Starlight Night: An Historical Romance Novella (The St. Clairs Book 6) by Alexa Aston

Starlight Night: An Historical Romance Novella (The St. Clairs Book 6) by Alexa Aston

Author:Alexa Aston [Aston, Alexa]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Fiction, romance, Historical, anthology
Publisher: Dragonblade Publishing, Inc.
Published: 2020-07-17T16:00:00+00:00


Chapter Four

Lucy didn’t know why she’d returned to the book place today. Maybe it was because of the man she’d talked to last night. He’d been nice and even told her he wanted to give her a book. She’d never held a book before, much less owned one. She didn’t even know how to read. But she’d spent a long time looking at the books in the store’s windows. They had beautiful covers. Some of the books’ pages were open and she could see the pictures inside. Of animals and trees and houses. Green grass and a shining sun. Lucy wished she could climb into the pages of one of those books and then have someone close it. She’d belong inside the book then and would never have to leave.

At first, she’d thought the man wanted something from her. Something bad, like what Jem wouldn’t tell her about. That’s why she ran from him. The more she thought about it, though, she thought maybe she’d misunderstood. Maybe there were nice people in the world and he really did want to give her a book. That’s why she’d returned today. Hoping she might see him and that he would remember who she was and give her a book. He said his wife owned the store. Lucy didn’t know women could own anything. She was curious as to what his wife looked like and if she was as nice as the man. Luke. That was his name.

When she arrived, there had been so many people waiting in a line outside. It ran down the entire block and around the corner. Children everywhere, all dressed in fancy clothes. Their mamas and servants looked after them, also dressed up so nice and pretty. Lucy felt ashamed, knowing her cloak had gotten dirty and her clothes rumpled. She’d slept in an alley last night, her back pressed against the bricks, rats scurrying nearby. The ground was wet, thanks to the melted snow, and she’d sat on her cloak in order to keep her clothes dry. That had gotten it muddy and wet, though, and the slush had seeped through to her dress. Her stockings also had dirt running along the back of them now. She must have stretched her legs out while she slept.

Knowing she didn’t belong with this crowd, she crossed the street and watched. Sure enough, she saw the man climb from a fancy carriage. He helped a beautiful lady from the vehicle and Lucy wondered if she might be his wife. They went inside the book place before everyone else did. She waited and watched as the store finally opened and all those who waited eagerly crowded inside. With the sidewalk in front of the store now empty, she felt brave enough to cross the street and peered inside. She could see all the children sitting in front of a chair. The adults stood talking.

Then a carriage pulled up, the biggest Lucy had ever seen, with a colorful crest on its side. A tall man jumped out and helped a whole bunch of children down.



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