A sharp nudge in his arm jolted him.
“Wake up,” Henrietta snapped. “It’s over.”
Indeed, people began clapping. Dominic stretched, then yawned. “Did you learn anything new?”
“No.”
“Don’t look so smug, Miss Gordon.” He winked at her, and that lovely rose flush suffused her cheeks again. He did not think he would ever tire of seeing that shade on her. “One should never presume to know everything.”
“I have attended this symposium before, and he taught nothing I have not already heard.” Her attention shifted to the front.
Dominic watched through hooded eyes. He had not decided yet what he thought of this man who dragged his niece away from society, exposing her to war and disease, and then abandoned her on a friend’s doorstep to be wed off.
Eventually the doctor was left alone, his admirers and fellow physicians seeping away with their spectacles and tweed coats and auspicious hats. The old Dominic might have smirked at them, making fun at their assumed intellectual superiority.
He had changed. Perhaps they were different than him, and certainly more boring, but that did not mean he should not show them the respect due to their position. He had learned that, being an earl. The importance of deference to those in different circumstances.
Henrietta stood to her feet, walking quickly to her uncle. Interesting that she’d waited for others to leave, even though she had not seen her uncle in months. She adored him. Why would she exercise such caution?
He unfolded himself, stretching again and ignoring the dirty look Henrietta gave him. Perhaps it was time to meet this enigmatic fountain of virtue. Determine for himself if he was as worthy of Henrietta’s devotion as she believed.
The introductions were quick.
“Lady Brandewyne has told me of your unfortunate circumstances.” Mr. Gordon looked over his spectacles. “I know the vagaries of raising a young girl into womanhood. How are you faring?”
Dominic held very still, determining how to best respond. “It has been challenging, certainly, but Henrietta was a huge help.”
“Henrietta?”
“Yes, she is a natural teacher.” Too late he realized he’d referred to her by her given name, rather than as Miss Gordon.
Mr. Gordon was trying to hide his surprise, but Dominic saw an alertness enter his face. “You two must see each other often.”
“She was my niece’s governess.”
“Governess, you say.” Mr. Gordon’s eyes widened. He swiveled to her. “You didn’t mention that you had taken a position in your letters.”
This was quite intriguing. So her uncle did not know? He lifted his eyebrows at her, noting the tightened lips and flashing look in her eyes.
“Yes, that is what I’ve come to speak to you about.” She wet her lips, and Dominic felt a surge of amusement. It was a rare thing indeed to see Henrietta Gordon fidgeting.
“I have been waiting quite a bit of time, you see, for you to send for me.”
Mr. Gordon was regarding her with a soberness that reflected his intellectual meanderings. “I was quite clear that I expect you to marry.”
A quick flash of surprise blinked across her face. She hid it beneath a stiff smile. “Your expectations were clear, but they are not what I want for my life.”
Mr. Gordon shot a glance at Dominic, as if questioning his part in all this. In fact, he felt as if he was an interloper suddenly, listening in on a conversation best said in private.
“I think I shall excuse myself,” he said, avoiding looking at Henrietta. “You will take her back to Lady Brandewyne’s?”
“Ah, yes, Lady Brandewyne. I had quite forgotten that she has invited us all to supper. Come, we shall discuss your future there.” He grasped Henrietta’s shoulder, and Dominic realized that they had not hugged nor exchanged endearments when first seeing each other.
Henrietta’s chin lifted but surprisingly, she did not disagree. How very unlike her.
“You, too, my lad.” Mr. Gordon gestured to Dominic. “She instructed that I insist you join us.”
He stifled his groan. Though he wanted to be near Henrietta, the thought of wading through a long, drawn-out dinner made his skin crawl. He gave an acquiescent nod, however, and followed them out the door.
* * *
She had been duped.
Henrietta sat through dinner, her jaw aching from clenching it so tightly. How very difficult to hold back expressing her opinions, or from just leaving, but she hadn’t seen Louise in so long and the girl was clinging to her.
She and Dominic were the only reasons Henrietta tempered her behavior.
The dinner had started out pleasantly enough, although she had already been fighting an annoyance at the way Uncle William cut her off at the symposium. Nevertheless, when she saw that Louise was at the house, her annoyance simmered beneath a great joy at seeing the girl.
She’d brought Smiles and so they spent some time playing in the garden with the dog. Henrietta hadn’t realized how much she missed hugs until Louise gave her the first one. A huge, lung-popping embrace that unexpectedly made her throat clutch.
Then they sat down to dinner.
And indulged in the most inane conversations centering around marriage.
“I think every woman ought to get married,” Louise said, before popping a delicate piece of Chateaubriand into her mouth.
“Manners,” said Henrietta automatically. “Otherwise you shall eat in your room as usual.”
“You are so strict, Retta.” But she grinned while she said it and picked up her fork.
“Retta?” Uncle William’s head tilted.
“Oh, yes, it’s my pet name for Henrietta. Doesn’t she just look like a Retta?”
“No,” the adults said in unison.
Louise’s face fell. “I think it makes her sound quite beautiful.”
“Beauty is a mere positioning of symmetry of the facial bones and features.” Henrietta picked at her food, which was growing cold. She was not one to lose appetite, but the way her uncle was avoiding her was distressing, to say the least.
The rest of the meal passed, and she contributed little to the conversation. When it was over, she excused herself, received another jubilant hug from Louise and wound
