She was well and truly alone.
***
Miss Pemberton hadn’t been present for the Haddington urchins’ last three lessons. She was far too responsible to simply be shrugging off her duties, so Duncan was certain something had happened.
“Where’s Miss Pemberton?” he asked Ella.
“She doesn’t come with us anymore.” Ella’s smile was a bit too haughtily satisfied for Duncan’s peace of mind.
“I’d figured that much on m’ own. Butwhydoesn’t she come?”
Ella shrugged. “I don’t concern myself with the servants.”
Duncan would wager Mrs. Haddington was behind Miss Pemberton’s glaring absences. The family was so convinced of their own superiority that they treated even others of their class as if they were the lowliest of petitioners.
“Where does she go instead?” he asked.
“I do not want to talk about Miss Pemberton. I do not care where—”
“You’d best decide to care, lass, or you’ll spend the rest of your lesson sitting on the grass next to the maid.”
The children had quickly learned that he was not one to make idle threats. “She goes to the garden or the orchard. Father offered her the use of his library, but she doesn’t go there, likely because she is not bright enough to be a reader.”
Duncan called over a stable hand. “Aiden, see to it Miss Haddington makes another circuit of the paddock at a walk. If she’s well-behaved, she may try a slow trot after that. Only if she’s well-behaved.”
“If she’s not?” Aiden asked.
Duncan gave Ella a pointed look as he answered Aiden’s question. “Then her lesson’ll be over.”
Ella nodded her understanding. Duncan left similar instructions with Will, who was overseeing Joseph’s lesson. His staff knew that if the Haddingtons voiced any objections, he’d take responsibility for the shortened lessons. The staff’s trust allowed him to trust them in return, and today, it gave him the freedom to go do what needed doing.
Garden or orchard? The weather was unusually cool. The shade would likely make the orchard a far less comfortable choice. He’d try the garden first.
And why am I hying after this lass in the first place?She’d managed to wriggle her way into his thoughts and concerns these past months. He’d watched her struggle with ill-mannered and headstrong charges with determination and patience. He’d heard whispers of the monumental scolds Mrs. Haddington had subjected her to, though he’d never heard Miss Pemberton speak ill of her employer. The quiet governess had a quiet strength that, despite his feelings for her fellow countrymen, had earned her more than a small measure of Duncan’s respect.
Upon arriving in the garden, Duncan spotted her quickly. Her dark-blue dress contrasting against the light-green shrubberygave her away. She sat on a bench near the star-shaped fountain, reading a book.
“Miss Ella doesn’t think you read.”
Miss Pemberton didn’t look up. “Let us hope her father believes the same thing.”
Mr. Haddington must have at least suspected she liked to read, else he’d not have offered her the use of his library. Of course, that likely meant enduring his company as well, and Duncan could easily understand the displeasure of that prospect.
“Are the children’s lessons finished early?” Miss Pemberton asked.
He shook his head.
She set her book on her lap. “Are they causing you difficulties?”
He shook his head again. The Haddington children were little terrors, but he knew how to handle them.
“Then what brings you here whilst they are at the paddock?” she asked.
“You.”
Her eyes pulled wide. “Me?”
“You’ve not been present for the last few lessons. You didn’t come Friday to visit the horses.” He’d fully expected her to.
