Chapter 10

Across town, the same morning, Lissie was settling into her now-familiar routine.

An early breakfast was taken in the chambers, and then callers announced themselves to her cousin"s hall. If she was lucky, she might sneak out and do some riding, although Lissie noted that Annice was not especially keen on riding, or horses.

Or doing anything that was classed as "undignified".

Which was practically everything.

But as Lissie sat, gazing out of the windows, even Annice"s cloistered ways could not get her down. She was grinning from ear to ear.

"Something pleases you, Elisabeth. Will you be so good as to share it?"

Lissie turned her head. She had not noticed cousin Annice coming into the room. As imperious as ever, she swept into the main chamber wearing a houppelande so long it practically cleaned the floor for her.

Annice sashayed over to Lissie, leaning expectantly. Lissie smiled.

"Aye, it does, Cousin," she sighed. "I think for the first time there may be an Englishman who isnae an awfu" muddied stick."

Annice screwed her face into a frown. Theatrically, she cast around as if asking for a translation from her ladies-in-waiting. Their faces were also a picture. In the background, chaperone Jane hid a grin.

Focusing on her, Annice tightened her lips.

"Elisabeth, I believe you might mean a "stick in the mud"?" Annice suggested, her perfectly shaped eyes rising upward.

"Aye, that is it," said Lissie, beaming from ear to ear.

For the first time since coming to London, she had an air of expectation. She was actually looking forward to the coming morning with its callers. Hopefully, Will would come along!

"Well, anyhoo, Cousin, I am hopeful that something may come o" it!" She smirked.

Flicking her hair about, Lissie gazed out of the small, open window.

The dim, London sun came hazily through it, trapped behind a miasma of cloud that always seemed to be there. Perhaps it was the smoke. But Lissie had never yet seen the unadulterated London sky, and suddenly, crazily, she missed it.

More to the point, she missed the glens. Thoughts of home hit her hard. She had come such a long way, and sometimes she wondered if she would ever see it again.

Perhaps she would take Will there someday? The thought floated through her mind like a tantalizing possibility. It had not occurred to Lissie, until that minute, that Will might ever see the Duncan lands. An excited shiver ran up Lissie"s spine as she hugged herself on the inside.

Yes. That was exactly what would happen one day, she felt sure. One way or another, Will would visit her homeland.

The little dream that Lissie had created for herself must have shown on her face as Annice was eyeing her with curiosity.

"Well then, Cousin. This pleases me well. Pray tell, who is the lucky gentleman?"

Annice was all ears, as were the attendant chambermaids. For a moment, Lissie felt a little shy, but then threw caution to the wind. Someone like Annice would hear eventually.

"Lord William Rothingham of Iverst," she announced proudly.

A silence hung in the air. Annice looked uncertainly around at her maid. From the back of the room, Jane nodded. She was seated quietly, folding linen in the recesses of the room.

Lissie, who had not even seen Jane, stirred momentarily. The constant presence of unexpected eyes was something she was getting used to. London, she was fast discovering, had spies everywhere.

"Mistress means William, the third Duke of Iverst, my lady," murmured Jane, seated in the shadows, her entire being head-to-toe in gray.

Annice frowned. "A duke?" she asked hoarsely. Then she tutted. "And not just any, but of Iverst?"

In a spin, Annice swung around on her heel, semi-pirouetting toward Lissie. From the bead-like glare in her eyes, Lissie could tell all was not well.

"The third duke of Iverst," repeated Annice testily. Her eyes flared dramatically. "He is one of the most respected men in the city—nay, in the country! His family are very highly placed."

Lissie smiled faintly. "Aye, an" that"s braw, isnae it?" she said, hoping Annice would agree.

But the light of hope was not burning in her cousin"s eye. Instead, she saw dismay.

"Lissie," she said softly. Lissie"s skin prickled up as Annice came over. She had never once before used Lissie"s shortened name.

Then, she put her arm around her.

This was bad. Really bad.

"Sweeting," she said, rearranging Lissie"s hair braids deftly.

Lissie, who had never been able to abide any fiddling of her hair, sat and clenched her teeth.

Annice filled her with the full volume of her smile. It was bright.

"My heart," she said again, obviously pausing to consider her words. "A duke such as William, he is, how can I put it…destined for higher things."

Lissie looked up. Annice really knew how to put her in her place. But Annice was not done yet.

"My dear, there is simply no way someone as highborn as the duke can possibly consent to marry a commoner!"

Lissie opened her mouth to speak but was so aghast, no sound came out. Even the maids in the room looked shocked. Sensing she had gone too far, Annice took another tack.

"I mean, I know about the clan, and it is good, but, my dear, it really is not the same as a lady of standing. Especially an English lady. I really wish I was not the one to have to say it."

