An Inconvenient Beauty by Kristi Ann Hunter

Author:Kristi Ann Hunter
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Tags: Historical Fiction;FIC042030;FIC042040;FIC027070
ISBN: 9781493411887
Publisher: Baker Publishing Group
Published: 2017-07-01T04:00:00+00:00

He wasn’t so far into his cups that he didn’t notice the shock riding the approaching grooms’ faces like a jockey at Ascot. Their wide eyes jumped from Griffith’s head to his feet and back again. They barely glanced at Isabella, which was good. He would have had to dismiss them if they’d said anything untoward about her.

He stumbled to a halt and blinked. What a strange thing to think. Had he ever threatened his servants with dismissal before, even in his mind?

“Your Grace?” The head groom shifted on his feet. “May we be of assistance?”

“Yes,” Griffith said, hopefully with some authority. “No one is to tell my mother.”

The grooms looked at each other, and a muffled giggle came from Griffith’s left.

“Of course, Your Grace.” The groom reached for the horse’s bridle. “Should we fetch a physician?”

Griffith frowned down at his arm. He’d been injured, but Isabella had patched him up. Did he really need to call the physician and risk having his mother learn of the incident?

“It wouldn’t hurt,” Isabella said softly.

With a sigh, Griffith nodded. The presence of a doctor increased the chances of the news of his injury getting out, but if Isabella would feel better having her ministrations checked by a doctor, then Griffith would have him summoned. “Bring him in the back and up the servant stairs. Don’t tell anyone you don’t have to tell. Including my mother.”

A small smile tilted the head groom’s lips. “Of course, Your Grace.”

Griffith nodded and allowed the men to help him the rest of the way to the house. He slipped in the back entrance and up the stairs, Isabella at his side. After they’d climbed the stairs to the first floor, he knew they had to part ways, as her bedchamber and his were on opposite sides of the house. He was surprised at his reluctance to do so. Even as he felt the effects of the alcohol begin to wane from his system, he knew that he would not allow himself to be this intimate with Isabella ever again. And he already mourned the loss.

“I should go.” Isabella backed away from him, moving toward the guest chambers. “Take care of your arm.”

Griffith nodded, reaching his good arm out to the wall to brace himself as the movement made the corridor spin.

He stumbled into his room and dropped into a chair by the fireplace to await the physician. Moments later his door opened, admitting his valet and a servant carrying a steaming tea tray. The earthy scent of willow bark tea made his mouth dry. He’d never cared for it, but if he was going to get through this week without letting anyone learn of his injury, he was going to have to drink buckets of the stuff.

He was halfway through the pot when the physician came in. His valet had managed to remove all of the torn and dirty clothing, and Griffith had managed not to say too many ridiculous things. Thankfully, he’d hired servants with discretion he could count on.

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