Page 1 of The Earl's Forbidden Governess
Chapter 1
“Miss Winslow! Miss Winslow, oh you simply must wake up!”
Catherine Winslow bolted upright in her bed, her emerald eyes wide with alarm. She blinked a few times before finally taking in the sight of Charlotte Ashdown, who was bouncing on the edge of her bed. The girl’s chestnut braid swung wildly—narrowly missing Catherine’s nose. The sun was only just starting to rise outside the window.
“Charlotte,” Catherine said, stifling a yawn. “What on earth…” Her question, however, was promptly cut off by an excited squeal.
“You will never believe what I overheard,” Charlotte said now, her eyes sparkling with mischief as she tugged at Catherine’s sleeve. “According to Cook,” she continued, shifting to sit down on the bed. “Lord Blackwood was seen leaving Widow Hartley’s house at an ungodly hour this morning. And in quite a state of… disarray! Cravat off to the side and trousers unbuttoned, if you know what I mean.”
Catherine felt her cheeks grow warm at the implication. “Charlotte Ashdown,” she admonished. “That is hardly appropriate conversation for a young lady!”
Charlotte, ever the rebel, merely laughed. “Oh, pish posh,” she exclaimed as she waved her hand dismissively. “I am already eighteen, Miss Winslow! I’ll be married soon—surely I am old enough to discuss the… intricacies… of adult relationships.”
Catherine shook her head with a laugh and swung her own legs over the side of the bed. “I assure you, you are not,” she said firmly. “Now kindly remove yourself from my chambers so I might dress, you impossible young lady. We shall make sure to discuss your eavesdropping habits during your etiquette lesson today.”
Charlotte pouted, but still complied—flouncing out of the room with a dramatic sigh. Catherine shook her head, a fond smile tugging at her lips despite her exasperation. The Ashdown girls were certainly a handful, she mused—not for the first time in her years of working as their governess. Still, she adored them all the same.
Of course, Catherine too was only human, and she could not help but let her mind wander to Charlotte’s salacious gossip. Lord Blackwood was indeed a handsome man—with piercing blue eyes and a roguish smile that had set many a heart aflutter all across the city. And Widow Hartley, well, Catherine hadheard whispers about her rather liberal interpretation of the mourning period.
“Stop it,” she chided herself as she tied her dark brown hair into its usual loose bun. “You are as bad as Charlotte.”
Still, she made her way to the kitchens quickly, where she looked at Cook curiously.
“What is this I hear about Lord Blackwood and Widow Hartley?” she asked immediately, and the matronly woman pressed a hand to her heart.
“Me daughter saw it with her own eyes,” she said, her eyes twinkling. “Can you believe it? The woman’s husband is hardly cold and there she goes, entertaining Lord Blackwood! Anna said he was looking quite worse for wear. But wait…”
Cook frowned and looked at Catherine curiously. “Where did you hear?”
Catherine lifted a brow, a smile playing about her lips. “I heard from Lady Charlotte,” she said pointedly, and Cook’s face flushed.
“Oh, Lord have mercy on me soul,” she exclaimed. “The little girl heard me, didn’t she?”
“She did,” Catherine said, her brow lifted. “And she was quick to tell me that she is in fact no longer a little girl at all. She’s about ready to marry.”
Cook merely shook her head and Catherine laughed. “Just… be mindful where you gossip?” she advised gently. “We don’t want Lady Ashdown to blame us for her daughter’s innocence being compromised.”
“You’re right, of course you are,” Cook said with a laugh. “Thanks for the warning.”
Catherine winked at her with a laugh before making her way to the parlor, where Charlotte and Sophia were already standing in front of canvasses.
“You are later than us,” Sophia accused with a grin. “Shame on you, Miss Winslow. You taught us never to be late.”
“I know, and I’m sorry,” Catherine explained. “But I must say, Sophia—your watercolors are coming along beautifully.”
She lifted an impressed brow as she admired the delicate landscape the younger Ashdown sister had produced. “You have a real talent for capturing light.”
Sophia beamed at this, and her amber eyes shone with pride. “Thank you, Miss Winslow,” she exclaimed. “I have been practicing every day, just like you told me.”
“Oh, those paintings are lovely, Sophia,” Charlotte said. “And Miss Winslow is just blatantly refusing to compliment me today because of the gossip I told her…”
“What gossip?” Sophia asked at last, but Catherine shook her head.
“Nothing your ears should hear yet,” she said lightly and turned to Charlotte. “But I do believe your Latin translation is complete?”
Charlotte held a book out at her with a dramatic sigh and Catherine glanced at it, then smiled proudly. “You have finally mastered the ablative absolute!” she cheered. “That is really impressive progress, Char.”
Charlotte grinned brightly at that, and Catherine gave her hand an encouraging squeeze before lifting a book off the shelf.