Lissie watched her cousin"s face. She certainly didn"t look as if she were under duress. In fact, Lissie got the distinct sense that she was enjoying it.

A lot.

All the same, Cousin Annice made a great play of pulling a pained face and turning toward her, all sympathetic.

"Will cannot marry you, and I assure you, his family will feel the same."

Lissie felt everything unravel; all her excitement, all her energy, just wasting away. A sharp spark pricked her.

"Who said anything about marriage?" said Lissie, batting off the concern from Annice"s face.

Of course, she had not said anything about marriage at this stage, but it was all she could think about. Still, there was no need for stuck-up Cousin Annice to know this.

Annice sucked her lips in and looked as if she would implode.

"You said you were hopeful," she said, as sharp as a tack.

A silence filled the chamber, with even the maids looking up from their posts. Everyone waited for her reply.

"Aye," said Lissie, her mind wandering. She was wondering why Annice seemed so determined to fight her on every point. It was almost as if she enjoyed bringing her down.

"I said hopeful, but nae for marriage. Just hopeful for some fun, perchance."

Annice"s eyebrows nearly jumped off her head.

"Fun?" she repeated. Her face was such a sight, it took every inch of Lissie"s resolve not to laugh. "Fun?"

"Aye, fun," said Lissie mockingly. "It"s this wee thing we have in Scotland. Perchance ye dinnae ken it doon South."

Annice"s dark eyes intensified, almost eating her whole. The room stopped dead as she stared at her.

"I know full well what it passes for in your part of the world," she remarked, thin-lipped. "Sodden glens, lumpy porridge, and an instrument that sounds like a strangled cat!"

There was a hissing of laughter from the back of the hall, but it stopped abruptly when Annice glared.

But Lissie was genuinely floored. There was a fiery side to Annice she had never seen before, and it sat at odds with the polished persona she liked to wear.

"I-I," she began. Just like that, the wind had been taken out of her sails. Somehow, her cousin had the power to reduce her to almost tears.

Anger and resentment bubbled under in Lissie. She did not know what to say. She hated Annice for making her feel like this.

In an instant, Annice"s demeanor changed. Seeing Lissie"s face, she backed down.

"I am sorry," murmured Annice gently. "It isn"t quite how it should have come out. I just mean a girl like you has to be careful. It is all too easy to get a reputation locally."

Lissie was looking at her numbly. "A girl like me?" she asked uncertainly.

Sighing, Annice put her arm on her. "Yes, darling, like you. Young, comely, easy to lead astray. I am telling you, you need to be careful. Men will take what they need and not think twice, if you know what I mean."

A shard went through Lissie"s heart. She knew all too well what Annice meant; she was not to parlay with Will anymore. Everyone would know what they were about. She should give up everything and just step aside to let some nincompoops like Lady Caroline leap in.

Lissie frowned.

That categorically was not happening on her watch.

But Annice was smiling at her, impervious to her reaction. "So then, darling, why not just be a sensible girl and put aside these silly notions of marrying a lord? I know a well-connected fishmonger, Talbot, who is in need of a wife."

Lissie gasped. She had no idea what to say. Just as she was attempting to put a sentence together, Annice patted her on the shoulder and suddenly trotted off, leaving Lissie speechless and fuming.

But before she could think any further, the first caller of the morning was announced by the maid. As the doors opened, Lissie held her breath. Inside, she felt her heart thumping.

Let it be Will. Let him show them all that he does not care for English ladies!

But as the steward made his announcement, Lissie fell, deflated.

A middle-aged Englishman stumbled forward, his thinning, dusty hair flailing uncontrollably.

"Andrew!" said Lissie through gritted teeth. It was a pose she would adopt for the rest of the morning as she waited in vain for Will to appear.

* * *

"England rages, and they are dallying!"

It was a throwaway remark by one of the servants, which she was not meant to overhear. But still, it resonated with Lissie. They were speaking of the political situation, which had seen the old king cast into the tower and a new one anointed in his place. However, it could have equally applied to Lissie"s heart.

London may have fallen, but Lissie was not yet conquered.

Despite Annice"s words, she had not yet given up on Will. Although, she deeply feared that he had given up on her.

Fending off the stultifying boredom, Lissie cast her gaze around the hall. The visiting troubadours were joyful and bright, yet Lissie struggled to maintain interest. Instead, her eye stole to the corner—where Will, Duke of Iverst, was surrounded by his many numerous admirers.

The entourage was alive with laughter and in their element. From their midst, Lady Caroline raised her eyes pointedly.

"Pray, Elisabeth, you must join us." She smirked, but her eyes stabbed her with the truth.

He is back where he belongs, they said. Don"t you dare come near him!

