The Makings of a Lady by Catherine Tinley

Author:Catherine Tinley
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Mills & Boon Historical
Published: 2018-08-01T16:00:00+00:00

* * *

The next day, Olivia made the effort to come down for breakfast at the usual time. She had not slept well, her dreams punctuated by nebulous threats and feelings of fear and panic. Twice she had woken in alarm, with vivid nightmares where she was running from an unseen pursuer. Knowing it was pointless trying to sleep again immediately afterwards, she lit her candle and read for a while, till her eyelids drooped and she felt she had a reasonable chance of dropping off.

Ideally, she knew she should stay in bed and sleep again until she felt rested, but the opportunity to spend some time in company was too important to miss. So she donned a simple white muslin dress with a pink ribbon, grabbed an Indian shawl and went downstairs. She was becoming quite accustomed to wearing her hair down and had plaited it herself this morning.

‘Good morning.’ Jem was tucking into some eggs and ham, but rose when she entered the room. Adam was the only other person there, apart from the footmen, who were busy bringing dishes and serving the food. Adam remained seated—there was no formality among family members. Olivia waved Jem to sit. ‘Do, pray, stay seated. You should not stand on ceremony with me, Jem!’

‘Yes, Jem,’ agreed Adam. ‘Why, we should make you an honorary Fanton!’

He was jesting, but Jem’s smile in reaction was strangely rueful. Olivia looked at him in puzzlement as she took the seat opposite him. He looked fine—looked ravishingly attractive, in fact, although there was a small crease at his brow.

He glanced at her. ‘Did you sleep well?’

About to lie, she saw his raised eyebrow and thought better of it. ‘Not really—though it was better than the previous two nights. I only awoke twice. How about you two? I am aware that, although I was at the centre of the drama, this has been difficult for everyone.’

‘I slept quite well,’ said Adam, wiping his mouth with his napkin, ‘once I got to sleep. I tossed and turned for a while, imagining what I would do to Gunn and his unknown master if I could get a hold of them.’

‘I know what you mean,’ agreed Jem. ‘I have the soldier’s trick of being able to sleep in any situation, but I confess that when I am awake my thoughts often turn in the same direction.’

‘I have decided to stop thinking about Gunn,’ said Olivia. She frowned. ‘I feel that, when I think about him, it makes him more important than he is. For me, it is better to think about the good things—that I escaped and that we are all safely together again.’

Jem’s eyes smiled at her. ‘You are right—that is the most important thing. But I should still like to know who was working with Gunn and where they both are now. Have you remembered anything else?’

‘Unfortunately not. But—there is something I wondered about.’

The footman served her some toast and buttered eggs, just the way she liked them. She thanked him absent-mindedly.

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