By Any Means by Cindy Nord

Author:Cindy Nord [Nord, Cindy]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: DCT Associates
Published: 2017-09-17T18:00:00+00:00

Chapter Seventeen

The nuns!

Apprehension sliced through Brennen as he settled his gaze on the Reverend Mother. Had the blessed sister shown up to snatch Annabelle away? Perhaps they’d discerned her nursing skills were no longer required. His mind scrambled for reasons why she should stay. The teaching sessions. His desire for her to help with the household.

He’d share all that….if need be.

Brennen swallowed. Hell’s bells, to keep Annabelle in his life ‘til he sold this godawful heap, he’d even toss in more cash to bolster the good sisters’ cause. The pressure below his belt perplexing, he inhaled and slumped against the column.

His gut tightened further when the abbess halted the horse at the bottom of the steps. She stared at him before shifting her attention to Annabelle, who abruptly shoved aside her wineglass.

“Bonjour, Reverend Mother,” Annabelle said, clasping her hands together. “And Sister Clare. How nice to see you both again.”

“Bonjour,” the older nun replied.

Teeth flashed white as the chubby, friendlier nun grinned. “We’re returning from mass in Owensborough and decided to stop by.”

The Reverend Mother looped the reins around the brake of the single-seat buggy, then rested her hands in her lap. “I do hope we’re not interrupting anything.”

The moment strained thin as Brennen cast a quick glance toward Annabelle.

“Absolutely not,” she snapped, her chest rising and falling as if she’d run behind the wagon all the way from town. If guilt were a color, the red staining her cheeks spoke volumes. “I-I was going to send you over an update this evening.”

He flexed his jaw as concerns over losing Annabelle eased. If only the need slamming in his gut at nearly kissing the minx again would fade.

Mother Superior arched a brow. “An update, my child?”

“Ruby’s health has vastly improved…” Annabelle shot him a hesitant smile before focusing back on the abbess. “S-So Monsieur Benedict has hired me to teach her and Jubal how to read, an unexpected but charitable act, and one I assured him would be favorable to God.” She swept her hand over the supplies strewn across the table as proof. “We were just discussing today’s lesson.”

“I see.” The elder’s savvy eyes narrowed. “And with wine, too. I’m sure that makes the lessons of the day more enlightening. Sherry? Or a fine, vintage port?”

Annabelle’s mouth gaped open. “P-Port.”

“Delightful.” The abbess chuckled, then slanted her eyes to drill into his.

Among her many nunnish talents, could this sinister-sharp sister of the cloth read minds, too? He swallowed, then said, “Ma’am.”

“Monsieur,” she replied, her kinked smile indecipherable. “The framework of our church nears completion. Since I’m no longer receiving daily reports, I thought I’d check in on your progress firsthand.”

If he’d been caught with his hand up Annabelle’s skirts, he wouldn’t have felt any less guilty. That sensation, coupled with the gut-wrenching need for the minx still burning his insides, sent Brennen’s mouth into a downward tilt. It wasn’t enough that he couldn’t control his own damned desires for her…No! The fact this black-shrouded Trojan horse who’d placed Annabelle in his company to begin with now purred aloud at his discomfort blistered straight to his soul.

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