The Forbidden Passion of a Governess: A Historical Regency Romance Book Read online

  The Forbidden Passion of a Governess

  A REGENCY ROMANCE NOVEL

  LUCY LANGTON

  Copyright © 2019 by Lucy Langton

  All Rights Reserved.

  This book may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form without the written permission of the publisher.

  In no way is it legal to reproduce, duplicate, or transmit any part of this document in either electronic means or in printed format. Recording of this publication is strictly prohibited and any storage of this document is not allowed unless with written permission from the publisher.

  Table of Contents

  The Forbidden Passion of a Governess

  Table of Contents

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  The Forbidden Passion of a Governess

  Introduction

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

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  The Forbidden Passion of a Governess

  Introduction

  When Emilia Steward is relieved of her post as governess in the Hutchinson family, she finds herself accepting a new position. Upon entering Glastonbrook though, she instantly becomes aware that the mansion is gloomy and neglected, due to an unsolved murder that took place within its walls. Adding to her troubles, she can’t deny her immediate attraction towards the dark and mysterious current Earl of Cunningham. When her secret passion is reciprocated, will she surrender to it? Is the lure of a forbidden romance enough for a chance of true love?

  Joshua Forest lost his parents under mysterious circumstances at a young age. Ever since, he has been the sole guardian of the Cunningham name and his younger sister as well. When he hires a governess to teach his sister before entering society, he does not expect a ravishing beauty to show up at his door. Their tension-filled encounters make his yearning stronger and stronger but he cannot succumb to the temptation. Will he let the captivating governess in, and allow her to help him escape the ghosts of his past?

  They may come from different classes, but neither can deny the immediate attraction between them. For a chance of a future together, they need to work alongside to let go of their past and solve the mystery surrounding the mansion. Until then though, can they resist the temptation, or is their connection too strong to control?

  Chapter 1

  Emilia Stewart felt herself beaming. The warm morning light cascaded through the bay windows and warmed her face, as well as those of her two young charges, Anne and Sophie. Although the two girls were teenagers, they still took delight in playing with their dolls every morning whilst their beloved governess watched their joyful game. They’d sit on the floor and dress up their little toys with miniature clothes sewed by Emilia’s hand. They’d giggle and laugh, delighting in the good fun of a new day, and the sumptuous breakfast that was to follow.

  Emilia sighed to herself. Being of one and twenty years, she was not so far away from being a teenager herself, but she could keenly perceive the difference between she and the two girls. They were boisterous, light-hearted and unencumbered. Emilia still shared all of those qualities with them. However, she had the added element of a sense of the future. What was going to happen to her? She often awoke in expectation wondering just that.

  Emilia always wore her chocolate-brown hair up and allowed little tendrils of highlighted curls to fall haphazardly. She believed it leant an air of dishevelled beauty to her face, a face not made more beautiful by cosmetics, which Emilia detested, but rather by dirt and soot, natural consequences of her job as a devoted governess.

  “We’re going into town,” Anne said, holding her doll in her hand and willing the toy to walk on its own two feet, past where she sat cross-legged.

  “Might we come to town as well?” Sophie asked, holding her own doll and wishing to have it accompany Anne’s on the journey.

  “No,” Anne replied sullenly, teasing her slightly younger sister.

  “I care not if I’m allowed to join, I shall journey into town nonetheless,” Sophie replied, turning indignant. Although the sisters were being playful, Emilia felt the need to intervene.

  “Now, now, girls. Let’s all go together in good cheer,” Emilia said, smiling at her charges tenderly.

  “Hmf,” Anne replied, relenting. “Come along then.”

  Their game continued for some time, as Anne and Sophie journeyed throughout the room with their dolls, walking the little creatures over the backs of chairs, over table-tops, and up the curtains. Emilia watched dreamily, still seated on the floor. She leaned back and rested on her arms, enjoying a moment of repose.

  The repose would indeed be momentary for soon, the Hutchinson household would be abuzz with energy and life. It was not only the kinetic power of the two girls, but also the ferocious energy of three older brothers, a mother and father, four corgis, a Pomeranian, and even a parrot that lived up in the attic. For all those reasons, it had always been a lively household for the many years that Emilia had been in their employ, and she delighted in every moment of it.

  The only trouble was that there was never a moment’s rest. After the casual play in the morning, chaos ensued. Dining, lessons, shopping, reading aloud, taking trips to the park, dining yet again. Once the continuous series of events concluded at 9pm in the evening, Emilia would finally escape to her own room adjacent to the attic and collapse onto the bed, often not bothering to change her clothes or perform her toilette before falling fast asleep. It was hard work, that much was certain. But Emilia was still sprightly and up to the task. And, in all truth, it distracted her mind to be so constantly busy. It released her body and soul from a challenging past, and the uncertainty of the future.

