A Summer on Bellevue Avenue by Dudley Lorri

Author:Dudley, Lorri
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Wild Heart Books
Published: 2024-01-09T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 9

Amanda rode to Bailey’s beach with Olivia and their lady’s maids. The afternoon sun shone bright off the water as she and Olivia exited the bathing houses and picked a spot in the sand near the pavilion. Katie and Olivia’s maid spread an oversized blanket and some pillows for them to recline upon.

Ocean breezes wafted cigar smoke from a group of masculine solidarity under the pavilion’s arches. The men’s occasional bursts of laughter split the air. Was Wesley among them?

Amanda fiddled with the sailor’s collar on her bathing costume.

A passing watchman nodded to Olivia. “Good day, Mrs. Van Hassel. Who might this be?” He paused and eyed Amanda as if questioning her Sprouting Rock membership to Bailey’s beach.

“This is Miss Amanda Klein. She hasn’t summered in Newport in quite some time. You remember her father, William Klein from Breakwater Court?”

“Indeed.” He tipped his hat and moved on. “Enjoy the beautiful day.”

Several men exited the pavilion with a ball and circled into two groups. Wesley was indeed among them. His gaze swept the beach, but the only indication he’d spotted her was a flash of a crooked smile. Even still, Amanda’s cheeks heated as if sunburned, and she adjusted the brim of her hat.

“I still can’t believe Mr. Jansen had the nerve to follow you to Newport after what he did to that woman.” Olivia lowered onto the blanket, careful not to upset the horizontal ruffles of her daring white wool serge bathing suit. “He’s a perfect vulture to prey upon Miss Blunt, then traipse about Newport while she lies in a hospital bed, perhaps dying from her injuries.”

“We don’t know the full story.” A twinge niggled Amanda’s heart. Surely, Wesley wouldn’t have left New York before confirming the woman was fine?

“And to show up at the same party as you last night. What a disaster that could have been.” Olivia crossed her stockinged ankles. “It was bad enough you received a doctored invitation. Who would have known you planned to attend the Hagen party?”

Wesley’s words rang in her mind. Come to the Hagen party, but don’t dance with me right away.

“He certainly didn’t waste time claiming you for a dance. That blooming bounder thinks he can have his tea with a scone on the side. You should have snubbed him. He’s hoping if you accept him, the scandal will die down, but getting away with it once will only make him a likely candidate to try again.”

Had Wesley danced with her to get people to hold their tongues? “Why would he have tampered with the invitation, then?”

“Don’t be a simpleton.” Olivia bumped Amanda’s shoulder with her own. “To put people’s focus on you and not his actions, of course.”

The look of surprise on Wesley’s face at the Hagen party didn’t make Olivia’s claim seem likely, but had it all been an act? Had he feigned his declaration of love in the yard? It initially seemed as though he’d come to her rescue at the party, but had she mistaken his intentions?

I promise to prove myself, Wesley had said.

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