Marblestone Mansion 01 - Scandalous Duchess

decide and perhaps they will work it out in their own good time,” she said.
    “ My dear, the position of butler is a very coveted one. Neither will want to give it up.”
    “ Then divide the duties between them somehow. On the train, Alistair hoped for a place to plant a rose garden. Perhaps he might be butler over the grounds.”
    “ Good, I shall ask him. Now my dear little sister, you look tired and a nap before dinner will do you good. Off you go.” He stood, offered his hand, helped her up, kissed her on the cheek again, and then watched her start up the stairs.
    Only then did his smile fade. Hannish turned, walked to a window, and stared out at nothing at all.
    A Scotsman by birth and a Duke by inheritance, he soon learned the title came with very little fortune and if he were to survive, he would have to make his own way in the world. A scant two weeks after they were married, he met a man in Scotland desperate to sell Idaho’s Lost Junction Silver Mine. He was skeptical but with few other choices, he borrowed all the money he could, paid the price, left his wife in Scotland, and caught the first ship to America.
    To his relief, the mine did indeed exist and he quickly learned there was nothing easy about mining silver. In fact, the bitter winters, the dangers in the mine, the small mining town nearby, and the miners, were more trouble than he cared to endure. Yet fortune fell on him and two years later, he sold the mine for over three million dollars, making him one of the richest men in the American west.
    He could have gone back to Scotland, and considered the idea long and hard before he decided to build Olivia a mansion in Colorado. The truth be told, he admired the Americans for winning their freedom from the British, settling their internal disputes in a Civil War and more recently, beating the Spanish in a battle that lasted only 100 days. The Americans were hearty men, unafraid of hard work and quick to enjoy an occasional brawl. He had taken a swing at one or two men in a brawl himself and found it invigorating. It was somewhat like the old days when the Scots used every opportunity the fight the English.
    The railroad finally stretched across the Continental Divide, connecting the east to the west now, and he fully intended to take his family to see Oregon and perhaps California someday. That very morning he dreamed of doing it, but that was before Olivia failed to arrive.
    Now, his arms were empty and his heart was slowly breaking.

    CHAPTER 2

    Cook Halen was proud of her spotless kitchen, with its two large coal stoves, vertical dish racks, cupboards and a handsome array of pots and pans hanging on the wall. A serving bar separated the kitchen from the servant’s dining hall, where Sarah and Charlotte sat at the long table waiting to be needed. Halen lightly touched the side of the heating teakettle. “She’ll be wanting tea soon, I wager.”
    “ I am sure she will,” Sarah agreed. As head housekeeper and with so many rooms to keep clean, Sarah was thrilled to see new help arrive. “She’s a beauty, that Miss MacGreagor.”
    “ As beautiful as he is handsome,” Charlotte agreed. “I could gaze upon his face for hours, if he would sit still long enough.”
    “ He already has a wife,” Sarah reminded, revolted once more by Charlotte’s flaunted infatuation with their employer.
    “ I know.”
    Shepard carried a tray to the sink and began to set several dirty dishes in the deep metal tub for washing. “What a pity his wife did not come. He must be so disappointed.”
    “ You’ll not be sayin’ that for long,” Sassy said, poking her head in the door. She boldly walked to the table, took a seat next to Charlotte, and put her hands together as if to pray. “I am starved to the bone. Have you a crumb for a hungry Scot?”
    Cook Halen liked her immediately and reached for a bowl. “You’ve come to the right place. Have you had no lunch?”
    “ We ate on the train, but I never seem to get full.”
    “ That be the truth of it,” Alistair said, appearing in the doorway. “Sassy makes up for all the meals she missed on the ship.”
    Sassy narrowed her eyes. “Dinna say all you know right off, Alistair. I hope to charm one or two afore they find out.”
    “ Beggin’ your pardon,” Alistair said. He winked at Halen and watched her place a bowl of soup and a roll in front of Sassy. “She’ll have you cookin’ day and night if you let her.” He pulled out a chair and sat