She had no other choice.
The Duke of Fairmont had chosen a good day for their pretend first meeting, for it was crowded.
The only problem was that the advantage was now a disadvantage, given Elinor’s company.
She walked through the main thoroughfare as he had instructed in a discreetly sent note the day before, stating the time and specific location, so Elinor had tried to direct her family there, pretending it was Newton hunting down his favorite paths.
Still, her cat kept hissing back at Elinor’s stepmother.
“Heavens, Elinor, that cat is as misbehaved as you,” her stepmother complained. “Can you not make it stop?”
“Newton is ahe,” she grumbled. “And he is my pet. He is protective of me.”
“We are your family,” her stepmother snorted. “What protection do you need from us?”
“From … from strangers,” Elinor lied, knowing she needed to cover for Newton.
She jingled the lead, as if to remind him to be on his best behavior, as she was trying to be.
Behind her, Belinda was prattling on to Joanna. “What if we see His Grace? I do promise I shall leave the Duke of Silverford for you, as long as you do not get in my way again with the Duke of Fairmont.”
Elinor’s heart thundered with anxiety; she had not been able to calm it all morning since leaving her chambers. She tried to focus on Newton’s lifted tail, his cute trotting as he walked with her. He sniffed into the grass, and Elinor paused, forcing her family too, as well.
“Why are we stopping?” Belinda demanded. “We may miss the duke.”
“You wanted to come along,” Elinor answered, her panic making her voice sharper than she meant. Her stepmother’s eyes narrowed. “This is what he does. I cannot stop him from exploring. He is an animal.”
“Yes, but it isweird,” Belinda stressed. “I am already embarrassed. Everybody keeps looking at you, Elinor. Have you really no shame?”
At that, her shoulders shrunk. She was used to the glances she got for walking her cat, but she would never dream of keeping him cooped up in her bedroom all day.
“His walks are the only reprieve he gets from Morland House,” Elinor said defensively.
And heaven knows, I understand the need for that.
“I think it is cute,” Joanna pitched in. “Do not worry about the stares.”
“She ought to,” Elinor’s stepmother countered, her voice a scoff. “It is most unladylike, and your father would not stand for it.”
Elinor gritted her teeth, keeping her retort held back. What her stepmother did not know was that her father had gifted her Newton when he knew he would depart for the countryside estate.
“One must always have company,” he had told her, pressing the kitten into her waiting arms. “Care for him, well, Elinor. I think he will be as intelligent as you.” And then his voice lowered even more. “Did you know that science ponders if cats can bond to their owners, soul-wise? He may become your soulmate, but I do hope you also find that in a husband.”
Together, they had chuckled, and Elinor did not have the heart to ever tell her father that her debut had not gone as planned, that she would likely never find a husband, let alone a soulmate beyond her beloved cat.
“See, Elinor,” Lady Morland said, and Elinor realized she had still paused for Newton’s exploration. Belinda and Joanna hadwalked on a little ways ahead. “This sort of behavior is what makes you so undesirable to men. They do not want to approach the strange woman who thinks she knows about science and walks her cat in the park and cannot stop fiddling with those forsaken spectacles. I know they are not loose.”
Elinor immediately put her free hand down, realizing she had been going to do just that.
Her stepmother glared at her before she impatiently gestured for Elinor to continue moving. She did dutifully, regretfully tugging on Newton’s leash to get him to move. He gave a mewl of protest, growling then at her stepmother, as if he knew it was her fault.
Elinor managed an apologetic smile at her stepmother before she ducked her head and continued on. Her eyes finally lifted from Newton, seeing those stares that her family spoke of, but she tried to blank them out. Instead, she tried to find the golden hair of the Duke of Fairmont.
I do not care if the morning sun will catch it and turn it into a halo,she thought.That does not matter to me. In fact, I do not care if he looks terrible. We only have to see this meeting through. Somehow.
She looked at her sisters up ahead.
Someway.
