Gemma smiled as she turned to leave, pausing at the door .
“There is one other thing, Miss Andrews,” she said, turning back to Tillie. “’Tis not my place really, to provide you advice, but as ye ‘ave not met her before, I must tell ye that Miss Masters is very good at unnerving people with little comments and slights. My suggestion is to not let her get the upper hand in conversations and to keep her slightly off-balanced .”
Tillie thanked the maid and turned back to the window to consider her words. So, this Eliza Masters was a power manipulator in conversations? Tillie considered the battlefield and what her options were once she and her foe came face to face .
* * *
A lexander returned to the manor that afternoon with a smile on his face. All was going quite according to plan. Tillie was determined to keep him close in order to stave off Miss Masters .
He looked forward to seeing Tillie again that afternoon, and bounded up the stairs to her chamber, knocking on her door this time. As she opened it, she caught his grinning face and frowned .
“What?” She asked, furrowing her brows, confused at his expression .
“Are you occupied at the moment?” He glanced behind her, as if she might have some object or occupation in plain sight. She shook her head .
“Would you like to join me for tea downstairs? Mother is sleeping, as she usually does in the afternoon, but I have been alone all day and would like your company .”
Tillie agreed and followed him downstairs, almost unable to keep up with his long strides .
“Whatever is the hurry?” she asked, a question in her voice. Her legs were much shorter than his and he was practically leaping over two stairs at a time as he made his way to the first floor .
He walked her into the dining room, which the staff had laid out in preparation for the tea service. At the center of the table, Tillie spied a small white box, most obviously the source of Alexander’s amusement and enthusiasm .
“Whatever is in the box, Your Grace?” she asked dryly. “A toad ?”
The poor man looked utterly confused at her question .
“Why would I put a toad in a box and set it on the table for tea ?”
The silence stretched between them a moment .
“Ah. You do not have brothers and sisters,” she said, suddenly realizing the truth .
“No, of course not,” he said, clearly even more confused .
Tillie smiled .
“I grew up in a household where the moment a male offers you something wrapped in an innocuous-looking box, you question it,” she said. “I have received dead bugs, a snake, and three toads in just such a package before .”
He looked truly horrified as he absorbed the information .
“It is a miracle you survived, dear Miss Andrews,” he said with a grin, shaking his head and composing himself. “No, what I have for you here is much more palatable than a toad, I assure you .”
She was interested now and watched as he pulled the twine free and lifted the flap. He tilted the box toward Tillie and it took a serious amount of self control to keep herself from launching toward the gift box and grabbing the delicious looking treats inside .
She made a move for it and Alexander suddenly had the box in his hand, holding it out of her reach above her head .
“I had thought that I heard you once say how much you like the marzipan from King’s. I happened to come across a batch of marzipan I think is better than King’s, so I decided to grab us a batch to try,” he said, laughing as Tillie jumped and tried to take the box from his hands. “But if you should prefer a toad, I am sure one of the gardeners can fetch one for you .”
“Stop it right now, Your Grace,” Tillie laughed at his teasing as she attempted to get at her favorite sweet treat .
“Alexander,” he corrected her, and he was well and truly laughing now. Tillie finally managed a smile when he lowered the box and offered her a cookie .
She devoured the thing (and another one after that), all with a grin on her face .
He ate his slowly, watching her the entire time .
“What?” She finally asked, noticing he was staring at her .
“I cannot say I have ever met someone who takes as much pleasure from eating a cookie as you do .”
If he’d meant to rib her, it didn’t work .
“Either you’ve been eating the wrong food,” she responded, “Or you’ve been associating with the wrong crowds .”
9
T wo days passed and she and Alexander spent the afternoons together, from tea through to dinner. Many of their conversations revolved around one another, as they learned more about each other’s backgrounds, childhoods, and their likes and dislikes. If the world was to know them as an engaged couple, they should have much greater knowledge of one another. News of their relationship was slowly making its way outside of the immediate village .
Her parents, for certain, had probably been unable to wait much longer than it took Tillie to walk through the front door into the Landon carriage before her mother started telling anybody who would listen that her daughter was going to marry a duke. The word would fly between her mother spreading the news and the fact that in a small village like Warfield, gossip grew wings and traveled fast .
She quickly learned that Alexander had been an athletic child who excelled in anything physical, who hated book learning and who had a mischievous streak .
“It does not sound like much has changed actually,” she smirked when he’d told her .
He pretended to look offended and frowned at her .
“And I bet you were an unruly little girl with wild hair and holes in her pinafore,” he jabbed back, making her laugh. She couldn’t deny it. She’d been a spitfire, as her father liked to say, and whenever left out of the care of their mother, her brothers and father had indulged nearly all of her whims and allowed Tillie to accompany them on whatever outing they had planned for the day. She had hardly realized she was a girl until she turned eight and met Tabitha, who would become her closest of friends .
On the third afternoon, as she sipped from the delicate teacup in front of her, she noticed the tension was back in Alexander’s demeanor and she asked him about it .
He was quick to deny it at first, but Tillie wouldn’t let him squirm away from her .
