lunatic enterprise and just stroll about admiring the scenery.â
Max tucked her hand under his arm again, and this time Susannah relaxed and walked comfortably beside him. It had been a while since he had walked for pleasure with a pretty girl. He had almost forgotten how enjoyable it could be. If she was laying her worries aside for the moment, so was he. Neither of them spoke for a while, but the silence was companionable.
She broke it eventually. âYour mountains are very impressive and dramatic. They surround us, and I keep wondering if they are protecting us or imprisoning us.â She interrupted herself with a smile. âYou mustnât mind me. Itâs only that Iâve never seen mountains before.â
âNever seen them?â He was startled, but then he thought about it. âOf course. That sounds strange to me because I have seen these mountains every day of my life. But in England there are not high mountains, only hills. Am I right?â
She nodded. âAnd where I live, even the cliffs leading down to the sea are not all that high.â
âYou live near the sea? Then we are even. You have never seen mountains, and I have never seen the sea.â
âReally?â Susannah stopped and stared at him. âYouâve never been to the ocean?â
She was looking at him with wide-opened eyes, eyes of such a deep blue. Darker than the sky. Was the ocean that color? âConsider where we are, Suse. In the middle of mountains in the middle of Europe. There is no seashore in my country.â
âYes, but you are a man. You can travel any time you want to.â There was a note of envy in her voice.
Max shook his head, wishing that were true. âNo, I have too many responsibilities.â
âYes, I know,â she sighed. âTo the prince.â
He shrugged. âNot just to the prince. I have aunts and uncles and sisters and cousins. You would not believe how many cousins I have.â He rolled his eyes in mock horror. âAnd somehow I am responsible for all of them.â
He had made her laugh again. âWell, I do not have any cousins,â she said, âexcept very distant ones, but I have brothers and sisters, and when they marry, they bring a great many relations into the family, with a great many responsibilities. I think we are not very different after all.â
They continued on their way. Perhaps she was right. They were not very different. He liked that thought.
Nine
The princessâs private train traveled through the pine forests covering the lower slopes of the mountains surrounding the country. Endless forests, it seemed to Susannah, with only an occasional village and an occasional vista of snowcapped mountains.
Yesterday at the schloss had been both confusing and reassuring. The general drilled âthe princessâ in the minutiae of court etiquette and had her memorize facts about people she could be expected to know. For the first time in her life, Olivia was being a brilliant scholar, absorbing all the information like a sponge.
At times, it seemed as if Olivia was forgetting that she wasnât really a princess. What on earth were they going to do with her when she had to go back to being plain Lady Olivia, daughter of the scandalous Lady Doncaster?
Yesterday when Susannah confessed her worries to Maxâshe had given up trying to think of him more formallyâhe had teased her out of them, but they had returned this morning. She went to him again, and his laughter comforted her once more.
âAfter all,â he said, âwhat is the worst that can happen? We will be exposed; the prince will be angry with me and with General Bergen; and you and your friends will be scolded and sent back to Baden. Is that so very dreadful?â
âIt will be dreadfully humiliating,â Susannah said. âAnd Iâm not at all convinced that is the worst that can happen.â
Max took her hands in
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