A Duke, a Governess, and a Little Lady
Liz was braiding her hair when Max entered her doorway.
"Good Evening, Your Grace." She acknowledged the fact that he was now indeed the Duke of Antar. "I'm sorry about your father."
"What do you have to be sorry for?" He met her eyes in the mirror. "I need to speak with you downstairs." He turned on his heel and left the room.
"Yes, Your Grace." She said to no one in particular.
Liz knocked on the door before she entered.
"Come in Miss Parker."
He never called her that.
"Liz," He paused, "Miss Parker, we-I have a problem." He started. "When my father died, he left the family in dire financial straits." He studied his hands.
"We're not desolate, there's no way we could be because Isabel is the Crown Princess, but we aren't good. There is much work to be done before they can be fixed but the immediate thing, now that I'm duke, I must have an heir." He took a breath. "In order to obtain an heir I need to marry."
"Obviously." She said annoyed.
"Miss Parker, please." He eyed her. "I am to be married, in three months time."
Liz felt as if the air had been kicked out of her. She had never had any hopes of a future with him, but knowing that another woman would have the right and honor to be his wife was hurtful towards Liz. But who was she to say anything? She was just a lowly governess, neither servant nor family.
Max gauged her reaction and felt his heart leap that she seemed upset. Yet, he was sad because for once there was nothing he could do to fix it.
"One of the demands of my fiancé, Emily must attend boarding school, hence there would be no need for you in the household anymore." He said trying to sound as disconnected for the statement as possible.
Liz stared at him. Trying to compose herself and not let the tears run that we threatening to in her eyes.
"W-where am I to go?" She asked, her voice broken. She didn't want to leave Emily.
"You can stay here, if you wish to marry Martin." He said matter of factly.
"Pardon?" She said starting to get angry. "You know perfectly well how I feel about that man."
"I was just offering." He shrugged. "Tomorrow, Tess will come to get a head start on running the household, I suggest that you stay out of her way." Max looked at her.
"Tess, you're marrying Tess?" She asked disgust filling her voice.
"Yes."
"I thought my position here was secure." She asked him, holding him accountable.
"It was." He said quietly. He hated this.
She stood to leave. "Promise me, your grace, you'll bring Emily home for the summer holiday and any other holiday?" She asked. "Although I don't know if I can hold you to it." If she couldn't trust him, than whom could she trust?
"I will." She exited the room. "I'm sorry, Liz." He whispered brokenly, when he realized she hadn't even said goodbye.
Liz went up to bed and pulled Emily into her bed because she needed someone oblivious to the world around her. Her arms settled around her and Emily snuggled into Liz's arms as she had when she was younger. "Night, Miss Beth." She whispered.
"Goodnight, Love." Liz whispered, as the tears coursed down her cheeks and landed on the white pillow.
****
The next month was hell, Liz looking frantically for a new position, while trying to keep her young charge, as well as herself, out of her half sister's way. She also had to keep Max from finding out about the letter and her relation to Tess.
"Your Grace?" Liz knocked on the door.
"You may enter, Miss Parker." Max called.
"Your Grace." She entered the room to find Tess sitting in the familiar chair that she used to occupy. "Miss Harding." She acknowledged Tess. "Could you give me a reference, I might have a position with the Skeffingtons but they want a decent reference and you're the only one I have?" She asked quietly.
"Come here." He said firmly.
Her feet went automatically towards him. He took her paper and scrawled something on it.
"Thank you, your Grace." She nodded and was about to turn to exit the room when a voice stopped her dead in her tracks.
"Elizabeth." She forced herself to be calm.
"Hello, darling." He said stepping into the room.
"Who are you?" Max demanded from his position behind his desk.
"Me? I'm Rafael Derevko, Elizabeth's husband." He stood behind her. Liz froze.
Her 'husband' was tall, not quite as tall as Max but close. He was well built and had arms of steel as she knew all too well. He had dark hair that hung to long and eyes that were too dark to have any good in them.
