Page 74 of The Enigmatic Governess of Buford Manor
“Are you well?”
“Yes, Your Grace!” she answered quickly. “No, Your Grace.”
He peered at her, cocking his dark curls to the side to study her face inquisitively.
“Is it yes or no, Miss Rose?” he asked, a gentle teasing in his tone. “Or are you unsure?”
“May I speak with you, Your Grace?”
He did not immediately respond, his strange eyes wracking over her face as if searching for an answer and for the first time, Rose noticed fine lines about the corners.
He is fatigued from all that has been thrust upon him,she realized, a stab of uncertainty touching her.He has much with which to concern himself that does not involve the woes of young children or my unsubstantiated suspicions.
“Of course. I am happy for the distraction,” the duke agreed, stepping aside to permit her entry.
Rose followed as he returned to his overflowing desk, papers near spilling off the sides of the wood.
“Your Grace, you are occupied,” she murmured, standing as he reclaimed his chair. She had almost forgotten how handsome the man was, but staring at his piercing eyes aglow in the candlelight, a comfortable warmth spread through her body.
“Miss Rose, I am always occupied,” he sighed, forcing a small smile on his face. “Which is why I find your presence so refreshing.”
“I fear you will not feel the same after I explain the reason for my visit.”
A look of annoyance crossed his eyes and Rose shifted her gaze downward.
He has too much on his mind at the moment. I cannot cause him more issue.
“Forgive me, Your Grace. I must be out of my wits distracting you when you are clearly overwhelmed with work.”
“Nonsense,” Nicholas said sharply. “You have come here for a reason, Miss Rose. What is it?”
She raised her head slightly and met his gaze. Somehow, she was no longer smitten with his informality, the bite in his words detracting from what had once been an endearment.
“Forgive me,” she said again, turning away. “I misspoke. Good night, Your Grace.”
“Miss Rose, wait!”
Reluctantly, she glanced back, pivoting her body to address him. She was hardly in a position to ignore a duke’s orders, no matter how close she had permitted herself to believe they had become.
You are a governess, a base-born orphan with no standing to walk away.
“Your Grace?”
She could not bring herself to meet his eyes.
“It is you who should forgive me,” he told her earnestly and Rose gazed at him cautiously. “I should not have been short with you, but it is as you say, I have been quite overcome with my father’s duties. Please, do not go. I truly do welcome having you here. I have missed our time together.”
Rose’s heart fluttered softly and she smiled tentatively.
“I have, also, Your Grace.”
“I daresay, I rather long for the times when you called me Nicholas in our private moments as well.”
Rose’s face exploded into a shade of dark crimson and she tried to think of something clever to say but she was unexpectedly tongue-tied. Nicholas’ face collapsed into a broad grin.
“Too much has occurred, has it not? Tis not as easy to return to how things were before my father died.”
“It will take time, Your Grace,” she murmured. “It was an unimaginable loss for you and Her Grace.”
