Heirly Ever After, Vernon, Magan [best thriller novels to read .txt] 📗

charge while, next to her, Madison faded in the background.

But I didn’t want Madison to do that. I wanted her to stand up and say I was with her.

As soon as I caught the flush in her cheeks, I realized she was having trouble explaining things. So I stepped forward again. “I’m Jacob, Madison’s date. You must be her lovely sister,” I said, taking her hand in mine before placing a small kiss on her knuckles.

I tried to keep from squeezing her fingers involuntarily as I spotted the large diamond sparkling from there. The family heirloom I’d only seen in photos sparkled grander than anything I’d ever laid eyes on. It could have been a museum piece. I never thought I’d see the large stone in person.

I needed to let go of her grip, but I couldn’t stop staring.

Luckily, we were interrupted.

We both spun around as a booming voice sounded from behind her.

A man who I’d never seen, except from a few photos online, walked down the cement steps with a middle-aged woman on his arm.

My cousin, Lord Gavin Webley, looked like nobility, from the top of his meticulously styled dark blond hair down to his tailored suit and impeccably shined shoes. His face was frozen with his mouth in a thin line, not even a smile. As if he only gave those out to people who he thought deserved it. And not many did.

We were probably close to the same height, but he seemed to stand taller while the woman next to him shrunk in her flowy purple dress. Definitely not his mother. From what little I knew of Lady Helena, she wasn’t one to stand down.

“Gavin,” Natalie cooed as the two approached us. “You can finally meet my sister, Madison. And this is her friend, Jacob,” she said, her words trailing as she glanced at me out of the corner of her eye.

Gavin’s eyes slightly narrowed as he looked at me before turning to Madison. He might have been giving her a cordial hug, but I swore his heated stare was shooting daggers at me.

Once he let go of Madison, he put a hand out to me. “Lord Gavin.”

I gripped his outstretched palm firmly.

My official title was Laird Lachlan Jacob MacWebley the Third. But I wasn’t going to say that and have anything spark with him just yet.

I also wasn’t the kind of pompous arse who announced my title to strangers.

“Jacob. It’s good to meet you. Thank you for having us in your lovely home.”

I let go of his hand then swooped an arm around Madison’s shoulder. But her body stiffened in response.

My stomach tightened.

It’d felt natural to do that. Like something a friend would do. And with her everything came easy. But what if she wasn’t feeling the same?

Blast, I had to get my head in the game and stop thinking like a teenager.

Gavin might have still been shooting daggers with his gaze, but the woman next to him softened. Her beaming smile lit up her whole face as she stepped forward, straightening her short-cropped reddish gray hair.

“Thank you for coming, Jacob. What a lovely surprise. I’m Lisa, Natalie and Madison’s mother.” I don’t know how I hadn’t seen the similarities before. The same brown eyes full of wonder, even if there were crow’s feet at the side instead of Madison’s tiny trail of freckles.

Madison’s shoulders tensed again, so I squeezed her arm lightly before letting go and stepping forward toward the woman.

I clasped both of Lisa’s tiny hands in mine as I smiled down at her. “Lisa. It’s so wonderful to finally meet you.”

A blush tinged her cheeks. “You too, Mr. Jacob.”

She had a sharper southern twang than her daughters, and it was even stronger when she spoke to Madison. “Honey, not that it isn’t wonderful you brought this gentleman, but we may need to talk later about a certain missing puzzle piece.”

I smiled, squeezing the old woman’s hand and trying to break the tension. “Ah, the ex-boyfriend.”

Lisa slightly raised an eyebrow.

I let go of her hand, taking a step back and wrapping my arm around Madison’s waist. This time instead of stifling, she melted against me. My body leaned into hers as if this was a normal thing for us. As if we really had known each other for more than a day.

“I’ve only heard about this Chris, but he’s no longer in the picture,” I said. “And when Madison mentioned she was coming over to my side of the pond for her sister’s wedding and didn’t have a date, well, I figured I’d help her out.”

Lisa’s eyes softened as she smiled at her daughter. “I’m sure you will all have a lovely story to share with us later.”

Natalie clapped her hands. “Yes, later. Let me show y’all to your room first. One room is okay, right, since you’re friends and all?” She raised a skeptical eyebrow, her gaze slightly narrowing.

“One room is fine. Wouldn’t want to put anyone out,” I said, making sure to add the extra charm as I smiled. Of course the manor had enough rooms, but I wasn’t going to let on that I knew exactly how big it was or my connection.

“Grand,” Gavin replied as a slew of men and women in gray uniforms came out to the car, shuffling our luggage out and then in through the large double doors.

From the driveway, I could only get a glimpse of the inside of the manor, and it matched what I’d seen in a few old photos. I recognized the marble floors, golden staircase, and the crystal chandelier, handmade in Waterford.

Great-Grandad would have loved seeing all of this. He probably had stories passed down from his grand-dad about the MacWebleys picking out these exact pieces as they built the manor. One their ancestors wouldn’t get to see in person, until now.

“Shall we?” Natalie asked, and she might have been smiling, but I saw the skepticism in her eyes. The same exact look her fiancé, my estranged cousin Gavin, had.

As we followed