"Pardon me?" Max shot a look at both Liz and Rafael. "Explain." Max tipped his head a sign Liz knew was for her to be seated.
She was on her way to sit when Rafael restrained her and Liz froze. She knew this wouldn't make Max happy, he didn't like people to defy him, especially in his own home.
"She will stand." Rafael said in a calm voice, eyeing Max.
The two men silently fought for dominance. Rafael's grip loosened and Liz escaped his grasp and sat in the chair as far from him and as close to Max as possible.
"Rafael. Nice to see you again." Tess said from where she had silently observed them.
"You know him?" Max tipped his head in Rafael's direction. His eyes angry.
"Of course I know my sister's husband." She said smiling and crossing her arms.
Max's gaze swung to Liz whose eyes were on her hands.
"Miss Parker." He said.
She looked up and tried to blinked back tears. "Yes, your grace?" She said quietly.
"I'm sorry, I think I miss understood Tess, would you like to explain?" He asked.
"You mean to tell me that she didn't tell you she's my half sister?" Tess exclaimed faking shock.
"Quiet, Tess." Liz said sharply.
"I'll explain." Rafael said standing up.
Not liking to have to look up to the man Max stood as well.
"I was married to Elizabeth, or Miss Parker as you call her. Directly after the wedding I had to leave for Russia when I would return for her in two years."
Max interrupted. "How old was she?"
"Fifteen." He answered as if it weren't a big deal.
"Fifteen, you married a girl at fifteen?" Max asked astonished. "How old were you at the time?"
"Eight and twenty."
"Making you how old now?" He asked.
"Two and Thirty. But that's beside the point. When I returned I learned her father had died and the little chit had run away. No one knew where she went and seemingly no one cared, but I did. I made a deal with her half sister here, Tess, that if she heard from her she would let me know." Rafael nodded. "Now, I thank you, your grace for keeping my wife safe, we'll be on our way now." He walked over to Liz and pulled her up by the arm.
"Do not move." Max said fiercely. Rafael didn't try to argue. Liz hung her head in shame. This is not how she had wanted Max to find out. "Sit down, Liz." He called her by her nickname. Liz looked up when he did this and his eyes softened for a moment before they turned cold on Rafael. "Drop her arm."
"The little chit is my wife, you'll not tell me how to handle her." Rafael said.
"Pardon me, but you're in my house, you will do as I say, no questions asked. Period." Max said. Rafael dropped her arm without further argument.
"Will you please step out of the room, Mr. Derevko and Tess?" He asked politely.
"I will not have you alone with my wife." Rafael stood.
"I told you once, I won't tell you again. You are in my home, you will do as I say and if you don't I will have you removed." He said in a deadly calm voice.
Tess and Rafael both scurried out of the room.
When the door was shut behind them Max turned his attentions back to Liz. She was sitting calmly, or so she looked, with her hands folded in her lap and eyes on her hands.
He went to her and knelt down in front of her. "Liz, look at me." He said softly. When she refused to he put his forefinger under her chin and lifted until her eyes met his.
"Liz, can you explain this to me please?" He asked gently.
Liz blinked back more tears and shook her head.
"Liz," He said more firmly but still soothingly. "I need you to tell me so that I can help you."
She looked at him with tears in her eyes. "I'm sorry." She said through a sob. He embraced her even though he knew he shouldn't, that she was married.
"It's ok, calm down and explain." He soothed, stroking her back. He remembered that night four months back at the townhouse.
She pulled a handkerchief from her pocket and pulled away from Max. "When- after my mama died, Papa remarried about four months after. She had already had Tess, she was just a few month younger than I."
She paused before she went on. "So Tess is your stepsister?" He asked.
"No, half." She corrected. "I found out later, when I was fifteen, I didn't like my fifteenth year, I found out that was my half sister. Papa had been seeing another woman on the side. When my mama was with child, she um, she couldn't, well." Liz looked at him her face blushing.
"I understand, go on." He smiled.
