched the back of her neck. “Don’t let it bother you, Amelia.” Then he lowered his mouth to her throat, sending a spiral of desire through her. The gesture of affection caught her off guard, but then she realized he was trying to sweeten her up.
It didn’t seem to concern him at all that the servants weren’t listening to her. Did he not realize that housekeepers were not supposed to behave like army generals?
She leaned forward to rest her cheek against his shirt. “I know my duties, Lord Castledon. My mother saw to it that all of us were prepared to run a household.” And she knew that a housekeeper who disobeyed orders on the first day could not remain here long.
His hand touched her spine. “Everything will be fine,” was all he said. Dismay filled her, for he seemed unaware of the true problem. She straightened, realizing that this issue was hers to solve.
Pulling away from him, she bid him a good afternoon. “I will see you tonight.”
“Tell Christine I expect her to be kind to you.” He smiled, and Amelia didn’t correct his assumption. She wasn’t about to seek out a second person who didn’t like her.
If she did that, she’d start to doubt every decision she made. It was time to retreat, to make plans, and find all the reasons to be thankful. She wouldnotweep or behave as if the world had dealt her a bad hand of cards. She simply had to reevaluate her circumstances and make the most of them.
Even if no one really wanted her here.
“You married the wrong woman, Papa.”
Christine closed the door behind her, and David was startled by his daughter’s proclamation. “You’ve only just met her,” he responded. Although Amelia was young and inexperienced, she needed more than a day to get adjusted to life as a countess.
“Why would you say I married the wrong woman?” he asked, opening his arms to his daughter. “You said you wanted a new mother.”
Christine came to sit upon his knee, and her gray eyes remainedquite serious. “I wanted one much older. Someone like Miss Grant, someone who understands me.”
David had no interest in marrying her governess and had never even considered it. Although Miss Grant was a decent enough woman, she’d given Christine too much freedom.
“Miss Grant resigned her post as your governess several weeks ago. The last I heard, she was going to marry someone else.”
“But she could change her mind,” Christine insisted. “If you would ask her, she’d say no to that other man.”
“I’m not going to ask Miss Grant to marry me,” he told her firmly. “I’ve already married Amelia Andrews, and she will do well enough as your stepmother.”
His daughter looked as if she’d swallowed a lemon. “You’re wrong, Papa.”
“I think you should give Amelia a chance. She’s a lovely young woman. Quite amusing, actually.”
Though he told his daughter stories about the board game he’d played with Amelia and her sister, his thoughts turned to another type of amusement. She’d startled him last night in the coach by seducing him. That encounter had only awakened his hunger more, making him crave her body.
She was dangerous to his life, like a siren who wove her spell around him. Sharing her bed once in a while was acceptable, but not every night. He preferred to keep their marriage as an amiable friendship, one that never dared to trespass beyond that boundary.
“You should have consulted me before you wed her,” Christine said. “She looks like the sort of stepmother who would lock me in my room.”
David bit back a laugh. “She isn’t that bad.”
“Sheis,” Christine insisted, keeping her voice in a whisper. “I overheard her telling one of the maids that she planned to get rid of me as soon as you’re gone.” Her face held all the drama of an actresson the stage. “You won’t let her do that, will you? Please say you’ll send her away.”
“You’re making up stories about someone you don’t even know,” David chided. “Give her a chance, Christine.”
His daughter shook her head. “I can’t, Papa. When I returned from my walk in the gardens earlier, I saw Lady Castledon leaving my room. Why would she have been in my room?”
“Enough of this. You’re being ridiculous, and I’m certain Amelia had a good reason. She likely was looking for you so the pair of you could get to know one another.”
“She was searching through my belongings,” his daughter insisted. “I believe that.”
“Well, I don’t.” He eased her off his lap and took her by the hand. “Now go and change for supper. I expect you to be there, and you will be on your best behavior.”
A sullen expression came over her face. “Why can’t it just be us? I haven’t seen you in months.”
