Truthfully, she could hardly bear the thought of living in that house as governess to the children if the Duke ever took a wife. Georgette had felt her attraction to him growing in the last days, especially since he had been so very kind to her. It was not only that he had stood up for her so decisively against his staff, but it was the closeness they had shared in his study on that dreadful afternoon which she could not quite let go of.
Now that the embarrassment had cleared, Georgette had found herself thinking more and more of how she had rested her head upon his chest whilst he had held tightly. He was so tall and strong, and he had not moved for a moment until she was well again. She had never been held in such away by any man in her life, and it was nothing more than her shame and embarrassment at the situation and her own behaviour which had stopped her contemplating it for some time afterward.
And yet there, as she stood in the little churchyard on a late summer’s day, she closed her eyes and could almost feel his arms around her. Of course, she knew that it was, by necessity, the one and only time the Duke would hold her in that way. It was unlikely that she would ever find herself in so distressed a manner in his presence again, and, even if she did, it was unlikely that he would comfort her so again. The very thought of it, the very thought that she would never feel his arms around her, made her feel desolate. And of course, she knew she was being entirely ridiculous.
After all, Georgette was a governess, not a lady of substance. It was not possible for the Duke to marry her under any circumstances, and she knew that she ought not to torture herself with such silly, girlish dreams.
When the party broke up and began to make their way back to the carriages, Georgette held the girls’ hands tightly and tried to concentrate on them and them alone. After all, she rather thought she would now have to do everything in her power to keep her mind from wandering along paths which simply finished in dead ends.
The Duke had never given any indication that he felt anything for her at all and, even if he had, she knew the thing to be quite impossible. After all, he had disallowed his sister from marrying a man he thought to be low-born. It, therefore, seemed very unlikely that he would ever allow himself to nurture such soft and gentle feelings for a woman who was, in truth, little better than a servant.
Chapter 24
Summer was definitely drawing to an end and, when she had taken Eleri and Ffion out for a nature walk, they had all worn thicker shawls. Georgette could see the colour of the leaves changing and knew it would be but a few short weeks before they all began to fall from the trees.
Georgette loved to see the changes as each season came to an end and the next began. However, she wondered quite how she was going to manage the shorter days and dark mornings at Draycott Hall. To awaken each day in the dark when her room was so spartan already would be a dampener to the spirits, and the evenings would seem so very long without the fading sunlight through which to look out of the window upon the beautiful grounds. She would have to make the most of what remained before the autumn took a firm hold.
When they returned to the schoolroom, Georgette could see that the girls had been made bright and alert by the exercise. Eleri was humming a lovely tune, and Georgette paused in the middle of removing her bonnet to listen.
“That was beautiful, Eleri,” she said when Eleri had finished.
“It’s a song my mama taught me,” she answered with a sweet smile. “Shall I sing it to you?”
“Yes please, Eleri,” Georgette said as she sat down with Ffion at the table, untying the ribbons of her bonnet as she did so.
Eleri continued to stand, and Georgette’s heart almost melted as it seemed the adorable little girl was going to put on a little performance. She could not help wondering if the girls had stood to sing for their parents and grandparents and thought it such a wonderful thing. They were so tiny and would have been younger still when they learned the song.
Eleri took a deep breath and began to sing. Her voice was childlike and sweet and her tone very good indeed. The song, although Georgette did not understand all the words, was clearly an old Welsh folk song.
As Eleri continued to sing, Georgette closed her eyes. She found herself almost trapped inside the beautiful melody, and when she felt little Ffion reach for her hand, she began to feel quite emotional. And little Eleri was throwing herself into the song, singing every word with emotion.
When she finished, Georgette opened her eyes and began to clap. Ffion clapped as well, and Eleri seemed to glow when she realized quite how she had affected her governess with the sad Welsh song.