A Lady's Secret by Tracey Devlyn

Author:Tracey Devlyn [Devlyn, Tracey]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: TDC Creations

Fifteen

Mac O’Donnell glanced at his timepiece for the hundredth time. No longer did it rest in his fob pocket. Now it laid dead center on his desk.

Where was she?

Although no specific time had been set, he had expected Amelia—Mrs. Cartwright—a quarter hour ago.

Yesterday, she had suggested they begin compiling their bits and pieces of intelligence on Abbingale’s staff and try to make some sense of it all. He had been looking forward to this moment ever since.

Where was she?

Like his timepiece, Amelia was unfailingly punctual.

Every morning at eight, he would hear the soft pad of her arrival and the muffled squeak of her chair.

Every. Morning.

Except this one.

Eight-twenty.

Sweat beaded along his hairline. He stared at the bookshelf separating their two rooms, as if he could see the surprise he’d placed on a table near her desk a half hour ago. Words chanted in his head.

Fool, blockhead, simpleton, dolt, idiot.

They all vied for position, each one elbowing its way to the top of the list.

“Enough!” He pushed out of his chair and thundered into her work area, intent on removing the ridiculous gift. As he neared the table, a sharp intake of breath sounded behind him. He squeezed his eyes closed and cursed beneath his breath.

Ice coated his skin, freezing the sweat trickling from his temples and locking his muscles. Then a searing wave of panicked heat swept up his neck and into his cheeks.

As he opened his eyes and turned toward the sound, time slowed to an unbearable half beat. Framed in the doorway stood Amelia Cartwright, looking unbearably pretty in a serviceable blue morning dress. Her surprised gaze jumped from him to the object on the tall table near her desk to him again.

“What are you doing, Mr. O’Donnell?”

“Correcting a momentary slip into lunacy.” He strode to the table, intending to put this humiliating situation behind him. Quickly.

“Wait. What is this?” She skidded to a stop in front of him, her hand extended in a staying gesture. “May I take a look?”

A foot smaller than him and about half his weight, she had no chance of preventing him from removing the evidence of his weakness. But something inside him wanted to see her reaction when she uncovered his surprise, while another part of him would rather eat a sack full of splinters.

“Perhaps it would be best if you don’t.”

“After all the trouble you’ve gone through to surprise me? I think not.”

She turned around, and Mac sensed her excitement as she stared at the unmistakable outline beneath the crimson coverlet. Almost lovingly, she ran her hand over the thick material before splaying her fingers wide to learn the contours beneath.

“I know what this is,” she said in an awed whisper.

“You’re so certain?” He stepped closer.

She nodded. “Why would you do this?”

Another step. “Because everyone needs beauty in their life.” His throat closing, Mac struggled to get the words out. “Some more than others.”

The crimson material bunched beneath the force of her grip. She began pulling. Faster and faster, until the coverlet slipped free.

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.