Margaret was not so convinced about that, but there was no arguing with him.
“Very well. You may visit whenever you wish.”
“Good. Let me make some arrangements, and then I will see you all.”
Margaret returned home with a lighter step, hoping that her sisters had meant what they had said. She wanted them to be happy for her, and not envious.
Because if they were, she did not know what she would do.
CHAPTER 5
Nathaniel would have gone to see Lady Fairleigh the morning they agreed to the arrangement, but there was someone else he needed to see first.
“You are late,” she grimaced the moment he arrived.
His expression matched hers. He had thought that, for once, she might be pleased to see him, but of course she was not. She had not been for weeks. Nothing that he did was ever enough, though he was rather of the belief that he was doing all that he could.
“It is good to see you too, Eliza.”
She let him in, and he studied her figure. Her gown was loose, just as he had instructed, and her face was pale. She was clearly exhausted, which was why he did not chastise her for the way she treated him. He was aware that it was not her, but her condition, and that was something that he could look beyond.
“The household is looking good,” he said gently as he looked around. “You are taking good care of it.”
“I hope that it will be mine one day,” she sighed, sitting heavily on a settee. “I do not know what else I shall do.”
“I promised you that I would take care of you,” he reminded her, tilting her chin up so she was looking at him. “That will never change. I hope that you know that.”
“I do, but knowing and believing are two very different things, Your Grace.”
“Nathaniel.”
“I cannot be so familiar with you. You know that.”
“Given the circumstances, it would make it easier, but I can understand if you do not see it that way.”
“Look at me. Do you think I know what is right and wrong? I am a fool, plain and simple.”
He then saw it; the fear in her eyes about her prospects. She was only surviving thanks to his protection. She was at his mercy, and though Nathaniel knew that he would never take advantage of that, she had no reason to trust him.
“You are not a fool. Now, have you remained indoors?”
“Like a prisoner.”
“And has anyone come to see you?”
“Not a soul. We cannot have anyone asking questions after all, can we?”
“You sound accusatory.”
Her lack of response told him everything that he needed to know.
“Eliza, I know this is not ideal, but it is how it must be.”
“I know. I am the great duke’s shameful secret, the dark stain on his legacy that can never see the light of day. I do not go a single day without being reminded of that fact.”
“That is not– Eliza, if you were to be discovered, it would destroy everything. It would hurt my reputation, yes, but that is not what any of this has been about and you know it. I have done all of this for your sake, and though time is not on our side I can fix this.”
“How? How are you going to hide my condition? Whether you like it or not, I can only loosen my gowns so much before it is evident, and when… whenitarrives, we shall have to find a reason for its existence. That is, unless you plan to keep me hidden away here forever.”
