Page 54 of A Courtesan Countess Worth the Scandal
Nora smiled at her sister. “You ought to save some of that enthusiasm. We’ve a long way to go before we reach the estate, and I wouldn’t want you to be too tired to catch your first whiff of the place.”
“I’ll sleep the entire way, and you can wake me when we get there,” Lily commanded, with a gleeful grin that made Nora’s spirits swell. If nothing else, this would be good for her little sister. Though Lily might be blind, that did not mean she did not deserve to experience new things and have the pleasure of visiting new places.
However, when Nora had said they had a long way to go before reaching the estate, she had not entirely been speaking in the literal sense. If the spies happened to figure out the trick that was being played upon them, then this journey northward might take a turn for the worse. Already, Nora was on tenterhooks, fretting over how she might protect her family if “highwaymen” or something far worse were to attack.
Lord, if you can hear me… just keep them safe. I don’t care about myself, but make sure they make it through, no matter what happens.
“Did you speak with Mrs. Rogers this morning?” Nora’s mother asked, as the carriage trundled on.
Nora nodded. “I left her with a purse of coin, a few sacks of oats, and a promise to send more just as soon as possible. I’m sure Lord Keswick will help me with that, also, if I ask him.”
“Is that the “husband” we’re supposed to pretend you have?” Lily quipped, giggling to herself. “I always wanted to see you married to someone nice, but I suppose I don’t mind that we skipped past the wedding. It’d just mean sitting through some tedious sermons.”
“Lily!” their mother scolded. “You’d do well to listen to those sermons instead of lettin’ your head wander in the clouds. Nora ain’t really marryin’ this gentleman. She’s got better sense than that. Ain’t that right, My Girl?”
Mother and eldest daughter exchanged a look, and though Nora tried to put on an expression of sympathetic agreement, now that she knew what had really happened between her mother and father, there was a small voice within her that whispered,“Why not me? Why shouldn’t I find love? Why do I have to be alone?”
Lily shrugged. “Maybe he’ll fall madly in love with her anyway and ask her to marry him for real. Who wouldn’t fall in love with my Sister the moment they laid eyes on her?” Her grin widened. “Although, as far as I know, you might be as ugly as a sow with two heads.”
“The gall of you!” Nora laughed heartily. “I can assure you I’m at least as pretty as a sow with one head.”
Lily chuckled delightedly, while their mother sank into a sullen sort of silence. No doubt, she was thinking of her own ill-fated marriage, and the secret that she had not yet told Lily. Nora wondered if she ought to be the one to inform her little sister that they both shared the same father, but she supposed it was the kind of thing that should come from a mother.
It’s only a ruse, Ma. There’s no risk of Liam falling for me, sweet as he is. In fact, it’s because he’s so sweet and kind that there’s no chance of anything more.
The more she thought of their peculiar acquaintanceship, the more Nora realized that she and Liam were as water and oil. They could rest close to one another, but they could never mix. A courtesan would always repel a man of moral standing, and a well-to-do Lord could never allow himself to accept a woman with a tattered past.
I am not someone’s life choice. I am only a glittering bauble, to be admired temporarily… before the cracks and the wear begins to show.
A short while later, they arrived on the Strand, where the driver—carefully selected this time, from a list of Donovan’s acquaintances—took them directly to the destination that Liam had detailed. Sure enough, as it neared, she spied a waiting carriage and the vague silhouette of Liam in the window.
“We must move quickly,” Nora warned, urging her mother and sister to take hold of their suitcases. “As soon as the carriage draws alongside, we have to get out and leap into Lord Keswick’s.”
To make doubly sure that her younger sister would not fall behind, Nora grasped both of her suitcases in one hand, and used her free hand to take hold of Lily’s wrist. Meanwhile, their mother took up her belongings and stood in readiness for their next action.
Seconds later, the carriage drew parallel to Liam’s carriage. Taking the lead, Nora swung the door wide and reached for the handle of Liam’s. As soon as it was open, she flung herself and Lily inside, with their mother bringing up the rear and closing the door to their carriage behind her.
“Goodness!” Liam cried, evidently startled by the abrupt intrusion. “Apologies, I was distracted by a little flower girl on the street. I assure you I was keeping an eye upon the road until a moment or so ago.”
Nora smiled as she watched her carriage pull away, with no one inside. “You do not have to tell such lies, Lord Keswick. I am your wife now, and wives ought to know the truth in all matters.” She chuckled at his obvious discomfort, especially as she found herself being forced to sit at his side to make room for her mother and sister.
“Another jest of yours, I am sure,” Liam said shyly. He banged on the carriage wall and, outside, the driver snapped the reins, urging the horses to move along the Strand and head out of London all together. “I suppose I ought to close these,” he added, drawing the curtains over the windows.
Lily gestured up toward her eyes. “It makes no difference to me, My Lord—I wouldn’t know if it was night or day.”
“Lily, you can’t speak to a Lord like that,” their mother whispered sharply, but Liam seemed utterly delighted.
“I do not mind, Mrs. Black,” he assured. “I am fond of humor. Indeed, I am getting quite the education in what is deemed to be amusing, but I managed to figure that one out on my own.” He paused, “Ah, I suppose I should introduce myself, as I am to be an extended part of your family during your stay at my Manor. I am Lord Keswick, but you may refer to me as Liam in private, or as Westwood if you do not care for the full honorifics.”
Lily frowned. “Why Westwood?”
“That is my family surname, while Keswick is the title of my Earldom. Having been referred to as Westwood for much of my life, I have grown accustomed to it.” He glanced at Nora, his thigh brushing hers as the carriage jostled. “Liam, however, has been a more recent revelation.”
Lily grinned. “Has that not always been your name?”
“Well… yes, it has, but no one has called me by that name until I met your Sister,” Liam explained, never taking his eyes off Nora. “She was rather impertinent and sought to use my given name, and I did not dare to correct her lest she box my ears.”
Nora’s teeth grazed her bottom lip impulsively. “So, you have learned how to jest as well as how to recognize an amusing jape?”
