“I do not know what you are referring to,” she said, half in a daze. “I was unwell, if you recall.”
“You and I both know that you were not. Margaret, your shoes are by your door, scuffed. You may have been able to fool your sisters, and heaven knows they are not the brightest girls, but you cannot evade me. What on Earth were you thinking?”
At that, Margaret sat upright and stared at her mother. An anger washed over her that she had never felt before. She had taken every injustice as it came, and had never once complained about it. She had given herlifefor her sisters, and it had never beenenough. Throwing her covers to one side, she got to her feet and met her mother’s eye.
“I wanted one night,” she said in hushed anger. “I was thinking that I am to give my future up so that Emily and Poppy may actually have their own, and so I deserved one evening where I could be like everyone else. I wanted to wear a pretty dress and dance and laugh just like I should have been able to.”
“And you never were able to because of me, is that what you are trying to say? I failed you, and so you had to be duplicitous in order to attain it.”
“Of course that is not what I am saying!”
But it was. She never wanted it to be known, but there was an undeniable resentment there, and there had been for years. She was always the one to make sacrifices, while her mother maintained her own indulgences. She was a selfish woman, and Margaret knew it, but there had never been anything to gain in pointing it out.
“I do not know how I ended up with such a selfish daughter,” her mother sighed. “I did my best by you, Margaret, and in return you betrayed my trust. If it was a night you wanted, you should have asked.”
“So that you would have known to stop me? Come now, Mother, you know that is what would have happened. And you may call me selfish if it brings you comfort, but look in my reticule.”
“You will call it an invasion.”
“Look in it.”
With a huff, her mother took it and looked inside to find the confections. She faltered, looking back at Margaret with uncertainty in her eyes.
“I was always going to confess,” she said lightly. “I brought them back for you all.”
“Did you steal these? Were you seen?”
“No,” she lied. “I know better than to be caught.”
Her mother, satisfied with that, tucked the reticule under her arm.
“I shall take these to the kitchens. The girls need not know where you found them, nor that it was you that took them to begin with.”
“Of course.”
She did not care that it was her mother that would receive the praise from her sisters. All that mattered was that they would have something good that day. It also meant that she would not be questioned further about her night, which meant there wasno chance that she would reveal the interaction she had had with none other than a duke.
She threw herself back onto her bed, her face in her pillow to muffle the groan that escaped her. She had been foolish to reveal so much about herself. If he recognized her, then she was at his mercy, and if he wanted to be callous then he could do anything he pleased with her.
Except, she considered as she sat up slowly, he did not seem to be a cold man. There was a gentle tone to his voice, and that had caught her attention for he was otherwise quite an intimidating man. He had a commanding presence just as any duke would, and she trusted him whether she liked it or not.
She dressed hastily, going to breakfast in the hopes that it would provide a distraction. The moment she entered, her sisters looked at her in surprise.
“You are looking well,” Poppy said warmly.
“Yes, I am much recovered. My apologies, Sister. You would have enjoyed last night, I am certain of it.”
“There will be others. It only matters that you are well. Besides, I am more than happy to wait for a ball that is not so terribly scandalous. You should see the gossip this morning!”
Margaret struggled to keep her composure at that.
“Nothing will come of any of it,” Emily argued. “Yes, some rather incredible things took place last night, but when it comes to their identities there is only speculation. It hardly makes for anything tantalizing.”
“It shall be forgotten by tomorrow,” their mother agreed. “It is quite a shame, for I would have liked the season to start with some scandals, as long as they do not affect the three of you of course.”
Chance would be a fine thing,she thought, though she did not say anything.
“I am going to see Penelope,” Margaret said suddenly as she cleared her plate. “She has asked to speak with me about the ball.”
