8

Chapter 8

Tiernan had kept his word, she discovered the next morning. Cleo arrived just after breakfast with several outfits that were appropriate for going out. When she peeked out the opened door behind the other woman, there was no sign of the soldier who’d been her guard the past two weeks. She exhaled with relief, though she still wasn’t confident their bargain could work. How was she supposed to try to be happy with him when her family needed her?

She pushed aside the thoughts that had whirled through her brain most of the night to focus on her friend. Cleo invited her to tea that afternoon, and she accepted, deciding it would be her first test run of her newly returned freedom. Even though it was just down the hallway in a sitting room, it would be good to get out of the confines of her room.

After Cleo left, she put away the outfits and took a bath, finding ways to fill the rest of her morning as she had the past two weeks. While she wanted to throw open the door and go outsid