The Governess Heiress by Elizabeth Beacon

Author:Elizabeth Beacon
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Publisher: Harlequin Historical
Published: 2017-09-05T04:00:00+00:00

Chapter Twelve

Nell couldn’t see a good reason why anyone would want her letters and what few personal papers she had. Of course there were one or two bad ones, but if someone wanted to blackmail her for pretending to be Miss Court why not simply get on with it? And how would a stranger pick up her deception when she had been here two years without a soul suspecting she wasn’t the quiet governess she appeared? It was a small enough leap if anyone found her interesting enough to track down as her true self, she supposed. Colm knew; her uncle and aunt, the current Duke and Duchess of Linaire, agreed to give her time to think about her restored fortune and they were too kind and vague to prod her into the open with a devious scheme they would never consider fair. The Winterley family knew who she was as well, of course, but Colm and Eve had a quiet wedding at Darkmere and the wider public didn’t know his sister had been there, so what about her friends?

Her fellow pupils at Miss Thibett’s Academy had either become teachers themselves or drifted so far from Nell’s orbit they lost contact. Uncle Augustus had insisted she became Helen Court the moment she’d set foot in the school so, even if they wanted to, her friends couldn’t betray her secrets. Yes, she was living quietly in the country, pretending to be dependent on her earnings as a governess, but it was a small deception that did no harm. If his lordship was here even a hint she spent time alone with him would have the gossips on the edge of their seats, eager for every detail their busy tongues would make up if it didn’t exist. As well the Earl of Barberry was far away, then, so she could cross one disaster off her list.

She sighed and lit all the candles in the branch on her desk for once. Hard to admit to herself Mr Moss was right, but she had to go through all the letters and papers in her writing slope and the locked box of personal belongings under her bed. Looking for any clue that might account for a stranger’s odd behaviour would keep her busy. As she pulled the familiar old box out and put the key in the lock she decided it was going to be a long night, but she didn’t want to sit and dream of ineligible gentlemen with sense-dazzling kisses and a cross-grained temper until the shock and wonder of his kiss had worn off. She wouldn’t sleep with the memory of that wonderful disaster refusing to be dismissed all night long. Might as well make good use of the time, then, and try to track down his wild goose, despite her conviction there was nothing worth finding out about Miss Court, governess, or at least nothing he was ever going to hear.

* * *

Fergus rubbed a weary hand over his eyes and shook his head at his brother’s offer to pass more bacon.

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