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wifeâs maid while she was under the same roof. As long as Lady Georgina was in the house, Maggie was safe.
Feeling more secure than she had in weeks, Maggie set about tidying things away again, humming happily under her breath.
But it wasnât to last.
Three days later, the letter arrived.
âMr Harris the butler gave me this,â Mrs Hardcastle said to Maggie, waving a narrow envelope as she bustled into the kitchen. âYouâd better take it up with her ladyshipâs breakfast tray.â She held it up to the light and peered at it. âItâs not Master Jeremyâs writing. I wonder who itâs from...â She laid it on the tray. âNo doubt weâll find out soon enough.â
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âA letter for you, my lady,â said Maggie as she laid the tray on the bed.
Lady Georgina picked it up and slit it open with her butter knife. She scanned it rapidly, then tutted and shook her head. âPoor Lucy, enceinte again,â she muttered to herself. âThereâs nothing else for it, I shall have to go.â
She looked up at Maggie. âI shall be leaving for the country as soon as possible, Carter. You may start packing as soon as I have dressed.â
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âWhatâs âenceinteâ when itâs at home?â Maggie demanded when she took the tray back to the kitchen.
âIn the puddinâ club,â Mrs Hardcastle said bluntly. âItâs one of those fancy words them upstairs uses when theyâre talking about something ânot quaite niceâ. Anyway,â she went on, fixing Maggie with a suspicious stare. âWhy are you asking that? You ainât, are you?â
âOf course not!â Maggie protested. âLady Georgina used it and I wondered what it meant, thatâs all.â
âAhhh,â said Mrs H, comprehension dawning. âSo thatâs what the letter was about.â She sniffed. âItâll be that young sister of hers again. Miss Lucy - or Lady Fortesque as she is now - and a blooming good job sheâs married, too. Thisâll be the seventh by my count.â She shook her head. âPoor girl; all that husband of hers needs to do is look sideways at her and she falls - and she was never very strong to start with.â She sighed. âHeâs going to kill her one of these days, you mark my words.â
âLady Georginaâs going to stay with her,â Maggie informed them. âIâve to start packing once sheâs dressed.â
âMore work,â said Mrs H glumly, then she brightened. âMind you, once sheâs gone we can loosen our own corsets a bit, and youâll like it down there, Maggie. Itâs a beautiful old house. Youâll have a bedroom to yourself, and the grubâs lovely. Mrs Bensonâs a grand cook.â She looked at Maggie. âThe fresh airâll put a few roses in your cheeks, too,â she added. âYouâve been looking a bit peaky lately.â
âWill I be going, too?â asked Maggie eagerly. The thought of being safely away from Lord Edward was almost too good to be true.
Mrs Hardcastle looked at her in surprise. âCourse you will, love!â she exclaimed. âDonât you know that by this time? No lady travels anywhere without her personal maid.â She chuckled. âCan you imagine her majesty trying to put on her own stays? I should cocoa!â She patted Maggieâs hand and gave her a wink. âItâll be like a holiday, and you enjoy yourself while you can, pet. Bit oâ new blood? Iâll bet them young footmen will be falling all over you.â
Maggie smiled back. She could live without the footmen, but it would be lovely to get away from this place and all her fears, and by the time she got back perhaps Lord Edward would have found someone else to lust after.
Buoyed by the thought she whisked through the rest of the day, oblivious of the sheer hard work
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