Page 45 of A Misguided Devotion

Kitty opened her bedroom door and stepped inside. As she turned to wish Hugh a goodnight, a slight movement in the shadows caught her eye. Someone was watching them.

As Mr Barrington headed in his direction, William retreated from the doorway into the Long Gallery. Hidden behind his easel, which stood in the alcove where he’d been using it, he mulled over what he had seen. It left an unpleasant taste in his mouth.

What was Kitty doing with that man in the middle of the night? It didn’t bear thinking about. It grieved William that Mr Barrington could be taking advantage of a lady who was dependent on him and no older than his sister Georgie.

If a fellow that old made up to Hetta or Charlotte, he’d have something to say. But Kitty had no one here to speak up for her. He would have to keep a brotherly eye on her in the future.

William was about to emerge from his hiding place and return to his bedchamber when a female silhouette appeared in the doorway. Kitty.

“I know you’re there.”

She must have spied a movement that had given him away. Except that she couldn’t be sure it was him. Should he stay where he was and see if she would leave? Any conversation between them tonight was bound to be awkward.

“I’m waiting.”

Abandoning the idea of outstaying her, William came out from behind his easel.

“What are you doing here?” she asked.

“Huh! I could ask the same of you, but perhaps you would be too embarrassed to tell me.”

She stepped toward him and poked him in the chest. “What do you mean by that?”

The gesture was oddly intimate. The sort of thing Charlotte or Hetta would do. He brushed Kitty’s hand away with the thought. “What do you think I mean? I saw Mr Barrington with his arm around you. Outside your bedroom door. In the middle of the night.”

“How dare you accuse me of such…such ungodly behaviour.”

A weight William didn’t know he was carrying slipped off his shoulders at the vehemence of her tone. Her outrage was genuine, and he accepted her innocence as easily as if she were one of his sisters.

“Forgive me—I should have known you would not yield to Mr Barrington’s advances, no matter what the persuasion.”

Kitty gave a half-hearted huff of laughter. “What advances? His was a fatherly arm, guiding me back to my bedroom in the dark so I didn’t trip. He sees me as no more than a companion to his daughter.”

“I beg to differ. I’ve seen the way he looks at you.”

“You’re imagining things, Mr Merry. Hugh—”

“Hugh? You’re on first-name terms, and yet you maintain there is nothing between you.”

“I’m part of the household. That is all.”

“Prove it. Call me William and allow me to address you as Kitty.”

“I can’t. It wouldn’t be proper. There is no relationship between us—”

“You claim you have none with Mr Barrington.”

She huffed. “Very well, William. You will soon see the absurdity of your assumptions.”

He could not argue. He had no proof apart from what he’d observed. “Let’s hope so, Kitty. It remains to be seen which of us is right.”

“If you’ve finished embarrassing me with your accusations, perhaps you would like to explain how you were in a position to observe my movements in the first place?”

“Simple. I was restless and came here to walk out the fidgets. I spotted the light of your candle and thought I’d better investigate in case you were a housebreaker. And you?”

“I saw someone in the garden.”

“An intruder?”