Ask the Author: Terry Langley
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Terry Langley
Character Spotlight: Clarissa Worthing
Not every struggle is loud. Not every rival is a villain.
When The Princess & The Duke begins, Clarissa Worthing is Lady Margaret’s impeccably poised companion—graceful, composed, and often watching from the edges of the room. But there’s more to her than meets the eye.
Clarissa was just twelve when she came to Ashbourne Manor. The orphaned niece of a disgraced baronet, she was taken in by the Duchess out of duty to an old friend. Raised within the household but never fully part of it, Clarissa grew up in a world that blurred the lines between family, staff, and guest. Too refined to be treated as a maid, but too far removed from society to stand among the aristocracy, she lived in quiet limbo.
Now in her twenties, Clarissa is the very image of control—raven-black hair worn in elegant coils, sharp gray eyes, a composed smile that rarely betrays her thoughts. Her clothing is just a touch too fine for her station, her manner always measured. But beneath that careful exterior is a young woman who has spent her life watching others receive the very things she was denied.
That includes attention, affection... and perhaps, even Jonathan Ashbourne.
He was part of the household she grew up in. And for a time, she may have believed that familiarity could become something more. But when Elena arrived—a stranger with secrets and a quiet strength—everything shifted.
Clarissa is not cruel. She is not petty. But she is human. And what readers come to understand is that her resentment doesn’t come from malice—it comes from longing, from pride, and from years of being almost seen.
Whether you sympathize with her or not, her story is a reminder that not every antagonist is a villain—and that every heart carries its own quiet history.
Not every struggle is loud. Not every rival is a villain.
When The Princess & The Duke begins, Clarissa Worthing is Lady Margaret’s impeccably poised companion—graceful, composed, and often watching from the edges of the room. But there’s more to her than meets the eye.
Clarissa was just twelve when she came to Ashbourne Manor. The orphaned niece of a disgraced baronet, she was taken in by the Duchess out of duty to an old friend. Raised within the household but never fully part of it, Clarissa grew up in a world that blurred the lines between family, staff, and guest. Too refined to be treated as a maid, but too far removed from society to stand among the aristocracy, she lived in quiet limbo.
Now in her twenties, Clarissa is the very image of control—raven-black hair worn in elegant coils, sharp gray eyes, a composed smile that rarely betrays her thoughts. Her clothing is just a touch too fine for her station, her manner always measured. But beneath that careful exterior is a young woman who has spent her life watching others receive the very things she was denied.
That includes attention, affection... and perhaps, even Jonathan Ashbourne.
He was part of the household she grew up in. And for a time, she may have believed that familiarity could become something more. But when Elena arrived—a stranger with secrets and a quiet strength—everything shifted.
Clarissa is not cruel. She is not petty. But she is human. And what readers come to understand is that her resentment doesn’t come from malice—it comes from longing, from pride, and from years of being almost seen.
Whether you sympathize with her or not, her story is a reminder that not every antagonist is a villain—and that every heart carries its own quiet history.
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