Page 98 of Aurelia

“He is not his lordship’s heir?”

“No. Arthur uses the Montgomery surname, but he is not in the line of succession. Celsa is the heir. Females are allowed to inherit under the Crewe patent. In any event,” he said, clearly wanting to leave the distasteful subject behind, “you really must come and see my animals when you next visit the mainland.”

“I would enjoy that,” Aurelia lied. Why in the world would anyone pursue taxidermy as a hobby if not for its scientific use?

Soon afterward they had their tea and then bundled up and took their walk.

As Aurelia waved goodbye to Sir Gideon an hour later, she thought, yet again, what a nice man he was.

And yet again, she couldn’t help wishing—just a little—that she had not already given her heart to a man who would likely break it.

***

Aurelia daily hoped for word of Lord Crewe. She knew that he could not send her a letter without raising eyebrows, but he had sent two letters to his cousin the first two weeks and Arthur had shared information about the earl’s whereabouts during breakfast.

But Arthur had not said a word for the last three weeks and Aurelia was becoming desperate to know what had taken Roland away so abruptly and when he might return.

While she had heard nothing from Roland, the letters from her siblings had finally begun to pour in after months of nothing.

A week ago, Aurelia had received an especially startling letter from Selina.

Her sweet, biddable sister had surprised all of them when she had thrown off their mother’s oppressive yoke and ran away, taking a position as a housekeeper to the reclusive Marquess of Shaftsbury.

Selina hadn’t written often, but the letters she had sent had been happy and it was clear that her new position suited her. And her most recent missive explained at least part of her happiness. Selina was betrothed to Lord Shaftsbury and the two would probably already be married by the time Aurelia received her sister’s letter.

The changes that had occurred over the past year were astonishing. Three of her sisters married; Doddy away at Eton; Katie preparing for her first Season; and her parents living in luxury, and all thanks to her sisters’ husbands.

It was hard to believe.

It was also an unspeakable relief. When Aurelia had first accepted this position on Crewe, she had assumed that she would need to earn enough money to take care of her siblings after they were evicted from Queen’s Bower.

And now it appeared they had all fared just fine without any help from her.

Part of her was sad that she was no longer the responsible big sister who solved everyone’s problems. But another, larger, part was proud that her sisters had taken care of themselves.

Aurelia felt… liberated.

She also missed Roland so much it was hard to think straight.

And, as if Roland’s absence wasn’t bad enough, Guustin had left ten days ago to check on the repairs to his ship.

Not until the younger man had gone did Aurelia realize just how much she had come to enjoy Guustin’s cheerful presence and friendly companionship. After that one kiss on the Night of the Crab—as Guustin amusingly called it—he had not touched her again.

Unlike Sir Gideon, whom Aurelia genuinely believed was in love with her, Guustin had quite happily settled into the position of friend.

Aurelia kept busy with work and spent part of every day with Celsa. They rode when the weather permitted and paid frequent visits to Nora, whose health suffered more in the cold weather, although Aurelia suspected it was really Guustin’s absence that had left her so listless.

For some time, Larissa had been too busy with the woman she cared for to have a Tuesday free, but Sir Gideon came to the island almost weekly.

Sir Gideon’s visits eased some of her restlessness, but—if anything—his company only made her miss Roland more. If she had ever believed she might marry him, Aurelia now knew for a certainty that would never be possible.

***

Almost six weeks after Roland’s departure, Aurelia woke up to a bright, sunny day that might have been stolen from July and smuggled into October.

“This happens almost every year,” Arthur said at breakfast when Aurelia commented on the balmy weather. “And the water, also, will be warmer if I am correct in my guess.” He smiled at her, looking almost his normal self. Suddenly, his expression became conspiratorial. “I daresay Sir Gideon will come over today.”

“Er, it’s not a Thursday,” she said, not sure what he was getting at.