Marblestone Mansion 01 - Scandalous Duchess

mother too, of course.”
    “ Well, I am proud of you, if that counts,” Donnel said.
    “ Indeed it does.”
    “ Blanka and I very much wanted to come to America. We have no other family and wanted to see you again before we die.”
    He frowned. “I’ll not hear talk of dying.”
    “ We all must die and if we are here, we can know you will watch over our graves.” She reached for his hand. “You are not happy now and it pains me to see it, but you will be soon.”
    He leaned down and kissed the top of her head. “Have you been reading tea leaves?”
    Donnel giggled. “I do not need tea leaves to see what is before my very eyes. Your…”
    “ Mr. Hannish,” Sassy said behind him. “I have brought Donnel a plate, only you are in the way.”
    The tone of her voice surprised him and he quickly moved aside. “Do forgive me, Sassy.”
    She ignored him, carefully handed Donnel the plate and then a fork and a napkin, while Cathleen found a place to set a cup of apple cider. “Mr. Hannish, Cathleen and I have no last name. What are we to do about that?” Sassy demanded.
    She was upset and he had never seen that side of her before. “I imagine you can choose whatever name you like.”
    “ Sassy,” said Donnel, “you can have our name. My sister and I would be honored to give it to you. We are the last of our family, you see.”
    Sassy thought about that. “Sassy Donnel Blanka?”
    Hannish smiled. “Perhaps you and Cathleen might fetch Blanka, and eat your lunch here. By the way, their maiden name is Covington.”

    It seemed everyone wanted his attention, although Hannish managed to eat some of Jessie’s fried chicken and Halen’s spicy potato salad before he was distracted again. Pearl and Loretta were being a bit too flirty, and he was far more interested in talking to Claymore about the new trouble in the mines. He often glanced at the two sets of sisters. Blanka and Donnel seemed to be thoroughly enjoying the younger set and it warmed his heart. He was not the only one who watched them, but he failed to notice Mr. Wells keeping an eye on them as well.
    Hannish did notice two men, whom he did not know, that were very interested in Millie. He was not surprised. Her flaming red hair, green eyes and slender figure attract the attention of most men. She was married once, to a man she adored, and she never quite got over it after her husband hung himself. She blamed herself, which of course was nonsense. Perhaps this new country would help her forget. Hannish hoped so -- he hoped so very much.
    He found himself watching everyone, as though they were his children. Of course he had help; Alistair was just as studious and protective, especially of the women. It was then Hannish spotted Prescot and went to him. Prescot, he realized was keeping an eye on Millie too. It was the first time he noticed that. “You should rescue her, I doubt she has eaten.”
    “ Gladly,” Prescot said.
    Just then, Pearl and Loretta came back. “Who might those two gentlemen be?” he asked, nodding toward the men talking to Millie.
    “ Oh,” said Pearl. “You have not heard. We have a new sheriff and that is his deputy.”
    “ I see, forgive me ladies, but I wish to make their acquaintance.” Prescot was having trouble stealing Millie away and Hannish was glad to help by distracting the Sheriff. Once accomplished, Millie’s smile, which she meant only for Prescot, was not lost on Hannish. Perhaps her happiness lived right under his roof -- he could not think of a finer man for her.
    “ How long have you known?” McKenna asked. Lunch was over, the servants were beginning to load up the baskets, the visitors had drifted away and still, the two sets of sisters were deep in conversation.
    “ Known what?” Hannish asked.
    “ How old Sassy is?”
    He slipped his arm around his sister. “Since the night she told me about Cathleen. She knows she is immature and was afraid the others would laugh at her. I wonder if she knows how quickly she is growing up.”
    “ I doubt she does. In some ways, Cathleen is the more mature of the two, and it is hard to tell, who mothered whom, all those years in the orphanage. Sassy does exactly what Cathleen tells her to do and Cathleen is not shy about telling her either.”
    “ Yet, it makes perfect sense. Everyone at the orphanage thought Cathleen was the eldest.”
    “ I see,” McKenna said. “Then it does make sense. What do you suppose the four of them have been talking about