"So he went to Ms. Harding." Liz said in disgust. "Papa and Ms. Harding never really liked me. I spent my time in the stables with the stable hand's daughter who was a year older." She paused again. "That hurt, a lot. But I got over it. Then the suitor's started coming. Ms. Harding and Papa arranged them for Tess, but I always had to attend since it was like a supper or a dinner meeting. I had to dress up, hair confined, everything. I hated every moment of it."
"Then Ms. Harding became upset with me, why I didn't know. Then one day Tess told me, like she always informs me about everything. She was upset because the suitors came for me and not her. So they did the only thing they could, married me off to whomever would accept the lowest dowry."
"Your Papa did?" He asked.
"My papa wasn't my number one fan. He didn't really like my mother. Grandmama Claudia arranged the marriage. She was the only one that really knew me apart from Mama. When Rafael left after the wedding, and I mean after the wedding. There was no wedding night, thank God." She breathed. "I went to my room feigning exhaustion. I changed my clothes, packed a few things is my knapsack, same one I have here, and left."
"Isn't running away from your husband illegal?"
"Extremely, but no one knew we were married, except the poor pastor who had to perform the wedding or have my father ruin his reputation. So according to everyone else, we weren't." She was now sitting in the chair out of his embrace, although, she desperately wanted to be there.
"Then how does he have any legal rights to you?" He asked confused.
"The next day it was in the paper, my papa was an influential man in Philadelphia. That match made a lot of the aristocratic men in Philadelphia unhappy. The respectable ones were waiting till I was old enough to marry before coming around. So it was confirmed, I was married, everyone knew it, and I was gone. I heard from Tess that no one really missed me except for Rafael, he was just mad he was out a wife. Papa died shortly after, in the paper's also." She added.
"I ran to a church in southern Virginia were I helped take care of orphan children until I got a dismissed to go to the Burming's. And you know the rest from there."
Max stared at her debating what to do.
A/N: See a nice long chapter because I left that short one before. I hope you enjoyed. I'll continue this later because my history teacher is being the evil woman that she is.
Liz was braiding her hair when Max entered her doorway.
"Good Evening, Your Grace." She acknowledged the fact that he was now indeed the Duke of Antar. "I'm sorry about your father."
"What do you have to be sorry for?" He met her eyes in the mirror. "I need to speak with you downstairs." He turned on his heel and left the room.
"Yes, Your Grace." She said to no one in particular.
Liz knocked on the door before she entered.
"Come in Miss Parker."
He never called her that.
"Liz," He paused, "Miss Parker, we-I have a problem." He started. "When my father died, he left the family in dire financial straits." He studied his hands.
"We're not desolate, there's no way we could be because Isabel is the Crown Princess, but we aren't good. There is much work to be done before they can be fixed but the immediate thing, now that I'm duke, I must have an heir." He took a breath. "In order to obtain an heir I need to marry."
"Obviously." She said annoyed.
"Miss Parker, please." He eyed her. "I am to be married, in three months time."
Liz felt as if the air had been kicked out of her. She had never had any hopes of a future with him, but knowing that another woman would have the right and honor to be his wife was hurtful towards Liz. But who was she to say anything? She was just a lowly governess, neither servant nor family.
Max gauged her reaction and felt his heart leap that she seemed upset. Yet, he was sad because for once there was nothing he could do to fix it.
"One of the demands of my fiancé, Emily must attend boarding school, hence there would be no need for you in the household anymore." He said trying to sound as disconnected for the statement as possible.
Liz stared at him. Trying to compose herself and not let the tears run that we threatening to in her eyes.
"W-where am I to go?" She asked, her voice broken. She didn't want to leave Emily.
"You can stay here, if you wish to marry Martin." He said matter of factly.
"Pardon?" She said starting to get angry. "You know perfectly well how I feel about that man."
"I was just offering." He shrugged. "Tomorrow, Tess will come to get a head start on running the household, I suggest that you stay out of her way." Max looked at her.
"Tess, you're marrying Tess?" She asked disgust filling her voice.
