To Train A Heart

Copyright © 2023 Shaela Kay OddPublished by Blue Water Books Richland, WACover design © Blue Water Books Visit the author at www.shaelakay.comAll rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any means without express written consent from the publisher.This book is a work of fiction. Characters and events in this book are products of the author's imagination and are represented fictitiously. Any likeness to any person, living or dead, is purely coincidental. For Serity,who will one day be an authorherself, I have no doubt Contents CopyrightDedicationChapter 1Chapter 2Chapter 3Chapter 4Chapter 5Chapter 6Chapter 7Chapter 8Chapter 9Chapter 10Chapter 11Chapter 12Chapter 13Chapter 14Chapter 15Chapter 16Chapter 17Chapter 18Chapter 19Chapter 20Chapter 21Chapter 22Chapter 23Chapter 24Chapter 25Chapter 26Chapter 27Chapter 28Chapter 29EpilogueAcknowledgementsAbout the Author Chapter 1London, England 1842Madeline closed her eyes and pressed her hands to her stomach. She took one last, steadying breath before opening the door and stepping into the drawing room.She was surprised to find not only her aunt within, but her uncle as well. Suddenly the summons she received seemed far more serious. Ignoring the trembling in her breast, she put a smile on her face and went to greet her guardians.“You wished to see me, Aunt?” Madeline said, stopping in front of her.Aunt Ellen looked up from her needlework. “Yes, Madeline. Please be seated.”Madeline’s stomach twisted as she did so. Her uncle stood behind the chaise where her aunt sat, but he said nothing. His expression was stern, as usual, and beneath his withering gaze Madeline had to fight the urge to make herself appear smaller.Aunt Ellen finished her stitch and set her work aside. The years had been kind to the older woman, who looked as if she could have been younger than Madeline’s father, rather than nearly a decade his senior. Madeline knew the lines around her mouth and eyes were from displeasure, not the passage of time.She studied Madeline for a moment, then released a heavy sigh. “I understand that Henry has made you an offer,” she said.Madeline stiffened, and the presence of her uncle now made sense. She clasped her hands tightly in her lap. “Yes, Aunt.”“And this offer you have refused.” It was not a question, but it was clear a response was expected.“Yes.”“May I ask why?”The stone in Madeline’s stomach rolled, pushing the breath out of her. “I do not love him, Aunt! Not in that way,” she amended. “Though you know I care for him.”“In your situation, love should be the least of your concerns,” her uncle snapped, making Madeline flinch.Aunt Ellen lifted a hand to her husband and he huffed, turning away. She looked back at Madeline.“Henry is a good man,” she said, “and he cares for you a great deal. Though a barrister will never make a fortune, our son would provide a comfortable home. You would want for nothing.”Madeline made no reply, and a flash of irritation warmed Aunt Ellen’s eyes.“If you will not consider your own future, at least consider your brother’s. What will become of Thomas?”Her aunt seemed to think Madeline’s refusal was amendable, but it was not. Madeline had no intention of marrying her cousin, however indebted she might feel to his family. When she still did not respond, Aunt Ellen looked to her husband. He narrowed his eyes at Madeline.“If you will not accept Henry, then I see no reason for you to stay,” he said coldly.Madeline blinked. Was she being dismissed from the room, or from the house?“Your aunt and I were obliged to take you and Thomas when your parents died. But we have our own daughters to consider, and you are quite capable of making your own way in the world now.”“Making my own way? How? I have no money.”Uncle Richard’s lip curled. “Perhaps you should have considered that before refusing our son.”Madeline flushed, her temper rising, but she knew from experience that it was better to remain silent.Aunt Ellen looked back at Madeline. “Your father left you a modest dowry. Until such time as you find a suitable husband,” she sniffed in annoyance, “I may be able to help you find a position as a governess.”If her aunt had slapped her in the face, Madeline could not have been more surprised. She was a governess, as well as a tutor—the fact that her charges were her younger cousins was irrelevant. Madeline had stepped in to teach them when she came to live with her aunt and uncle five years ago. It was meant to be a sort of set down, a punishment of sorts—though for what, Madeline could not say. She supposed it may have had something to do with her father marrying beneath his station, an offense which Madeline’s aunt did not seem to have ever forgiven him for. But Madeline loved to teach and was happy to do it, and even her aunt grudgingly admitted she was good at it. Sending her away meant that the family would have to hire someone else, and Madeline felt the sting.She looked up at her aunt. The lines around her mouth had pulled her lips into a taut line. Her eyes, so much like Madeline’s father’s, were hard.“I am sorry to have displeased you, Aunt,” Madeline said.Her uncle snorted, turning away, but her aunt sighed. “I am sorry, too,” she said. “When you first came to us, I worried what might become of you. But then I saw how Henry’s affections for you grew, and I felt sure you would make a match of it. We all did.”A flash of anger coursed through Madeline. Why did everyone expect her to marry Henry? He was certainly a good man, as her aunt said, and Madeline enjoyed his company. Most people were shocked or even displeased when she tried to talk of science and politics in the drawing room. But her cousin had always been patient and pleasant when she inquired after his studies or engaged him in philosophical conversation.“I tried, Aunt, truly I did. But I have only felt