Bronwyn Scott's Sexy Regency Bundle (269 page)

The problem was, she hadn't thought of herself as the Dowager Duchess for more than a month. In the six weeks she'd been at Roseland, she'd been again, a woman in love and resident

lady of the manor. She'd not thought of herself as anyone's duchess, widow or viscountess; she'd rather liked defining herself as a person instead of a title.

Now it was time to put the cloak of official authority back on.

straightened her shoulders,

reminding herself that it wasn't appropriate to show emotions or weakness in front of the servants.

Loving Valerian had made her more careless than she'd realised over the past weeks. 'Have Cook send a tea tray to the parlour, Steves. We'll show our guest the best of Roseland's hospitality, whatever her mission may be. Tell Cook to put some of her special sugar biscuits on the tray and a cup of milk for the boy.'

smiled his approval. 'Yes, your Grace,' he said crisply, his relief evident that someone other than he was about to handle the delicate situation that had arrived on Roseland's doorstep.

drew a deep breath and headed down-

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stairs. The parlour had been one of the she'd re-done. She just hadn't planned on using it so soon to receive callers. Soft voices in a language she didn't recognise drifted out into the hall.

was

struck with a fresh thought. She hoped the woman hadn't come to tempt Valerian with any more treasonous activity.

checked her thoughts and

amended them. Assuming he'd already been tempted before.

'Good morning, Miss S tefanov.'

swept

into the room. 'Viscount St Just is not at home right now, but perhaps I can assist you.' She was the consummate polite hostess.

The woman on the new yellow striped sofa rose, smiling her relief. 'You are too kind to receive us.'

The boy beside her stood stiffly at her urging. 'This is Constantine.'

'How do you do, Constantine?'

greeted

him. The poor boy was terribly uncomfortable, trying hard not to fidget in his suit of clothes. He was a handsome boy with thick, dark hair and dark eyes.

She judged him to be seven or eight years of age. He was old enough to be Valerian's son, a child fathered a few years into his tour abroad. But the girl didn't seem old enough to be the boy's mother.

'Please, be seated. tea tray will be here shortly and you can refresh yourselves. Have you been in England long?'

The girl, for that was what she was now that had a moment to study her, shook her head.

'We arrived two days ago. We came straight here. We know no one else in this country.'

200

The Viscount Claims His Bride

The tray arrived and

used the time to

assess the girl while the servants laid out the tea things. She looked to be in her mid-teens and uncommonly beautiful. Like the boy, she had ink-black hair. She wore it twisted up in a tasteful hairstyle with a pretty jewelled comb to fasten it. Her skin had a slight olive cast and was flawlessly smooth. And her clothes were well made. These two were not country peasants. Wherever they hailed from, they were people of means.

The boy was delighted with the milk and sugar biscuits. The girl smiled her thanks at the thoughtful gesture. 'Our journey has been long and we have not eaten as well as we should.'

She was brave and proud,

thought,

watching her over the rim of the tea cup. 'Where are you from? Your English is very good, but I detect an accent.'

The girl blushed. 'Please call me Lilya.'

'Is that a Russian name?'

'No.' There was a hint of defiance in her 'no'.

wondered where that came from. 'It's a Balkan name, a Macedonian name.'

maintained her smile, but a slow coldness began to spread through her. She could guess where this girl was from. 'I don't know terribly much about the Balkan region.'

shadow of sadness passed over the girl's face.

'I am from a village that doesn't exist any more. It was called Negush, but it was destroyed. Since then, I've lived wherever there was peace.'

started at the mention of the village. She

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recognised it from Lucien's letter. Her stomach lurched. Was Valerian in true danger from something that had happened there? Was Lucien serious about what he'd uncovered?

thousand questions

rioted through her mind. It took a large amount of self-control to keep from quizzing the girl. The truth about Lucien's claims likely sat across from her. Her curiosity raged.

tamped it down, opting

instead to be selfless. The girl had undergone a difficult journey and was now in foreign surroundings.

She needed empathy, not an inquest.

'I'm sorry.'

offered quietly. In spite of

her concerns for Valerian, she felt her heart go out to the girl. Her phrase, 'I've lived wherever there was peace', spoke volumes about her struggles.

could hardly begin to comprehend what that must have been like. She'd grown up during the wars with Napoleon, but that was different. The war hadn't been fought, thank God, on English soil. She'd been able to remain insulated from a

encounter

with the terrors of war.

set down her tea cup. 'I confess, I have a thousand questions for

'Please, you may ask us anything,' Lilya said.