The Scoundrel and the Socialite: A Steamy Regency Historical Romance (The Somerton Scandals Book 2) by Ava Devlin

Author:Ava Devlin [Devlin, Ava]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2019-11-19T18:00:00+00:00

15

It was well past midday when Gloriana was finally pulled from her bed.

If it had been up to her, she would have stayed wrapped in her sheets, reliving the hours from the night before over and over until the end of time. Evidently, her excuses of feeling unwell only gave her reprieve from the festivities until luncheon.

At the very least, she was able to feel a smug sense of victory that Nero had chosen her bed tonight rather than attending Heloise. He was curled at her feet, his pale stomach facing the air, as his little paws flicked in time with whatever he was dreaming about so late in the day.

She thought that seemed like a rather fine way to spend a dreary afternoon, especially with clouds hanging misty and low to the grass outside in the ever-darkening chill of the season. Nell, however, had other ideas.

She'd burst into the room without knocking, which Gloriana supposed was at least well timed, as she had emerged from her most recent fantasy regarding Alex Somers with his shirt off. She was carrying a tray and bustled about as though she hadn't just committed the most grievous intrusion on a woman who was—or rather claimed to be—feeling ill.

"Go away," she'd moaned, pulling the pillow down over her face. "I'm dying."

"Well, then we'd best make proper use of the time you've got left," Nell chirped, clapping the tray onto the bedside table and setting about preparing two cups of tea. "I'm bored silly. I can't believe Peter went on that blasted grouse hunt. Does anyone truly enjoy eating grouse, Gloriana? Much less huddling down in heavy tweeds in cold rain and murdering them in a line from the hedgerows? I tell you, it's repugnant."

Gloriana opened her pillow-shield a crack, squinting at her friend as she finished her rant. "Why don't you go bother Heloise, since you love her so much?" she asked, well aware of how childish she sounded.

"Because," Nell said, plopping herself on the corner of Glory's bed, bold as you please. She used her knee to push Gloriana's stubborn form farther back on the mattress. "She is in the village today with that handsome doctor, attending to her clinic. Sit up! The tea is just as you like it."

"Oh, very well." She pouted, shoving herself up and tossing the pillow away.

This had the effect of deeply offending Nero, who had managed to snooze comfortably through Nell's intrusion, but now yowled and leapt from the bed as though he'd been burnt.

Of course, the cat was out of the bag now, so to speak. He had only chosen to lounge away his day in here with Glory because Heloise was otherwise occupied. The little traitor. She did not feel badly for rousing him!

Nell was staring at her, paused with her cup of tea halfway to her lips.

"What?" Glory snapped, leaning over to retrieve her own cup of tea from the tray. A tiny sip told her that it was indeed just as she liked it.

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