Tremont was much more than that. He was intellectually rigorous beyond anything Matilda had encountered in scholarly churchmen. He was perceptive, grasping aspects of Tommie’s situation Matilda herself had missed. He was tender and sweet and…

“The look on your face…” Dorcas said. “Alasdhair ran into Tremont and Tommie at Tatts. Tremont had the boy on his shoulders.”

“Tommie has been cantering everywhere ever since.” And yelling and imitating his elders and generally acting like a happy little boy. “There’s something you should know.”

Dorcas passed over the second hank of yarn. “You don’t owe me any explanations, Matilda. If you and Tremont are fond of one another, that is your business, but please do be careful.”

Matilda arranged the yarn around her hands and braced her elbows on the arms of the chair. The sitting room was cozy, boasting touches of green and white plaid, and the tea-and-talk was always a pleasant way to end Matilda’s half day in the nursery.

“Careful?”

Dorcas picked up the trailing end of the yarn and started the next ball. “I don’t take Tremont for a man who would be comfortable with a discreet arrangement involving a woman in his employ, so that means he’s courting you, isn’t he?”

How could she possibly…? But she was married to the major, and he was the original canny fellow, and he and Tremont socialized in various male venues.

“I am honored to admit that his lordship and I are courting, though we are doing so as discreetly as possible. You might well need to find somebody else to look after John on half days.”

“Alasdhair concluded as much. He claimed Tremont would keep you too busy at the soldiers’ home, and he said it with a particularly smug air that implies he knows more than he’s saying. Does that place have a name yet?”

“The men enjoy debating various choices. Victory House, The Garrison, Form Squares… They trot out the topic on Sundays, when Tremont joins us for supper. He asks questions. ‘Victory over what?’ ‘A garrison defending territory from whom?’ But he never expresses an opinion. Instead of bickering, the men discuss, almost despite themselves. The whole business fascinates Tommie, who thinks we should name the place The Castle.”

“Why?”

“Because an Englishman’s home is his castle.” While for an Englishwoman, that castle could become a prison.

“You worry for Tommie over this courtship with Tremont,” Dorcas said. “I would be deranged if anything happened to John. In his way, the major would be, too, but how could acquiring a doting step-papa be any risk to Tommie?”