The Wild Child Bride Trilogy 01 by Mary Jo Putney

Author:Mary Jo Putney
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Published: 2011-11-25T23:54:03+00:00

Chapter 21

Mrs. Marks stepped forward, her brows arched with polite challenge. “Good evening, sir. Do we have the pleasure of your acquaintance?”

Why the devil did everyone drop into Warfield unannounced? Thanking heaven for his father’s notoriously bad eyesight, Dominic took a firm hold of Kyle’s mannerisms, then drawled, “My apologies, Mrs. Marks, I didn’t realize that you and my father were unacquainted. Mrs. Marks, Mrs. Rector, allow me to present the Earl of Wrexham and my sister, Lady Lucia Renbourne.” Adjusting swiftly, Mrs. Marks said, “What a pleasant surprise. Let me ring the housekeeper to prepare rooms for you.” A delicate edge showed in her voice as she tugged the bell- pull. “What a pity we couldn’t have them ready.”

Wrexham recognized her irritation but merely shrugged. “We were on our way north, and I decided I wanted to see how Maxwell was doing with his courting.” His gaze swung to Meriel. “A pretty little thing.

Doesn’t look mad.”

Meriel had drifted back to one wall, her gaze blank. Grateful for once that she didn’t talk because he was afraid of what she might say, Dominic said hastily, “You must be tired from your journey. Would you like a glass of sherry?”

“I wouldn’t say no to some brandy.”

Dominic moved toward the drinks cabinet, hoping the ladies wouldn’t mind that he was acting as host.

“Lucia?”

“My usual.” Lucia’s apologetic gaze went to her hostesses with a sweet earnestness that could touch the hardest heart. “Mrs. Marks, Mrs. Rector, I’m so sorry that we’ve come at an awkward time.” Mrs. Marks’s expression softened. “It’s no trouble, my dear. I’ll simply have dinner set back an hour.”

“No, no. We’ll just finish our drinks, then take trays in our rooms.” Wrexham covered a yawn. “No wish to put you out more than we already have. We’ll stay through tomorrow and be off the next morning.”

Dominic noted wryly that his father didn’t consult Lucia about her dining preferences, or the ladies about whether they minded having uninvited guests for two nights. The charitable interpretation was that Wrexham thought of the families as already joined in marriage, but it was probably more accurate to say that it simply never occurred to him that anyone might object to his wishes.

As he poured the brandy, Dominic wondered what his sister’s usual drink might be; she’d still been in the schoolroom when he’d left Dornleigh. Once she’d been fond of lemonade, but he didn’t see any, nor any other beverage that he remembered her enjoying. Hoping for the best, he poured a sherry and crossed the room with the drinks.

Engaged in polite conversation with Mrs. Marks, his father accepted the brandy without looking up, but Lucia frowned when he gave her the other glass. “Sherry, Kyle?” Then she raised her gaze. Slowly her eyes rounded, and the glass almost dropped from her hand. There was nothing wrong with Lucia’s vision, and there wasn’t a prayer that Dominic could fool her. She’d have recognized him immediately if she hadn’t been expecting to see Kyle.

Turning

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.