Then, they laughed. Lissie tried her hardest to pretend she had not seen them. Instead, she brought her concentration to bear on the troubadours, a traveling group of singers who had been invited to perform by Annice.

But in the event, they were less than entertaining. Instruments broke, notes were off-key, and the principal singer developed a hacking cough mid-performance.

All told, they were dismal.

Every bum note they hit, Lissie found her eyes connecting with the man beside her, a fair thirty-something with a louche smile and sardonic eyes. As the singer missed the top note by a country mile, he smiled.

"Good evening," he said, impeccably bowing before her.

Lissie smiled. It was dark, and the wine cast a warm glow inside of her. Lissie waited as the finely clad gentleman took up his seat beside her.

"My lady, you are as bright as the day"s light. Your beauty casts a glow in the dark," declared the man. He smiled a foppish grin that snaked about his slender face.

Despite herself, Lissie grinned. His advances were outlandish but still rather amusing.

"Thank ye kindly, sir," she said archly as she cast an eye over the man.

He was of average height, with mouse-brown hair. The first thing she noticed was his extravagant dress, his doublet tucked around his waist, revealing its shape as well as the expensive embroidery edging.

The gentleman removed his hat, which featured a large plume, and bowed to Lissie.

"Lord Trenton Rothingham, at your service," he said.

Rothingham!

That name punched Lissie in the heart. Stunned, she looked up.

There was no chance this could be a coincidence. Looking closely, he bore more than a passing likeness to Will. With a sinking heart, she realized this must be his brother.

All the same, Lissie smiled at him.

"Guid day, sir," she murmured as he kissed her hand. This instinctively made her giggle. "And what brings ye here tonight?"

Trenton"s eyes gleamed. Lissie noted they were green, unlike Will"s, but a similar shape. However, that was where the resemblance ended.

Despite Trenton being Will"s brother, he was a pale shadow in many ways. His complexion was almost white, with a hairline that was receding at the sides.

His build was slight and almost reedy, and his shoulders rounded and soft.

However, he was well-groomed and attentive, and right then, Lissie was happy for his company.

"Mistress, your famed beauty, of course!" he retorted, before adding, "Not the singing quartet, unfortunately!"

Trenton cast his head to the side as the singer struggled with the high notes, wheezing and coughing. Lissie tried not to smile.

"But you are alone? How can this be? Are the others mad? Or blind, perchance?"

As he said this, Trenton glanced again, this time around to where his brother was holding court in the recesses of the hall. He watched as Lissie"s eye went to Will, laughing and carousing with the fine ladies of London.

Lissie"s heart twisted, and her brow flinched at the sight of Will with his arm around Lady Caroline. To her dismay, he was leading her out to dance as the musicians attempted to strike up a merry tune. Perhaps sensing her mood, Trenton smiled.

"My lady, prithee, allow me the pleasure of this dance?"

Lissie blinked. She had not expected this. Glancing over, she saw Lady Caroline twirling and laughing with Will. Then she turned to Trenton.

"Thank ye, sir."

Ruffling her skirts, Lissie followed Trenton out to the floor. There, she allowed him to partner with her as he led her into the dance.

"Oh, your feet are as light as air," complimented Trenton as they caroused to the music.

Through the crowd, Lissie could see Caroline dancing with Will.

Neither of them appeared to be enjoying it much if their expressions were anything to go by. Will"s jaw clenched in permanent tension.

Beginning to ease into the rhythm, Lissie twirled to the tune, pulling closer to Trenton as she did. Coming nearer, she noted a redness in his eye. When she looked closer, Trenton shook his head and blushed.

"Just a mild disagreement with my brother," he said innocuously as they danced. By now, the music was becoming wild, getting louder all the time.

"Will did that?" she asked, surprised.

Trenton nodded and grinned. "Aye, he did."

"But why did he do such a thing?" she asked, shocked. She would never have thought Will would do something like that. Now her curiosity was piqued.

"Oh! Perhaps because of a girl too fine and full of fun for such an old stick in the mud like him to handle by himself?" he said, inviting her to laugh at him. "But he did not quite see my point, hence the eye."

"Och," said Lissie primly, but Trenton"s pithy wit pulled her over. "I see."

Holding Trenton close, a smile quivered across her lips. The room had broken down into swaying dancers, dancing closer than the music necessitated.

And through the darkened melee, her eyes connected briefly with Will"s.

Alone, in the middle of a crowd, he stared glassily over. For a moment, their eyes connected. Something in his light blue gaze flickered. Then it vanished.

Lady Caroline tugged ferociously at his sleeve.

"Come, join us," she urged, pulling him into the thick of the dance.

And there he vanished, into the darkness.

That was the last she saw of him.