Secrets of Rosenli Manor: A gripping yet warm Victorian saga of old family mysteries (Mysteries of the Modern Ladies' Society Book 1) by Heidi Eljarbo

Author:Heidi Eljarbo [Eljarbo, Heidi]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2022-03-28T16:00:00+00:00

Lilly accompanied Gertrude upstairs and inspected each of the sleeping chambers. She eventually chose a room with a lovely four-poster bed, a white-painted fireplace, and a seat with soft cushions under one of the two windows facing the garden. She could easily imagine sitting there, taking in the view of the village and the fiord or reading one of the books from the library.

The house and the lovely surroundings were already wedged deep in her heart. But during the tour, dark thoughts had crept in. What if she would not be allowed to stay? And what if someone showed up, claiming Lilly an imposter who had tricked her way through the front door of Rosenli?

As she and Gertrude descended the stairs, John stood waiting.

“You have a visitor in the parlor.”

She shrugged and smiled. “A guest already? Who is it?”

“Mr. Olden.”

Lilly smoothed her skirt and made sure her hair was in place before she followed John to the parlor. Mr. Olden sat comfortably in an upholstered chair with his hat and a handkerchief in his lap. As Lilly entered, he stood and gave a quick bow.

“Please sit,” Lilly said and seated herself on the sofa. “What brings you here today?”

Mr. Olden eased back into the chair. “I’ll come directly to the matter at hand,” he said, placing his hat on the side table. “Agatha Strand was a lovely woman but most persistent about maintaining control of our organization with me as the managing director.”

Lilly waited for him to get through coughing, then she smiled sweetly. “And at present, I’m here in her stead.”

“Well, you are young, also a woman.”

“I am.” Where was he going with this? Surely, he was not trying to congratulate her on her age or pay tribute to her female qualities.

Mr. Olden cleared his throat, and using the same impersonal tone of voice as before, he went on. “And since you don’t have any experience and won’t be running the company, you don’t need to know all the details.”

“Who says I’m not running the company?”

“You are just a girl.” His voice had more of a sarcastic ring to it now.

Patience. This had to be a trial to see if she could keep her promise to be patient. Her first visitor in the elegant parlor of Rosenli, and her company director was being rude and degrading.

Mr. Olden squeezed his lips tightly together then continued. “Everyone knows women’s brains are not equipped to deal with thoughts of politics and business. Their place is in the home, bearing children, doing household chores like cleaning, cooking, and sewing. I’m sure you’re familiar with such tasks and routines.”

“First of all, I’m not a young girl. I—”

“Stop there.” His stare brought a chill to the room, his words telling her he cared nothing about her opinion. He was not even polite enough to let her finish.

“You may have received the wrong impression when you visited my office the other day,” he said. “Mr. Engstrom, Jr. certainly let you believe the company was moving into the future with great force, that it was prosperous with great hopes for the coming years.

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