her temporary exile, she hardly comprehended a word of it.
He cleared his throat, adding, ‘I sent your cousins a letter yesterday, explaining what has happened. I’ve promised to provide a stipend for your care. No doubt they will be glad to take you in.’
‘For how long?’
When her father didn’t answer at first, Hannah suspected that he wasn’t certain either. An unexpected loneliness spread inside her stomach at the thought of spending years away from her family. London had been her home all her life, and she couldn’t imagine being away for an extended time.
‘Until talk has ceased,’ her father acceded. ‘Or until you find another gentleman to wed. Perhaps someone from Germany or Denmark, who doesn’t know of the scandal.’
He wanted her to hide the truth, then. The dishonesty didn’t sit well with her, and Hannah decided that if she did meet a possible husband, she would tell him exactly what had happened.
‘I’ve ordered the servants to pack your trunks in the morning,’ the Marquess added. ‘Quentin will escort you to the ship, and after that, the Graf von Reischor has promised to take you the remainder of the journey.’
The ambassador? She recalled Lieutenant Thorpe’s confession that he was accompanying the Graf to Lohenberg. Most certainly her father knew nothing of this.
And neither did Lieutenant Thorpe. Hannah suppressed a shiver, wondering if she dared to travel with them. Even with an army of servants to chaperone her, she was afraid of falling prey to her own weakness. The Lieutenant had awakened something inside her, and she feared that the more time shespent with him, the easier it would be to let go of her strict rules of proper conduct.
The Marquess crossed the room and opened the door. ‘We will speak more about your journey in the morning.’
It was a dismissal, and Hannah bid her parents good night. Once she left the parlour, she returned to her room, where she found another list of reminders from her mother.
Wear the rose silk gown tomorrow morning with the cream gloves.
Supervise the packing for Germany.
Send farewell notes to your friends.
The last reminder was one she hadn’t thought about. She didn’t know when she would see her friends again. It hurt to think of them getting married and going on with their lives, without her there to see it. She would miss Bernadette, her dearest friend from boarding school. And Nicole.
She couldn’t possibly explain everything in a note. No, tomorrow she would pay a few calls and bid them farewell in person.
Her maid Estelle began unlacing Hannah’s dress, helping her into a nightgown. ‘Lady Hannah, I am so dreadfully sorry about what happened yesterday afternoon. I can’t think of the ordeal you must have endured.’
‘Yes, well, it’s over now. I won’t have to see Belgrave again.’ She didn’t want to dwell upon the past, not any more.
Hannah dismissed her maid and sat down upon her bed, drawing her legs beneath the covers and reaching for a book. Though she tried to read a bit of Goethe, practising her German, she couldn’t concentrate on the words. Her mind kept returning to the Lieutenant. They would spend two nights upon the ship, and several days more by coach, until she reached her cousins’ home in Germany.
It would be all too easy to ignore the years of proper comportment, letting herself explore the strange yearnings she felt. But, in spite of the forthcoming scandal, she was still untouched. There was no reason to let go of that.
Fluffing her pillow, Hannah rolled over. Beneath it, her fingers brushed against something cold and hard. She lifted up the glittering strand of diamonds, and her heartbeat quickened. The Lieutenant had been here, in her room. He’d touched her bed, and no one had seen him. Not even her.
An invisible phantom, keeping her safe, just as he’d promised.
Hannah returned the diamonds to her jewellery chest, wondering how and when he had managed to enter her room. He’d
He cleared his throat, adding, ‘I sent your cousins a letter yesterday, explaining what has happened. I’ve promised to provide a stipend for your care. No doubt they will be glad to take you in.’
‘For how long?’
When her father didn’t answer at first, Hannah suspected that he wasn’t certain either. An unexpected loneliness spread inside her stomach at the thought of spending years away from her family. London had been her home all her life, and she couldn’t imagine being away for an extended time.
‘Until talk has ceased,’ her father acceded. ‘Or until you find another gentleman to wed. Perhaps someone from Germany or Denmark, who doesn’t know of the scandal.’
He wanted her to hide the truth, then. The dishonesty didn’t sit well with her, and Hannah decided that if she did meet a possible husband, she would tell him exactly what had happened.
‘I’ve ordered the servants to pack your trunks in the morning,’ the Marquess added. ‘Quentin will escort you to the ship, and after that, the Graf von Reischor has promised to take you the remainder of the journey.’
The ambassador? She recalled Lieutenant Thorpe’s confession that he was accompanying the Graf to Lohenberg. Most certainly her father knew nothing of this.
And neither did Lieutenant Thorpe. Hannah suppressed a shiver, wondering if she dared to travel with them. Even with an army of servants to chaperone her, she was afraid of falling prey to her own weakness. The Lieutenant had awakened something inside her, and she feared that the more time shespent with him, the easier it would be to let go of her strict rules of proper conduct.
The Marquess crossed the room and opened the door. ‘We will speak more about your journey in the morning.’
It was a dismissal, and Hannah bid her parents good night. Once she left the parlour, she returned to her room, where she found another list of reminders from her mother.
Wear the rose silk gown tomorrow morning with the cream gloves.
Supervise the packing for Germany.
Send farewell notes to your friends.
The last reminder was one she hadn’t thought about. She didn’t know when she would see her friends again. It hurt to think of them getting married and going on with their lives, without her there to see it. She would miss Bernadette, her dearest friend from boarding school. And Nicole.
She couldn’t possibly explain everything in a note. No, tomorrow she would pay a few calls and bid them farewell in person.
Her maid Estelle began unlacing Hannah’s dress, helping her into a nightgown. ‘Lady Hannah, I am so dreadfully sorry about what happened yesterday afternoon. I can’t think of the ordeal you must have endured.’
‘Yes, well, it’s over now. I won’t have to see Belgrave again.’ She didn’t want to dwell upon the past, not any more.
Hannah dismissed her maid and sat down upon her bed, drawing her legs beneath the covers and reaching for a book. Though she tried to read a bit of Goethe, practising her German, she couldn’t concentrate on the words. Her mind kept returning to the Lieutenant. They would spend two nights upon the ship, and several days more by coach, until she reached her cousins’ home in Germany.
It would be all too easy to ignore the years of proper comportment, letting herself explore the strange yearnings she felt. But, in spite of the forthcoming scandal, she was still untouched. There was no reason to let go of that.
Fluffing her pillow, Hannah rolled over. Beneath it, her fingers brushed against something cold and hard. She lifted up the glittering strand of diamonds, and her heartbeat quickened. The Lieutenant had been here, in her room. He’d touched her bed, and no one had seen him. Not even her.
An invisible phantom, keeping her safe, just as he’d promised.
Hannah returned the diamonds to her jewellery chest, wondering how and when he had managed to enter her room. He’d
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