The Mistletoe Test by Diane Farr

Author:Diane Farr
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: romance, holiday, humor, christmas, historical, sweet, regency, regency romance, clean, christmas romance
Publisher: Diane Farr

Chapter Nine

The warmth of the house smote their cold faces with welcome relief from the winter air as Oliver shepherded his noisy, happy party back into the hall. Everyone divested themselves of their wet outergarments, discarding them, at his instruction, onto the marble-topped tables that lined the walls, where his staff stood ready to remove them for drying and pressing. He then ushered everyone into his library, remarking, “I thought this was a large room until this moment! Allow me, Miss Steele—if you will step this way, Mr. Beaufort—Annie, I think your mama has room for you—“ And he busied himself for a minute or two finding places for everyone to sit, which became possible only when most of the young boys willingly sat on the floor.

It was exactly the kind of party he liked best: crowded, cozy, cheerful and informal. A hum of conversation swelled. The boys played jack-stones on his hearth rug. Several people gathered by the pianoforte and sang Christmas carols to Miss Helena Pennington’s accompaniment. A wood fire crackled on the hearth. Little Annie fell asleep on her mother’s lap. It was very like a family party, he thought happily—the sort of family party he had rarely experienced in his own family circle, which was small and usually a little too quiet for his taste. Now that he had his own home, he could fill it with congenial souls as often as he liked. The contemplation of this glad prospect made his eyes sparkle with anticipatory delight.

A word to his newly-hired housekeeper, and refreshments were served: tea and hot cider, sherry and mulled wine, biscuits, cheese—everything passed round on little plates so that his guests need not crowd round a table. He was pleased. It was all just as he had hoped it would be, and his friends were visibly enjoying themselves. Even his shy brother Charles had found people to talk to, and was playing backgammon in a corner of the room.

His eyes finally lit on Almeria, who was sitting beside her mother and appearing more than usually subdued. With a pang, he recalled that he owed her an apology. He set down his teacup and went to her.

After greeting Mrs. Bliss he bowed over Almeria’s hand, patting it gently. “I am glad to see you have recovered from our little spill. You left so quickly that I had no chance to beg your pardon.” He turned, smiling, to include her mother in the conversation. “Did Almeria tell you? We were the first down the hill, but landed unluckily in a snowbank. My fault, I fear.”

Mrs. Bliss returned his smile, but faintly. “Yes,” she replied. “It is a miracle you both escaped uninjured. Really, Oliver, I would not have entrusted my daughter to your care, had I believed you capable of such poor judgment.”

His smile faded. Almeria pulled her hand from his and folded her hands in her lap. Her gaze was fixed steadily on a point just over his left shoulder. Was she too

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.