Grace (The Daughters of Allamont Hall Book 5) by Mary Kingswood

Author:Mary Kingswood [Kingswood, Mary]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Sutors Publishing
Published: 2017-01-25T00:00:00+00:00

14: A Family Dinner

Grace froze as soon as his mouth moved onto hers. She had never been kissed before, and the idea rather revolted her, although a lot of people seemed to like it. She had once come upon Connie and the Marquess shortly before their wedding, sitting very close on a chaise longue, arms around each other’s waists, faces pressed together, so absorbed that they were quite unaware of their interested audience. They had seemed to enjoy their kisses very much. But perhaps one had to be in love for that to work, for Grace was not at all sure that she liked George Graham pressing down on her with warm, firm lips. Yet somehow there was an intimacy to it that thrilled her, and after the first shock she felt a ripple of pleasure in the experience. She was rather sorry when he stopped.

It would never do to admit to such a thing, however, so as soon as he pulled away, she thumped him on the shoulder. “What did you do that for? Get off me!”

“I thought you might like it,” he said in hurt tones, rolling away from her. “I liked it, anyway. You are not going to get all hoity-toity with me, are you, Grace? It was just a bit of fun.”

“It was not at all fun,” she said, scrambling to her feet. “Goodness, look at the state of this gown! Annie will be so cross with me again.”

“Your maid? It is hardly her place to be cross with you,” he said, jumping up and brushing himself down.

“Oh, it is just a game we play. She pretends to be cross, and I tell her she is lucky to have work to keep her busy. Just teasing.”

“Even so, that is very familiar for a servant.”

Grace huffed a breath. “I suppose you are right. I wish…”

“What do you wish?” he said more gently.

“Oh, only that my sisters had not all gone off and got married. We were all so close, once, but now… four of them are scattered to the winds, and Hope can be so dismal sometimes, and Lavinia is not really a friend, even though I pretend she is sometimes. Oh Lord, is that the dressing bell? We shall have to run.”

~~~~~

After the multitude of unsettling events that day, Grace was thankful that the house had emptied, and she did not have to face an evening of crowded, noisy rooms and insipid conversation with people she did not especially like. A ball, with a partner for every dance, was her preferred mode of entertainment, and although there was generally some impromptu dancing at Lady Graham’s card parties, last night Grace had been chained to the card table.

The drawing room felt almost empty when she entered it. Apart from Sir Matthew and Lady Graham, George and Alice, fourteen-year-old Joan was also present. Mr Bertram Graham was staying on for a week or more; he was chatting quietly to Miss Bellows beside the fire. On the other side

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