Page 8 of A Governess' Unbridled Passion
“We may not be blood relatives, you and I, Phillip,” she began again. “But my mother was your erm … let me see, your stepmother. Although she was much younger than your father when she married him, and I was but a babe in her arms.”
“Yes, I know of the family scandal,” Phillip replied, hinting at the troubles her mother had caused for his family. “I understand that your mother was a French modiste or dressmaker, should I say?”
“And she was a fine one, too,” Lady Davina replied, showing no shame over her mother’s trade. “When she passed away with some terrible disease, I returned to France, and there I have stayed until now.”
Phillip watched her closely as she went to sit down. Crossing one leg over the over, she threw off her shoes, baring her shins and ankles to him. He could not help it as his manhood stiffened. He was but a man, prone to the seductions of an enticing woman. As his eyes wandered up and down her legs, all thoughts of everything else were gone and forgotten.
William returned with his drink, and he downed it in one, asking his butler to bring the bottle.
“I am here to rescue you, Phillip,” she said in her husky tone, making her sound all the more alluring.
“I had not realised that I needed rescuing,” he said. “From what, might I ask?”
“When I learned of the death of my stepbrother, I was devastated for the children,” she said, not yet answering his question. “I am here to not only help them but also to help you.”
There was something about the way she said his formal title. It rolled from her tongue as if she were hinting at some forbidden pleasure.
Shaking his head, he came to his senses. “You think me in need of help?”
“Oh,bien sur,” she said in French, with sexual innuendo dripping from her words. “You are the brother who was sent away, are you not?”
Phillip tapped his fingers on his chair arm. “Yes, but not out of disgrace. I have loved every moment of living on the plantation. In fact, I would go back tomorrow if not for the children.”
“Yes, I can see that you are a man built with a solid figure. No doubt you are also a man who has no care for the English and their social graces.” She said it as a statement rather than a question.
“You hide your French accent well. Is it because you are trying to fit in yourself?” he asked, a little venom on his tongue. He was still annoyed at her disturbing his meeting with the children and the lovely governess.
“On the contrary, I am proud of my French heritage. But my time with your grandfather gave me an excellent English education,” she said, showing no emotion. “In return, I have decided to come and help you integrate back into the English ways. You are a duke now, and with that will come many responsibilities. So, as your sister …”
“Mystepsister, might I remind you?” Phillip emphasized the relationship. “We are not of the same bloodline, so let us not go around pretending that we are,” he huffed.
“I assure you that by law, I am your sister, and your older one at that, though only just, but let us not talk of numbers; it is rude,” she said, giving out a disdainful laugh. “I can see from how you allow your servants so much freedom that you need my guidance. I offer myself to you, Phillip. You will do well to accept my good intentions.”
“As a member of this family of sorts, I will not turn you away, Davina,” Phillip said, still unsure of the woman’s true intentions. “I may be untrained in the eyes of the English nobility, but noble blood flows in my veins, so do not test me. Meanwhile, if you are willing to organise my social integration, then you are welcome to do so.”
“Let me prove my worth to you,” she purred in her husky tone. “For now, let us celebrate with a bottle of bubbly. I will call your butler, and we shall toast our relationship, which I hope will develop into a deep friendship.”
He watched as she did exactly as she said she would do. It could be that she may prove useful, and so he would tolerate her for a while. Phillip was aware that he lacked the social skills of a duke. He’d never been one to relish his status.
But to run the estate and ensure it didn’t sink, he needed a captain’s mate at his helm. Soon, another friend would be arriving for the same purpose; to assist him with his new role, and he was very much looking forward to his arrival.
Chapter 5
The next morning, Alice was in the nursery with Lady Beatrice, seated at her wooden desk with a slate and chalk. The little girl was writing her letters even though she knew them all by heart.
“Can we dance now, Miss Alice?” Lady Beatrice asked as she quickly became bored.
“I want you to concentrate on your letters first, Lady Beatrice,” Alice said gently but firmly. “You must perfect them, for they are the door to your world. And you must discipline yourself to concentrate.”
“Are we learning letters all day, Miss Alice?” Lady Beatrice asked with a terrible look of disappointment on her young face.
“No, my dear, but the more you chatter, the longer we shall be here doing letters,” Miss Alice pointed out. “Close your lips tightly so as not to chatter, as if we had sewn them up. Now, write your letters onto the slate and show me each one before rubbing it out.”
That seemed to do the trick, and Alice supposed that Lady Beatrice was now imagining having her lips sewn with a needle and thread. Though she hadn’t meant to put such an image in the young girl’s mind, at least now she was busy doing her letters.
As Alice watched her, she couldn’t bear the thought that her charge might now be afraid of a needle and thread. “You do know that no one will ever sew up your lips, Lady Beatrice?” she said, kneeling to assure the girl.
“Yes, it would hurt far too much, Miss Alice, and I know that you would never hurt me,” Lady Beatrice replied very matter-of-factly.
