He had been in his chamber, devising a plan to get her away from the house for the day when the knock had come and Jane had announced the arrival of Leighton.
As usual, the duke had damned terrible timing.
The thought was quashed by Georgiana, who stepped into view behind Isabel, hands clasped tightly in front of her, averting her eyes to the floor of the study.
Leighton stepped forward, and when he spoke, there was immense pleasure in his voice. “Georgie …”
Georgiana looked up and Nick was amazed by the pure emotion in her face—elation mixed with nervousness and sadness, yes, but also with love. When Leighton lifted her off her feet in a powerful embrace, she could not keep her happiness from her tone. “Simon!”
Something that had been tensed in Nick’s chest since the previous day, when he had revealed his relationship with the duke to Georgiana, loosened at the portrait of sibling adoration that the two made—he was now entirely sure that Leighton had had nothing to do with driving the girl north.
Instead, when he set her down, Leighton took her hands in his and said, “I have been so worried, Georgie. You must tell me what has happened. I swear I will do everything in my power to make it right.”
The words brought tears immediately to the girl’s eyes, and she pulled her hands from his, taking a step back, away from him. Isabel was there, putting her arm around Georgiana in a gesture of comfort and solidarity. It was Isabel who spoke. “Perhaps I should have tea brought in.”
Leighton’s frustration—his inability both to understand and to repair the damage that was obviously devastating his sister, set him off again. “For the last time! I do not want tea! I want my sister! What has this place done to her? ”
Georgiana looked up then, fiercely protective of Isabel and Minerva House. “This place has done nothing but take me in. And give me a home. And a purpose.” Nick felt a wave of admiration for the waif of a girl as her voice rose to its full strength. “This place has done nothing but accept me.”
Leighton raked his hands through his hair. “I accept you. Whatever it is, Georgie … whatever sent you running to Yorkshire, I can fix it.”
She met his gaze with the firmness of a queen. “I do not think you can, Simon. I am very happy you came to find me. I am happy to have seen you, even happier that Lady Isabel and the rest of the residents of the Park need not live in constant fear of you coming to find me. But you must let me stay here. This is where I belong.”
“Nonsense,” Leighton scoffed. “You are the sister to the Duke of Leighton. You deserve to have a life that is worthy of a duchess.”
A little smile played across Georgiana’s lips. “And what makes you think that living here is not that life? ”
“For heaven’s sake, Georgiana. Look at this place.”
Nick watched as Isabel opened her mouth to defend the Park before thinking better of it. She met his gaze and closed her mouth. He nodded his approval. Good girl. This was not her battle to fight.
“I like it here. And Lady Isabel has generously offered me a place.”
Disbelief flooded Leighton’s face. “A place?”
The girl nodded. “Governess to the earl.”
The duke looked to Nick, then to Isabel, then back to his sister. “Governess? “ he thundered. “You are employed here? ”
Isabel stepped in then. “It is not, precisely, employment, Your Grace.”
“Oh? What is it then, Lady Isabel?”
“It is more a question of each of the residents of the Park doing what they can for the good of the larger community.”
Isabel trying to explain the reason behind the bizarre world that operated within the walls of the Park was an amusing thing, indeed. If the situation were not so serious, Nick might have laughed. But he had a very real concern that Leighton was in danger of throttling Isabel or his sister or both—which was not at all amusing.
“So if I were to pay for a governess for your brother, my sister would be allowed to go without working.”
Isabel paused, pursing her lips. Nick decided the expression was rather darling. “No, not precisely.”
“I would not want such a thing, anyway, Simon,” Georgiana interjected.
The duke lost his patience. “This is ridiculous. You are coming home with me.”
Georgiana looked to Isabel, who nodded once in a silent show of support. Georgiana took a deep, steadying breath. “No. I am not.”
Leighton scowled. “I’m afraid you haven’t a choice. I am your brother and guardian.”
“Simon.” The girl’s voice grew soft, filled with sisterly love. “I know you are worried about me. I know you want me to come home. But please understand that I cannot. Not right now. I like it here. I feel that I belong here. I am safe here.”
Simon bowed his head, and Nick felt a pang of sympathy for him, this man who had never been denied anything in his entire life. He was confused and uncertain and he wanted to make this situation, which he did not understand, better. Nick had come to understand that sense of helplessness most acutely over the last six days. It seemed that the women of Minerva House were rather expert in developing it in the men around them.
What the girl did not know was that, ultimately, her secret would out. Isabel could hide her for only so long. It was merely a matter of time before news traveled that the Duke of Leighton’s sister was increasing in Yorkshire, bringing a scandal of epic proportions down on Leighton’s head. And his house.
The duke should be prepared to face it.
But it was not Nick’s information to share.