  “Breakfast is served,” Lady Barbara Hutchinson said, poking her head into the door. Although Lady Barbara was a woman of exceptional, delicate beauty, Emilia could tell that over the years the task of having five children, six pets, and a husband had taken their toll. Lady Barbara’s skin appeared as crepe paper in the morning light. Yet still, it was not something that anyone payed much attention to when she smiled, for lines and wrinkles engaged in happiness were always a thing of beauty.

  “I’m famished!” Anne cried dramatically, throwing down her doll and running towards the door.

  “Now, now, Anne. Do you not remember where to put that?” Emilia asked with warm authority. Anne turned back to look at the discarded doll and relented, picking it back up and placing it on the shelf where it belonged. Sophie did the same, always mirroring what her older sister did.

  “Hurry up now, ladies,” Lady Barbara said, “there are scones this morning.”

  That was all the mother needed to sa
y in order to speed up the process of getting Anne and Sophie to restore the room as it should be and make their way with graceful haste down the stairs and to the dining room, where the smell of scones, eggs, bacon and tea could already be perceived.

  Emilia took a moment to herself after the girls had exited the room, ensuring that everything was back in order. She walked towards the window and indulged in the serene vista that lay before her. Castle Comb in the Cotswold Valley was always where the Hutchinsons spent their time when not in town. The estate was sprawling, and the surrounding countryside a verdant epiphany on a morning such as that one. Emilia sighed to herself, thinking how much more beautiful her surroundings were than when she lived in Painswick. How had she come across such good fortune? She thanked the heavens for it every day.

  Below where she stood was the dining room, and she could already hear things crashing and a child screaming, which prompted Emilia to make haste out of the room and down the stairs.

  Upon entering the dining room, Emilia had to shield her eyes the light was so strong. The estate was situated in such a location that every room was bathed in light, when they were lucky enough to be graced with it. On days where the countryside would be inundated with gloom and rain, candles and fireplaces would be lit in order to maintain the sheer luminosity that the Hutchinson family enjoyed.

  Emilia quickly discovered that the commotion stemmed from Sophie having knocked over a silver tureen of cream, and she was crying in penitence. The child was quickly consoled when Emilia brushed her hand over the girl’s cheek.

  “There, there now. We all make mistakes,” Emilia said, wiping away her tears.

  “I’m so clumsy,” Sophie said, sniffling.

  “We are all clumsy from time to time,” Emilia replied.

  She took the girl’s hand in her own and walked her over to the table. The boys were already seated, Lady Barbara as well, and lastly Lord Hutchinson entered the room, wearing a crisp shirt and blue morning coat. The smell of the delectable breakfast was overwhelming, and Emilia felt her stomach growl in anticipation. The food was always remarkable in the Hutchinson household, and Emilia did notice that since living at the estate, her physical form had filled in to the point of womanhood, something that she was proud of.

  Once everyone was seated, Lord Hutchinson said a little prayer and the feasting began. They were a devout family, the Hutchinsons, and had their own vestibule for prayer adjacent to the estate. Emilia marvelled at their goodness, and even wore a little silver cross around her neck in concordance with their beliefs.

  A warm scone was placed upon her plate by a servant holding a polished silver set of tongs and Emilia felt her mouth water. She wished to pull it apart with her fingers immediately, but she would need to wait until the servants made their rounds and placed the poached eggs, crispy bacon and roasted tomatoes upon her plate as well. With each new item that was served to her, Emilia looked up and thanked the attendant that catered to her, knowing each one by name and also considering them friends. The staff of the estate was selected with expert care, for their diligence and goodness. But that’s not to say that there wasn’t a touch of gossip.

  And Emilia had to be honest that a good portion of the gossip came from herself. She loved the intrigue of knowing which servant was romantically involved with which, she enjoyed hearing about the little quarrels that would take place between Lady Barbara and the head footman, Benedict. And she also took delight in hearing of the minor altercations that would transpire between the growing boys.

  Finally pulling her scone apart with two hands, something that was improper but accepted by all of the Hutchinson family, who liked to feel the warmth upon their fingers, Emilia spread the split scone out onto the plate and reached for her knife, procuring a pat of pre-cut butter and placing it upon one half, watching as it melted quickly and disappeared into a warm yellow glow. The flecks of fruit within the scone were like summer flowers, bright and vivid.

