“Bah.” Lady Ellen dismissed that with a sniff. “He might be handsome enough, but he’s going to ruin everything. I want to enjoy my first season, not be shackled to a fiancé. Besides, it was just some silly old arrangement my papa made with the duke’s father. I don’t see why I should be bound to it. After all, it wasn’t me they meant for him to marry. It was— Oh! He’s coming!”

Her gaze dipping downward again, she edged toward the door, taking tiny sidelong steps as if hoping Clayton wouldn’t notice her.

“Miss Fanshawe,” he said, his eyes intent on Natalie, “may I have your permission to take Leo on a tour? And yourself, of course, too.”

She oughtn’t agree. There was much to do in preparing the schoolroom for Leo, and she wanted everything to be perfect before she had to say her final, painful good-bye to him. Yet she’d been cooped up here all afternoon, and the prospect of a reprieve sounded infinitely more appealing than battling dust. “Yes, thank you. I’d love to see the rest of the house, if for no other reason than to learn my way around.”

“Excellent.” Turning his gaze to his cousin, he added in a smooth tone, “And you, Lady Ellen? It would be my great pleasure to act as your escort. I’m sure you know as much or more about this ancient pile as I do.”

She halted in place, her chin tucked in, her demeanor bashful. “Forgive me, but I—I must go and change for dinner.”

“Dinner is at seven. It’s not even half past four.”

“Yes … well … I’ve letters to write, too. Pray excuse me, Your Grace.”

With that, she sketched a curtsy, darted out into the corridor, and vanished from sight.

The duke stood frowning after Lady Ellen. By his knitted brow, he appeared to be puzzled by her standoffish behavior. He clearly had no inkling that she regarded him as too old and dull for her vibrant young tastes.

But it wasn’t Natalie’s duty to enlighten him. He’d discover the girl’s reluctance soon enough on his own. And if the rejection wounded his pride, it wouldn’t be for long. A rich, handsome duke surely must attract flocks of eligible young women. He could hardly want for choices.

Unless, of course, he was determined to persuade Lady Ellen.

She was a beautiful girl, and perhaps he’d been anticipating the moment when he could court her in accordance with that long-standing agreement. What had the girl said? It was just some silly old arrangement my papa made with the duke’s father … It wasn’t me they meant for him to marry. It was—

Lady Ellen had never finished the statement. If the arranged-marriage plan hadn’t originally named her as the bride, then who?

As Natalie left the nursery with Leo and Clayton, a wisp of memory stole into her mind. Shortly after befriending Audrey in Philadelphia many years ago, the two of them had been sitting for an afternoon, rolling bandages for a local hospital. While chatting about their lives, Audrey had revealed that the reason she’d run away with her beloved Jeremy was not just that her father opposed the marriage, but that he had tried to force her into a betrothal with a nobleman. She’d wryly said, Can you imagine me, a duchess?