“I am not wary, I simply… Well, I know that people will talk, and it is all well and good to say that it is because they are envious of your position, but it does not make it any easier to hear my sister spoken ill of and being unable to say anything about it.”
“I know that it is not ideal, Em, but we cannot retreat each time something is difficult. If I withdraw at the first sign of disquiet, I will teach them all that I am easily unsettled.”
“And you are not?”
“No.”
The word came without effort. Emily studied her for another long moment.
“So I am not to defend you, yes?”
“Precisely. It will not be too terrible, and it will only be about me. You should know that I do not care what they have to say about me, truly, so there is no harm in it. It is only talk. It is not as though any real action will come of it.”
“You make it sound like Parliament.”
“Oh, no, certainly not. It is more consequential than Parliament.”
At last, she earned a small laugh.
“Today will be crowded,” Emily said at last. “There will be eyes everywhere.”
“Good.”
“You do not mind that?”
“I welcome it.”
Emily tilted her head.
“Why?”
“Because the more I am seen, the more normal it will become.”
The words lingered between them. Emily nodded slowly.
“Then I will stand near you.”
“You need not.”
“I know. I want to.”
Margaret reached across the table and briefly squeezed her sister’s hand.
“I am not doing all of this blindly,” she said.
“I hope not.”
“I promise you that I am not.”
Emily studied her one last time, then closed her book entirely.
“Very well,” she said. “Then let us prepare to be observed.”
Margaret rose, as did her sister. The doubt had not vanished, and the name still hovered somewhere in the recess of her thoughts, but it no longer felt destabilizing. If there were aquestion, she would answer it in time. For now, there was a garden, a crowd, and a duke who had chosen to stand beside her.
And she intended to ensure that no one mistook her place there again.
CHAPTER 15
