Chapter Eighteen
“Aunt Lou,” Evie sang as she knocked a second time on her aunt’s front door before opening it and letting herself in.
“Aunt Lou? Are you awake? Anyone?” Her aunt only had two part-time staff, choosing to lead a simple life.
Evie walked to the kitchen at the rear of the house. Louisa was usually up and about by now, despite it being quite early by London Ton standards.
Seeing a dirty teacup by the sink gave Evie hope she wasn’t waking her aunt. Peeking out the kitchen door, there was no sign of her aunt in the garden. It seemed too early to be out and about, but Evie daren’t look for her around town for fear of exposure of her disguise.
She sat at her aunt’s writing desk in the small parlor and pulled out foolscap and pen and ink. Unable to fathom how to summarize everything that had gone on, she started at random.
Dear Aunt Lou,
Never let it be said I’m lazy. This job is hard work. But it’s honest work, and the duke is more than fair to his staff. I shall pester Mother to give the servants a pay increase when I get home.
I’ve managed to spend some time with X— the duke (how that came about is a story for in person), and he is more than I hoped for.
I need—
Voices and footsteps came from above and Evie started, ink splattering across the page. Damnation! Aunt Lou had a guest. A male guest, no less.
Evie’s muscles loosened, and her mouth curled up in a smile. Nicely done, Auntie.
A man’s voice, closer to the stairs, said, “Lulu, I must go. I’m late.”
“Thank you for the tea. You know I’d rather have had—”
“I know what you’d rather have had, minx.” They both laughed.
Evie barely managed to stifle a shriek of laughter herself. Her aunt, a minx. However, there were more pressing matters. Her aunt would tell her of her latest amour when she was ready. So Evie needed to get out of the house before being seen.
Dropping the pen and capping the ink, she left everything as it was. Aunt Lou would understand and hopefully see it before the nib of the pen was ruined from dried ink.
The work boots lingering on the second stair down paused. Evie scrambled out the nearby front door and closed the portal shut with a gentle click to hurry away.
As she tromped through town toward the duke’s home, she could not recall where she’d left off in her note. Hopefully, she’d written enough that her aunt would understand. She needed more time with Xander in this lovely bubble hidden away from London and society.
When they’d made this plan, they expected Evie was unlikely to have a way to correspond with Lou.
So they decided on a month to live in the duke’s household to evaluate his suitability.
At that point, Louisa would write to her family and request that they join them, noting that the duke was in residence and it might be a good time to discuss the marriage contract.
Her month was up in only a few days, and Evie wasn’t ready. Oh, she’d made her decision, but further assurance that Xander cared enough to overlook her spying and follow through on the betrothal was needed.
Following the dirt road out of town, her mind wouldn’t focus on plans. Instead, scenes of Xander laid out before her like a feast flooded her vision. The prior evening’s activities played on repeat, and it was all she could do to walk a straight line.
That was it. She’d been thinking like Evie, Xander’s maid and erstwhile friend, whereas the solution lay in her true identity, a member of the Ton.
As a lady, she was already compromised if her charade came to light, so she may as well enjoy the rewards.
Xander needed to teach her more and to thoroughly debauch her, and she couldn’t wait.