When their visitors had left, Winter sat back on the divan and breathed out a sigh. Selene seated herself next to her, fiddling with a piece of lace on the hem of her sleeve.

"He's in town too, you know," Selene said quietly, eying their stepmother, who stood with Cress on the other side of the room. "I heard Captain Thorne mention his name. He's stationed with the rest of the regiment at the edge of town."

Winter stiffened but said nothing.

"I thought you'd want to know. I know when he left last time, it wasn't exactly on good terms."

"He told me to forget about him." Winter smiled, but there was no happiness in it. "He wanted me to move on, to accept one of my other suitors and move into a fancy house and pretend we'd never met. I couldn't do that."

"Do you think he'll want to see you?"

The two girls stopped talking as Levana passed by them, an uncomfortable-looking Cress in tow. Winter held her breath until they had both left the room.

"I can't just stay away now that I know he's here," she said. "Will you help me?"

Selene grinned. "Of course I will. It's not often you're the one getting into trouble instead of me."

An opportunity came the next day when Levana sent the girls into town to bring baskets to the orphanage. Winter's stepmother made sure to send food and supplies every week, and it was essential that Winter and Selene walked right through the middle of town when they brought it—so that everyone could see how generous Lady Blackburn was, of course. Winter hated parading in front of the townspeople, as if they should be so grateful to her, the daughter of a dead baron, for condescending to their level.

She truly did enjoy seeing the orphans, though. They were all so sweet. Whenever she and Selene arrived, the kids would run to the door shouting, "Lady Winter and Lady Selene are here!" They barely even cared about the much-needed food and clothes that Levana's housekeeper packed into the baskets. Winter would tell the girls fantastic stories of princesses and castles, while all the boys would drag Selene to the backyard to show her their projects. Then the cousins would distribute the supplies and head home with empty baskets.

This time, however, they did not go home right away. Instead of turning on the path that led to the grand estate of Artemesia Manor, they headed to the edge of their small town. There was a set of shops there that the regiment frequented on Sunday evenings.

At least, they had the last time they were in town. Winter's heart beat faster just thinking about all the times she had come to this very place last autumn. But so much had changed since then. Would anything be the same?

"Winter," Selene whispered, nudging her arm. "Look."

Winter's head buzzed in anticipation as she turned to where Selene was pointing, but it wasn't who she expected to see. Instead, Captain Thorne stumbled toward them with several other officers, looking for all intents and purposes as if he'd just stepped off a rocking ship.

Winter and Selene pressed against the building as the men passed by, shouting and singing drunkenly. Captain Thorne didn't even look in their direction. The group meandered to the end of the street and turned into the last building, the town tavern. The door slammed behind them.

Winter put her hand to her chest. "I never would have thought…"

"Only you could say that without being sarcastic, cousin," Selene said with a grim smile. "I could tell the Captain was trouble the moment he stepped foot in your house." She waved her hand. "But no matter. You have a secret rendezvous to enact."

Winter blushed and followed Selene into the inn they were pressed up against. The front room was dim, a gargantuan fire in the hearth blasting them with warmth as they entered. Servicemen crowded the tables, eating heartily and murmuring to each other. There were no other women except for the innkeeper's wife, Miss Kinney, who flitted about the room making sure the men's mugs were filled. She looked up as the two girls entered, and a broad smile spread across her face.

"Lady Selene! Lady Winter! Aren't you a sight for sore eyes?" She wiped her hands on a towel and placed it on one of the empty chairs. She hurried over to usher them further inside. "How have you been? Any handsome suitors I should know about?"

Miss Kinney winked devilishly. She was young, just a bit older than Winter, and had beautiful dark skin that always stood out in the town. She was born in Jamaica, one of the colonies far across the ocean, but she had moved to England as a very young girl. She and Mr. Kinney had grown up together and married just last year, taking up the inn that his father had run before him.

"No suitors for me," Selene said, shrugging as if she couldn't care less about it. "And Winter's still set on a certain….someone."

Miss Kinney clapped her hands in delight before leaning forward, her eyes full of conspiracy. "Mr. Clay?"

Winter blushed and nodded, then looked around to make sure no one had heard. She'd already scanned the room for him, but she didn't need anyone else gossiping about her love life, no matter how hopeless of a cause it was. Her stepmother would have a conniption fit if she knew a lowly second lieutenant had courted Winter all last autumn—and that she had reciprocated. Up until he told her she should forget about him and get married to another man.

The thought made the blush drop from her cheeks immediately.

"So is he here or not?" Selene blurted, never one to be tactful.

Miss Kinney's lip stuck out in a pout. "I'm sorry, Lady Winter. He was here earlier, but he went out a few hours ago. I haven't seen him return."

"It's just as well," Winter murmured. "I'm quite emotional at the moment, and I have a feeling I wouldn't act very ladylike if I were to see him right now."

"It was good to see you all the same," Miss Kinney said. "If Lady Blackburn didn't disapprove of me, I'd invite you to come and play whist sometime. It gets awfully lonely being the only woman around here."

Winter smiled and waved goodbye, and the two girls headed out the door.

"That's a shame," Selene said. "I really thought we'd see him…"

"Lady Winter."

The voice was deep but filled with surprise—and all too heartbreakingly familiar.