"Yes."
"I thought my position here was secure." She asked him, holding him accountable.
"It was." He said quietly. He hated this.
She stood to leave. "Promise me, your grace, you'll bring Emily home for the summer holiday and any other holiday?" She asked. "Although I don't know if I can hold you to it." If she couldn't trust him, than whom could she trust?
"I will." She exited the room. "I'm sorry, Liz." He whispered brokenly, when he realized she hadn't even said goodbye.
Liz went up to bed and pulled Emily into her bed because she needed someone oblivious to the world around her. Her arms settled around her and Emily snuggled into Liz's arms as she had when she was younger. "Night, Miss Beth." She whispered.
"Goodnight, Love." Liz whispered, as the tears coursed down her cheeks and landed on the white pillow.
****
The next month was hell, Liz looking frantically for a new position, while trying to keep her young charge, as well as herself, out of her half sister's way. She also had to keep Max from finding out about the letter and her relation to Tess.
"Your Grace?" Liz knocked on the door.
"You may enter, Miss Parker." Max called.
"Your Grace." She entered the room to find Tess sitting in the familiar chair that she used to occupy. "Miss Harding." She acknowledged Tess. "Could you give me a reference, I might have a position with the Skeffingtons but they want a decent reference and you're the only one I have?" She asked quietly.
"Come here." He said firmly.
Her feet went automatically towards him. He took her paper and scrawled something on it.
"Thank you, your Grace." She nodded and was about to turn to exit the room when a voice stopped her dead in her tracks.
"Elizabeth." She forced herself to be calm.
"Hello, darling." He said stepping into the room.
"Who are you?" Max demanded from his position behind his desk.
"Me? I'm Rafael Derevko, Elizabeth's husband." He stood behind her. Liz froze.
Her 'husband' was tall, not quite as tall as Max but close. He was well built and had arms of steel as she knew all too well. He had dark hair that hung to long and eyes that were too dark to have any good in them.
"Pardon me?" Max shot a look at both Liz and Rafael. "Explain." Max tipped his head a sign Liz knew was for her to be seated.
She was on her way to sit when Rafael restrained her and Liz froze. She knew this wouldn't make Max happy, he didn't like people to defy him, especially in his own home.
"She will stand." Rafael said in a calm voice, eyeing Max.
The two men silently fought for dominance. Rafael's grip loosened and Liz escaped his grasp and sat in the chair as far from him and as close to Max as possible.
"Rafael. Nice to see you again." Tess said from where she had silently observed them.
"You know him?" Max tipped his head in Rafael's direction. His eyes angry.
"Of course I know my sister's husband." She said smiling and crossing her arms.
Max's gaze swung to Liz whose eyes were on her hands.
"Miss Parker." He said.
She looked up and tried to blinked back tears. "Yes, your grace?" She said quietly.
"I'm sorry, I think I miss understood Tess, would you like to explain?" He asked.
"You mean to tell me that she didn't tell you she's my half sister?" Tess exclaimed faking shock.
"Quiet, Tess." Liz said sharply.
"I'll explain." Rafael said standing up.
Not liking to have to look up to the man Max stood as well.
"I was married to Elizabeth, or Miss Parker as you call her. Directly after the wedding I had to leave for Russia when I would return for her in two years."
Max interrupted. "How old was she?"
"Fifteen." He answered as if it weren't a big deal.
"Fifteen, you married a girl at fifteen?" Max asked astonished. "How old were you at the time?"
"Eight and twenty."
"Making you how old now?" He asked.
"Two and Thirty. But that's beside the point. When I returned I learned her father had died and the little chit had run away. No one knew where she went and seemingly no one cared, but I did. I made a deal with her half sister here, Tess, that if she heard from her she would let me know." Rafael nodded. "Now, I thank you, your grace for keeping my wife safe, we'll be on our way now." He walked over to Liz and pulled her up by the arm.
