A Dance in Moonlight by Sherry Thomas

Author:Sherry Thomas [Thomas, Sherry]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Tags: FIC027170 FICTION / Romance / Historical / Victorian, mistaken identity, sexy historical romance, widower hero, widow heroine, Bollywood plot, doppelganger hero, jilted heroine
Publisher: NLA Digital Liaison Platform LLC
Published: 2013-03-20T07:00:00+00:00

Chapter Six

“MAMA, CAN YOU FIND ME A SUBMARINE BOAT?” asked Hyacinth.

Isabelle and her children were on a knoll just behind their hotel in Ambleside. Louise, worn out by a long hike in the hills, was taking a nap, as was her son. Her twin daughters were in their room, having a tea party with their dolls. Hyacinth had managed only a quarter hour of the doll’s tea party before she clamored to be taken outside, and Alexander, her devoted shadow, had followed along.

“That might not be easy, my love,” answered Isabelle, stretching out her hand from underneath her parasol. It was much easier to be a black-swathed widow in England than it had been in the sweltering heat of the Subcontinent. The heavy silks didn’t weigh her down as much; the skirts, just as narrow as before, somehow allowed her to move more freely.

Or perhaps the spring in her step had nothing to do with the bracing air of the North Atlantic and everything to do with her reawakened optimism. For too long her goal had been to protect herself against further pain and loss, and it had made her definition of happiness smaller and smaller. But now she felt as if she’d ripped off her blindfold to stand blinking in the sun, marveling at the size of the world and all the colors and shapes she had forgotten.

“Why can’t it be easy?” Hyacinth wanted to know.

Indeed, why couldn’t it be? Happiness had never been about the absence of pain and loss. It was like the sun—one had but to draw aside the curtains and push open the shutters and it would always, always be there.

She laughed at herself inwardly when she realized that Hyacinth was still speaking of the acquisition of a submarine boat. “Well, quite a few inventors, I grant you, are working on submarine boats, but most of them are commissioned by the military. You are not planning to make war on someone, are you, my love?”

“No, I just want to see some fish at the bottom of this mere,” said the girl, her eyes glistening. She scanned the lake, blue in the light of the afternoon. “And see if there is an underwater tunnel that will lead me to the open sea, so I can battle a giant squid.”

Isabelle smiled. She’d been reading Twenty Thousand Leagues Under The Sea to Hyacinth and Alexander at bedtime. The girl’s imagination was in ferment.

“But you might be hurt by the giant squid,” Alexander piped up. “Or you might hurt the giant squid.”

If ever there was a child who didn’t want anyone—or any creature—to get hurt, it was Alexander. Isabelle ruffled his hair. “The ocean is big. Hyacinth could motor about for years without running into a giant squid.”

“Or I could my first week,” said Hyacinth, a dreamy look on her face. “Will you come with me, Mama?”

“I will require you to surface at least once a day so I can have some fresh air. And you must always have a supply of tea and biscuits.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.