Page 3 of The Earl's Forbidden Governess
Lady Ashdown waved away her thanks with a soft laugh. “Nonsense, my dear,” she said firmly. “It is the least I could do after all you have done for us. But I must warn you…” She looked around, as if she were concerned about being overheard. “You ought to be quite… guarded. From what I hear, life at Wessex Manor can be quite… stimulating.”
There was something in Lady Ashdown’s tone that made Catherine’s cheeks flush, and she pressed her hands to her face. “My lady!” she let out, scandalized, and Lady Ashdown laughed.
“Oh, pish,” she said, looking an awful lot like Charlotte in that moment. “The entire city knows that the man is impossibly good looking, and he has quite the rakish reputation.”
Catherine shook her head. She was certain Lady Ashdown was not implying whatever it sounded like.
“When would I be expected to start?” she asked, pushing the inappropriate thoughts aside.
“In a fortnight,” Lady Ashdown replied with a mysterious smile. “I hope that gives you enough time to make your preparations?”
Catherine nodded slowly. Of all the things she knew had to be done, she was most affected by the awful thought of saying goodbye to this family—they were far more of a family than she’d ever had before. “Of course,” she let out at last. “Thank you, Lady Ashdown. For everything.”
Catherine left the parlor slowly. Despite the good news of a new job waiting for her, her heart ached a bit more with every step she took. She was going to miss the Ashdowns terribly. Of course, a small part of her was quite curious about the Earl of Wessex. After all… she was only human.
The next two weeks passed in a blur of tearful goodbyes and frantic preparations. Of course, Sophia and Charlotte were as devastated as she was to say goodbye. The girls alternated between clinging to her desperately and peppering her with questions about her new position—and her new employer.
“Oh, Miss Winslow,” Sophia sighed dreamily as she settled onto Catherine’s bed while the latter packed her books away. “Just think! You’ll be living in a grand manor, surrounded by elegance… it’ll all be so beautiful.”
Charlotte grinned brightly, a mischievous twinkle in her eyes. “And don’t forget the Earl himself. I’ve heard he isterribly handsome—broad shouldered and muscled. And you are beautiful too—just think, what if he sweeps you off your feet and…”
“Charlotte!” Catherine admonished quickly, though she could not quite hide the blush that crept up her neck. “That is inappropriate speculation! The Earl of Wessex is to be my employer, nothing more. There will be no sweeping anyone off their feet and most certainly no romance.”
“Of course, Miss Winslow,” Charlotte replied quickly—her tone entirely too innocent to be believed. “But you must promise to write to us and tell us all about the glamorous parties and gentlemen you encounter.”
Catherine shook her head and laughed despite herself. “I promise to write, but I am afraid my letters will be disappointingly devoid of dashing gentlemen and glamorous parties. I am going to work—not find a husband. And I will certainly not be attending any parties.”
“Miss Winslow,” Sophia asked now, her eyes wide with innocence. “Don’t youwantto marry?”
Catherine hesitated. “Well,” she said at last. “I am already one-and-twenty, and besides… I never really had a family of my own, so… I suppose it was easy not to long for my own.”
Sophia frowned. “But you are so beautiful, Miss Winslow,” she explained. “You ought to marry and have beautiful children too.”
Catherine shook her head, a sad smile playing about her lips. “Those are foolish thoughts for a governess to entertain,” she said softly. “Romance has no place in my life—not even at Wessex manor.”
With that, the conversation was finished, though judging by the whispers between the sisters as they left her bedchamber, she was certain that the girls did not quite agree with her.
Perhaps it was the conversation they’d had, perhaps the fear of the unknown… but when Catherine finally managed to find herself in a fitful sleep, a mysterious man loomed over her. Without fully seeing him, she knew without any sliver of doubt that it was the elusive earl.
“You are beautiful,” the man muttered, his lips warm against her ear. Catherine gasped as he swept her off her feet, his hands traveling slowly over her soft curves.
“You ought to marry… have children…” he whispered, and she shook her head in protest. But his lips then traveled down the column of her throat, and she let out a whimper when finally, his lips met hers in a demanding kiss.
She woke with a start, just as his hand traveled toward her breast, her heart racing wildly in her chest, and a strange warm wetness pooling between her thighs.
Far too soon, the morning of her departure arrived. Where Catherine stood in the entrance hall of Ashdown manor, surrounded by her meager belongings, Lady Ashdown fussed over her: straightening her bonnet before pressing a small purse into her hands.
“For any expenses you might incur on your journey,” she insisted when Catherine tried to protest. “And do remember my dear… you always have a home here with us, if you should ever need it.”
Catherine blinked back tears, touched by the older woman’s kindness. “Thank you, Lady Ashdown,” she whispered. “For everything.”
Before she could make another move, two slender figures appeared in the foyer. Sophia’s eyes brimmed with tears when she stepped forward. “We will miss you terribly, Miss Winslow,” she said softly, and Charlotte nodded. “Promise you won’t forget us,” she added, her usual exuberance all but gone.
“Oh, girls,” Catherine said softly as she hugged them. “I could never forget you in a thousand years,” she promised.
Before she could say anything more, the carriage came to a halt in front of the manor and she left the weeping girls inside, her own heart aching as she made her way down the cobblestone pavement.
Chapter 2