“Out with it,” she demanded. “What has got your knickers in a knot now, Alexander ?”
Through their days together, they had become more at ease around one another and she’d dropped the honorifics without really noticing. If he did, Alexander didn’t say anything .
“We are having a formal dinner party tomorrow night,” he said with a sigh. “We have received confirmation that Eliza and her family will be attending .”
Tillie stilled .
“Were they the only ones invited?” From the way he was making it sound, they would be forced to spend the evening entertaining solely Baron Huntington and the Masters family .
Alexander shook his head .
“Three or four other families will dine here, too,” he said. “I am certain it will be as awkward as I have made it to be in my mind .”
She could tell he was worried .
Alexander was actually, in fact, a little nervous. This charade had seemed a fine idea, and he had quite enjoyed the past few days alone with Tillie. To have a house of guests was another issue entirely .
“You just need to put on a show for this first dinner,” she was saying encouragingly as he mused. “Show her that you have moved on and forgotten her. Just one night and hopefully she will get the message that you are not bait for her hook anymore .”
Alexander smiled at her, not the charming, winning smile he bestowed on many women, but a genuine smile of thankfulness. It caused a stirring in the center of her chest, similar to the one that fluttered when they got to laughing together or teasing one another .
“I believe you, Tillie,” he said, brightening. “I am very glad you’re here .”
<
br /> As much as she didn’t think she would be, Tillie was glad also. Her life had gotten a bit predictable and, she’d daresay, boring since Tabitha had married and moved overseas for the next year at least. With her brothers otherwise occupied and moving on with their lives, she had fallen into a lonely sort of routine that didn’t include much laughing, or teas, or toads .
“I’m glad I am here as well, Alexander,” she said with a smile .
* * *
T he servants were in a tizzy, running back and forth between the manor’s large gathering room that also served as a smaller ballroom for certain occasions (a fact passed along by the Dowager Duchess herself ).
Today, the gathering room had been transformed into a splendid dining room with capacity to seat the entirety of their nearly 30-person party at one long table. Tillie had never seen anything so extraordinary put together so quickly. Holly, laurel, rosemary and mistletoe were strung around the room and hanging from the ceiling, a merry fire burning beyond the hearth .
Two hours before the first guests were set to arrive, she found herself downstairs helping Gemma and some of the other maids match the silverware patterns and set out matching sconces for the candles. The Dowager Duchess had asked Tillie to help plan the event, but in truth the servants seemed well practiced at organizing such a dinner. She was content keeping busy setting pinecones and tinsel for a festive centerpiece .
“Ye might want to head upstairs now, Miss,” Gemma said as Tillie made to move back to the linen room to get another round of lace coverlets for the sideboards. While it was true that housekeeping was her least favorite pastime — well, next to peeling potatoes — Tillie had helped her mother with enough dinner parties to know how they worked and what was expected. In fact, because her family was so large and invited enough people to fill an auditorium, preparing for large crowds didn’t faze her .
“Why?”
She followed Gemma’s gaze to the dusty and wrinkled gown she’d been wearing all day and nodded .
“Quite right, Gemma,” she said with a nod as she reached back to untie her apron. “Quite right .”
Her maid followed her upstairs to her room. She shut the door behind them and after Tillie had climbed into the waiting bathtub, Gemma talked as she laid out the clothes Tillie would wear for the party .
“She knows about you .”
It was all Gemma said, but Tillie didn’t need to ask what she meant by it .
“Are you certain ?”
She couldn’t deny the rush of adrenaline she felt knowing the game was afoot now that Eliza Masters knew that Alexander had himself a fiancée .
“Her maids arrived earlier this afternoon to prepare the rooms for her and her mother,” Gemma said. “They are to stay overnight. One of them recognized me from the last time they were here and let me have an earful of the drama and carrying on Miss Masters did when she found out the Duke of Barre was engaged .”
Tillie couldn’t help the smile that curved on her lips .
“So she was...upset ?”
Gemma nearly snorted .
“She was near foaming at the mouth from what I heard,” the maid laughed and Tillie smiled fully. “It seems Alexander was her second choice should marriage plans fall through with her current duke .”
Good. Let the pampered little princess fret a bit, Tillie thought. Still, the nerves were starting to eat at her and she found herself a bit jumpy. Surely, she had no reason to worry, she reasoned with herself. It was not like her relationship with Alexander, as fun as it was, was real. She wasn’t truly being threatened by a bratty aristocrat — she was simply helping Alexander. That was all she was doing, she reasoned .
“Miss Masters is one of those women, ye ken, who men seem to flock to, while women tend to see right through, if ye get what I’m saying,” said Gemma .
“Oh I understand just fine,” said Tillie, grateful to have found a friend in Gemma. She realized it wasn’t the usual relationship between maid and lady of the house, but she also knew that likely because she wasn’t a member of the peerage, Gemma felt she could speak more freely with her .
“And the Dowager Duchess despises her !”
Well that was an interesting piece of news. And maybe it explained why she had not been opposed to this scheme of theirs .