  Emilia brought the scone to her lips, tasting its tart, rich goodness. She delighted in the first bite for several moments and looked about the table, noting that the rest of the family was in rapture as well.

  But a funny thing happened just then within Emilia’s mind. A realisation that took her by surprise. Looking across the way at Anne and Sophie, it became abundantly clear. They were women now, no longer girls. The morning’s reverie with dolls and quarrels, smiles and tears were nothing more than nostalgia. They grew up before her very eyes, and she could only see it clearly in that moment. The realisation was profound and left Emilia to wonder what their future would be. What her future would be. The perfection of their time together, the eventful days of transforming from girls to women, it had all gone by so fast.

  Just then, a strawberry knocked Emilia on the side of the head and she was whipped out of her contemplation. It was flung by the youngest boy, of course, still intent upon teasing the governess at every possible opportunity. The middle brother would do the same, but the older did not dare. His own age was far too close to Emilia’s and that created a great deal of tension. The eldest was handsome enough, but Emilia daren’t entertain romantic notions of him. He was a boy of exceptional breeding and wealth and could never be interested in someone of Emilia’s class.

  Emilia did not regret that in the slightest, nor her own station in life. She loved her job and had long given up feeling angry over her father’s misgivings, his action to lose all his money through gambling and drink, and the mother that was long since dead. Emilia had shed many tears over those things as a young girl, but not as a young woman. She had accepted her lot in life and wished to make the best of it.

  And like the remarkable tableau that had been her many years of service in the Hutchinson household, so the pretty scene in the dining room progressed from breakfast to tea, and then from tea to supper, the light outside the windows maintaining its natural course from yellow to pink, pink to purple, and finally darkness. The day had been lively and carefree as ever and, taking her supper, Emilia dreamt of when she would retire to her little garret, lying in her bed and indulging in the book that had captivated her attention the evening before.

  “If you’ll excuse me,” Lord Hutchinson said, getting up from the table and exiting the room.

  The children followed suit, and Emilia pursued them, assuming that she and the girls might retire to the library where she could read aloud to them, something that was no longer necessary considering their age, but still enjoyed by all.

  “Emilia,” Lady Barbara said, interrupting her exit.

  “Yes, M’Lady,” Emilia replied.

  “Might I have a word with you in my chambers?” she asked.

  “Why, yes of course.”

  Lady Barbara’s personal dwelling space was on the second floor of the stately manse, and it was upholstered in green, a fresh and calming hue. There were a number of occasions where Emilia had been invited there, but it was usually to discuss matters of some import concerning the girls and Emilia’s role in overseeing them. Those discussions were never serious in nature, but rather important points of rhetoric concerning Lady Barbara’s expectations. For that reason, Emilia felt no sense of dread, but rather, curiosity.

  “Have a seat,” Lady Barbara said, motioning towards an armed chair. Emilia did as was requested and folded her hands gingerly in her lap. “As you are well aware, Anne and Sophie have grown. And your services have been instrumental in making them the girls that they are today.”

  “I thank you.”

  “No, I thank you,” Lady Barbara said, seating herself as well. “But I have known for some time that the day would come where your employment would no longer be required. You’re an exceptional woman, Emilia, and I know that your future is so bright. Unfortunately, Anne and Sophie no longer need you. It’s time for them to enter society and find husbands and families of their own, and I must be the one to chaperone them through that process. All of this is to say that, for some time I have been engaged in finding new employme
nt for you. It would pain me immeasurably to think that I could release you out into the world with no tether. And for that reason, I have procured a position for you with the Earl of Cunningham, a man of remarkable good standing and admirable income. You shall not need to leave Castle Comb, for his estate is nearby, and you will be entrusted with his younger sister, Deirdre.”

  For a moment Emilia was speechless. To have to leave the Hutchinsons would be an enormous change for her, and one she was not yet prepared to make. But still, a strange excitement filled her simultaneously.

  “I am sorry for all this,” Lady Barbara said with a warm, apologetic smile. “I’m sure it must come as quite a shock.”

  “Yes and no,” Emilia replied, finally finding her words. “I suppose this day was inevitable, was it not? I cannot express how happy I have been in this time shared with Anne and Sophie, as well as your whole family.” What Emilia could not express with words was the notion that the Hutchinsons, as well as the entire staff, had become a sort of family of her own.

  “I know that you’ll thrive at Glastonbrook, the earl’s estate. The grounds are much larger than our own, but you will only have one charge to look after and I think that shall make your job much easier.”