"Do not move." Max said fiercely. Rafael didn't try to argue. Liz hung her head in shame. This is not how she had wanted Max to find out. "Sit down, Liz." He called her by her nickname. Liz looked up when he did this and his eyes softened for a moment before they turned cold on Rafael. "Drop her arm."
"The little chit is my wife, you'll not tell me how to handle her." Rafael said.
"Pardon me, but you're in my house, you will do as I say, no questions asked. Period." Max said. Rafael dropped her arm without further argument.
"Will you please step out of the room, Mr. Derevko and Tess?" He asked politely.
"I will not have you alone with my wife." Rafael stood.
"I told you once, I won't tell you again. You are in my home, you will do as I say and if you don't I will have you removed." He said in a deadly calm voice.
Tess and Rafael both scurried out of the room.
When the door was shut behind them Max turned his attentions back to Liz. She was sitting calmly, or so she looked, with her hands folded in her lap and eyes on her hands.
He went to her and knelt down in front of her. "Liz, look at me." He said softly. When she refused to he put his forefinger under her chin and lifted until her eyes met his.
"Liz, can you explain this to me please?" He asked gently.
Liz blinked back more tears and shook her head.
"Liz," He said more firmly but still soothingly. "I need you to tell me so that I can help you."
She looked at him with tears in her eyes. "I'm sorry." She said through a sob. He embraced her even though he knew he shouldn't, that she was married.
"It's ok, calm down and explain." He soothed, stroking her back. He remembered that night four months back at the townhouse.
She pulled a handkerchief from her pocket and pulled away from Max. "When- after my mama died, Papa remarried about four months after. She had already had Tess, she was just a few month younger than I."
She paused before she went on. "So Tess is your stepsister?" He asked.
"No, half." She corrected. "I found out later, when I was fifteen, I didn't like my fifteenth year, I found out that was my half sister. Papa had been seeing another woman on the side. When my mama was with child, she um, she couldn't, well." Liz looked at him her face blushing.
"I understand, go on." He smiled.
"So he went to Ms. Harding." Liz said in disgust. "Papa and Ms. Harding never really liked me. I spent my time in the stables with the stable hand's daughter who was a year older." She paused again. "That hurt, a lot. But I got over it. Then the suitor's started coming. Ms. Harding and Papa arranged them for Tess, but I always had to attend since it was like a supper or a dinner meeting. I had to dress up, hair confined, everything. I hated every moment of it."
"Then Ms. Harding became upset with me, why I didn't know. Then one day Tess told me, like she always informs me about everything. She was upset because the suitors came for me and not her. So they did the only thing they could, married me off to whomever would accept the lowest dowry."
"Your Papa did?" He asked.
"My papa wasn't my number one fan. He didn't really like my mother. Grandmama Claudia arranged the marriage. She was the only one that really knew me apart from Mama. When Rafael left after the wedding, and I mean after the wedding. There was no wedding night, thank God." She breathed. "I went to my room feigning exhaustion. I changed my clothes, packed a few things is my knapsack, same one I have here, and left."
"Isn't running away from your husband illegal?"
"Extremely, but no one knew we were married, except the poor pastor who had to perform the wedding or have my father ruin his reputation. So according to everyone else, we weren't." She was now sitting in the chair out of his embrace, although, she desperately wanted to be there.
"Then how does he have any legal rights to you?" He asked confused.
"The next day it was in the paper, my papa was an influential man in Philadelphia. That match made a lot of the aristocratic men in Philadelphia unhappy. The respectable ones were waiting till I was old enough to marry before coming around. So it was confirmed, I was married, everyone knew it, and I was gone. I heard from Tess that no one really missed me except for Rafael, he was just mad he was out a wife. Papa died shortly after, in the paper's also." She added.
"I ran to a church in southern Virginia were I helped take care of orphan children until I got a dismissed to go to the Burming's. And you know the rest from there."
Max stared at her debating what to do.
A/N: See a nice long chapter because I left that short one before. I hope you enjoyed. I'll continue this later because my history teacher is being the evil woman that she is.