They chose a buttery yellow dinner dress with a plunging neckline that accentuated Tillie’s cleavage and white gloves to match her slippers. Gemma had found the silk blossoms that Tillie had packed, courtesy of an order for a few hats Tabitha had made a year ago, and picked a perfect yellow daisy to add atop her twist. It was striking amongst Tillie’s glossy dark locks .
A few moments later, and Gemma was practically gushing .
“Ye look radiant, Miss Andrews,” she said with a grin. “Simply perfect. I need to return downstairs to see if they need help, but good luck tonight, Miss. Ye’ll do wonderfully .”
Tillie thanked her and returned to the vanity for a final look and to settle herself before heading downstairs to start the ruse for real .
She closed her eyes and tried to settle her breathing. Her heart was racing and she couldn’t slow it down. Inhale. Exhale. Inhale. Ex —
“I hear a mirror works better when you have your eyes open .”
She let out a small shriek and turned quickly to see Alexander in the secret doorway .
“What is back there, anyway?” She asked, peering her head to get a look. She knew for a fact that Alexander’s suites were on the third floor, just above hers .
He glanced behind him into the darkness .
“My father’s study — mine now, I suppose,” he said with a shrug. “As a child I used to sneak through these hidden passageways to steal sweets from the kitchen and avoid being caught by my nursemaid .”
“Clever,” Tillie grinned. “Were you here to wish me luck? Is it going to be so awful ?”
Alexander shook his head no and instead held out his hand and let a small pendant drop from it .
It was a diamond with an elaborate, jeweled wrapping around it. She squinted toward the jewelry and looked up to Alexander .
“I am actually here to give you this for the evening,” he said as he came to stand behind her and drop the necklace in front of her so that it rested in its proper place between her collarbones. As she was admiring it, he moved to close the clasp at the back of her neck and when his fingers brushed her skin, she shivered unconsciously at the touch and their eyes met in the mirror, holding for a moment .
She felt the blush creeping up her face and Alexander cleared his throat .
“The necklace belonged to my grandmother,” he said, regaining his composure. “It is for luck .”
Tillie smiled, running her finger lightly over the necklace .
“It’s beautiful,” she whispered, and meant it. She had never seen anything like it .
Their eyes met a second time in the mirror and instead of looking away, she took him in. His dark jacket and cravat were neat and perfectly tied. His hair was in place and his freckles were fading. She actually quite missed them, she thought wistfully as her eyes traveled his face .
“I shall meet you downstairs,” he said, breaking the moment, and walked quickly back to the secret door. What had just happened? She couldn’t quite name what it was, but something had definitely passed between them. There was something afoot when it came to her own affections. His very nearness was wreaking havoc on her own normally steady composure .
She didn’t need to pinch her cheeks now — they were aflame from the encounter with the duke and surely everyone downstairs would know something was amiss if she arrived looking so flustered .
Tillie waited as long as possible, knowing women like Eliza needed theater and spectacle when they arrived. They needed to command attention, and so Tillie would begin her campaign by taking that bit of power from the woman. Gemma had been instructed to come fetch Tillie only after Eliza and her family arrived for dinner .
Ten minutes into waiting and s
he was going almost mad. This had been a terrible idea, she reasoned with herself. She shouldn’t be late. What if she offended the Dowager Duchess? What if Alexander was embarrassed by her tardiness? She second guessed every bit of her plan and had nearly convinced herself to disregard it completely when there was a knock on her door .
“Miss, it’s time .”
10
T illie thought of all of the trouble she and Tabitha had found themselves in over the years. All the roles they’d played to get away with one scheme or another. That’s all this was, after all. Just a role she was playing. Tillie Andrews was nothing if not a bit dramatic .
And the curtains were raising .
“It’s time,” she repeated as she stood and moved toward the door. “It’s time. It’s just a play acting, Tillie Andrews .”
She was beyond nervous now, but her feet keep moving of their own accord, as though they knew she needed to be there for Alexander .
Out her door and to the staircase, her body felt disconnected from her mind as she watched herself take each step toward the gathered group of strangers milling about at the bottom. There seemed to be a sea of faces, but none of them mattered much. She could see Alexander above them all and that was where her feet were taking her .
It seemed everyone stared as she walked by, but she kept her attention on Alexander’s profile. It was like a beacon to her, keeping her attention trapped and pulling her close to him .
When she finally approached, she watched him turn his head and saw his eyes light with affection at seeing her. Was the emotion real? It seemed real. And in that moment, Tillie desperately wanted that warmth to be true .
The thought stunned her a moment and she blinked at him as he spoke, missing his words. Shaking her head to clear it, she turned toward the person he was indicating and smiled at the overweight, middle-aged man with a tight dress shirt and a receding hairline. She tried to steal a second glance at his scalp — what was that slicked over his head to cover the missing hair ?
“...Lord Huntington,” Alexander was saying. Oh. Oh. This was really it. Lord Huntington was Lionel Masters, father of Eliza. Lowering herself into the slightest of curtsies to the baron, Tillie murmured a greeting as was polite and returned her attention immediately to her ‘fiancé .’
Someday Her Duke Will Come Page 6
