“I am right.” Olivia grasped Cassandra’s arms. Her eyes twinkled with excitement. “Youmusttell me everything.”
“No, I mustnot.”
“Oh, please. I’m your only sister. We share everything, and I know you are dying to tell me something.”
Cassandra held back a laugh. Her sister knew her well. “Let me just say that at one o’clock this afternoon, I plan on making my dreams come true.”
Olivia gasped. “What? Please, don’t tell me you areeloping.”
Cassandra rolled her eyes. “Of course not. That is too scandalous.”
Olivia sighed. “Thank goodness for that. I mean, our father has ruined our family name, but if one of us were to elope, that would only make things worse.”
Cassandra tapped Olivia’s shoulder. “Then rest assured, I don’t plan on running off to Gretna Green.”
A teasing grin crossed Olivia’s face. “However, you do plan on meeting the lord, correct?”
“Perhaps.” Cassandra shrugged and moved past her sister.
“Where are you going to meet him?”
Cassandra kept quiet, giving her sister time to think. The chickens squawked for more food, so she tossed them another handful of feed. When Olivia gasped again, louder this time, Cassandra knew her sister had figured things out.
“Not the Griffiths’ old cottage.”
Cassandra peeked over her shoulder at her sister and grinned.
“Oh dear.” Olivia scurried back around in front of Cassandra. “But what if you’re caught?”
“Why would we get caught? The place has been abandoned for years.”
Olivia’s eyes narrowed suspiciously. “This isn’t like you. Why would you chance fate that way? Unless… Oh dear. You arehopingto get caught, aren’t you?”
Cassandra’s cheeks grew warm. She quickly pushed past her sister again as she continued to feed the chickens. “Don’t be ridiculous. Pa will never know.”
“But he will.” Olivia hurried beside her. “Pa always knows.”
Holding her breath, Cassandra stopped and met her sister’s worried gaze. Although she didn’t want to tell Olivia the whole truth, her sister was correct. They shared secrets with each other all the time. Today shouldn’t be any different.
She sighed and nodded. “Liv, I must tell you something, but don’t judge our father too harshly.”
Olivia’s brows drew together. “What is it?”
“Last night at the ball, Father hinted strongly to both me and Charles that we needed to find someone that night to secure our future. Mother told me that I was to do whatever was necessary to find a husband.” She shrugged. “I couldn’t do that last night, but I did get to know Lord Hanover better, and I feel he is the right man. I think he likes me, so…I will give him a nudge today.”
Olivia’s expression grew more worried by the second. “You are going to cause a scandal, aren’t you?”
“Not if I can help it. I will need your assistance.”
Her sister shook her head, and the curls bounced in a fast rhythm. “No. I cannot let you do this.” She blinked rapidly, buther eyes filled with tears. “I cannot go through another scandal, and neither can you.”
Doubts filled Cassandra. Was she doing the right thing? What if her plans with Collin didn’t go as smoothly as she hoped? Would he hate her for trying to trap him? Or worse, was he the man Stuart had warned her about? Did Collin only want to soil her and leave her?
Slowly, she inhaled the refreshing air, hoping it would clear her mind. She must not back down. Collin was the man she wanted, and if she didn’t do all she could to get him, her father would find her another lord—one like Wheatly. She shivered.
She grasped her sister’s hands. “Liv, stop this now. You mustn’t think so negatively. Collin has feelings for me, just as I have for him. He enjoys being with me, and he respects me.”
“But what if he loses that respect because you have trapped him into marriage?” A tear slid down Olivia’s cheek. “Then Father will force Lord Hanover to marry you, and he will loathe you, which, in turn, will make you completely miserable.”
