A Hot Scot for Christmas: A Scottish Treasures Novel: (Scottish Treasures Novel, 4 featuring a holiday borderland romance) by Gina Conkle

Author:Gina Conkle [Conkle, Gina]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Aves Press
Published: 2023-11-28T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Nine

Rory checked the window. The Rutger manse was ahead, a massive square block rising out of the countryside. Bowls of fire lined the driveway. Rory followed the fiery bread crumbs to more bronze bowls lighting a set of stairs.

Guests gathered like a milling herd, waiting for entry.

Rory sat back, unimpressed. An Englishman’s ball was as good as any others. Men high in the instep, women stuffed in silks. The social wrangling and whatnot. For Sabrina’s sake, he’d bite his tongue and get through Lord and Lady Rutger’s ball.

The night was inevitable.

Her costume, however, was not.

Was she wearing the costume he’d suggested?

A scandalized peal of laughter at his idea for her costume put a sparkle in her eye. Sabrina had closeted herself with Polly and a seamstress from Rockville for the better part of the day. When she emerged, the fair lass was a goddess. Lush red hair spilled down her back when she met him on Eden House’s portico.

Polly had followed her, gushing. “You look so pretty, ma’am.”

Except Rory couldn’t see a blasted thing. Sabrina was a walking tent. She’d cloaked herself from chin to hem.

He’d reached her cloak. “A peek.”

Sabrina stayed his hand. “Not yet,” she’d said. “The reveal will come at the Rutgers’ ball.”

Now, here they were, minutes from storming the Rutger’s ball. Sabrina was pink-cheeked, her lips a scarlet ribbon against the night. He suspected Polly smuggled a bottle of brandy above stairs for her mistress. Sabrina was uncharacteristically giddy. The pressure, possibly. Tonight, they would be on display. Their faux engagement tested.

He stretched a leg, his own costume covered. Sabrina hadn’t seen his either. It hardly balanced the scales of fairness, though.

A giggling Sabrina quit her vigil at the window. “I can’t believe I’m wearing this costume.”

He sat back, arms folded. “You’re still making me wait?”

A thick curl flopped against her powdered cheek. “Yes.”

“I’ll try not to be surprised.”

Her giddy smile faltered.

“Do you think we’re ready? I’m worried. I really am.”

Pebble-sized drops of gold glittered at her earlobes. She would be a topic of conversation. Her beauty alone was breath-taking. The typically confident Englishwoman was a picture of uncertainty. He set a reassuring hand on her knee and squeezed.

“You need this night, lass, but not for the benefit of others. Though I hate to admit it, there is one thing Crawford and I can agree on—you do work too much.”

She fussed with a fold on her cloak. “Him. I hope he changed his mind about attending the ball.”

“He’ll be there.”

The captain was their Achilles Heel. His shared history with Rory and his intentions for Sabrina made the officer a bothersome threat.

When Sabrina wasn’t closeted with Polly and the seamstress, she spent time with Rory in her cellar. They worked together on her latest batch of ale spiced with juniper berries. He asked about her brothers (William, George, Charles, and Bernard) and her favorite color (light blue, the same color on most of the walls in her house). Did she ever have pets? No. An animal

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