The Impostor's Kiss by Tanya Anne Crosby

Author:Tanya Anne Crosby [Crosby, Tanya Anne]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Tags: Fiction, General, Romance, Historical, (¯`'•.¸//(*_*)\\¸.•'´¯)
ISBN: 9781459243354
Publisher: Harlequin
Published: 2003-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Eleven

Dismissing his men, Merrick hurried to the cottage before Chloe could arrive. He’d purposely chosen her old cottage so he could surround her with things familiar. Now he hid the necklace in a vase, intending to dispose of it later. The mask he hid outside in the bushes. He’d gleaned enough information from Rusty to know that Ian had a jeweler in Edinburgh who bought stolen gems. It should be a simple enough task to find the man—though he felt a pang of guilt after what Chloe had revealed to him.

Curious about the necklace, he retrieved the vase from the mantel upon which he’d placed it and lifted the necklace from within.

Had his father truly given the necklace to his mother? Had she kept it all this time? If she loathed him so much, wouldn’t she have rid herself of the memory entirely—sold it for what money she could get from it—particularly considering the condition of the manor? It was in deplorable shape.

It was obvious the necklace meant something to Fiona, or she wouldn’t have presented it to Chloe to wear tonight. Her affection for Chloe was more than apparent.

Did his mother love his father still?

Merrick studied the necklace. It seemed familiar to him somehow. Distinct as it was, there could not be another like it, he was certain. And then it occurred to him where he’d seen it and the significance of its presence here was unmistakable. There was only one woman Merrick had ever seen his father publicly acknowledge his affection for—his own mother. In one of the paintings that graced the portrait gallery in Meridian, this necklace adorned his grandmother’s neck.

His father had truly loved Fiona. If the sheer number of his letters wasn’t proof enough, this necklace surely was. Could the two love each other still? After all these years? If so, how could his father have completely abandoned them? Unless he hadn’t the first clue what their circumstances were. His father’s pride was such that if he felt they were well taken care of, he wouldn’t extend himself. Which led Merrick to believe that whomever handled the books for Glen Abbey was someone his father trusted completely.

Edward.

Merrick couldn’t comprehend why Glen Abbey Manor had no funds available. Even if their rents and investments were scarce, his father was not a cruel man. Whether he loved Fiona or not, he would have taken responsibility for his child. But it was clear to Merrick that his father loved her desperately still. Had he strangled Glen Abbey’s finances to force Fiona to come crawling back to him? It was not his style, though it was certainly a possibility. Men—and women—did strange things in the name of love. And it had become obvious that there was much he didn’t know about his father.

At the moment he scarce knew himself, if the truth be known.

He wondered, instead of simply giving Fiona the letter he’d stolen from his father, what if he could bring the two of them face-to-face?

One thing was certain, Merrick wasn’t his father.

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