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

I washed down on the sink, scrubbing what bits of butter and powdered sugar I could off of me. Once I was satisfied with that, I dried myself with a clean towel then slipped off my dress and apron.

Looking in the mirror, I tried not to gasp at my running makeup and mess of wet waves framing my face. I scrubbed my face with some of the lavender soap then clipped my hair back with a few bobby pins from the counter.

“Are you done in there yet?” Cecily called, banging on the door.

“Just a minute.”

Carefully, as if the dress was delicate tissue paper, I peeled it off the hanger then stepped into the silky material. Unlike the flowy dress I was wearing, this clung to my hips and small bust, making it look like I had more of an hourglass figure than I’d ever had. The skirt swished along the floor, but as soon as I put the booties on, it picked up, bringing me at least a few inches taller.

“Are you ready? Does it look terrible and you’re never going to come out now?”

I let out a breath before opening the door. I hadn’t even seen my reflection in the mirror, but Cecily’s wide eyes and perfect O shape of her mouth said it all.

“Wow. Holy hell, do you look hot.”

“Um, t-thank you,” I stuttered, trying to keep the heat from gathering at my neck and face.

“I mean that in a sincere way and not that I’m hitting on you. Though your date is going to see you in a different light, that’s for sure.”

My heart skipped a beat as I thought of Jacob. The place on my neck where his lips had just been tingled at the memory. Would he have the same reaction seeing me in this dress?

Dammit.

I had to stop thinking about him this way.

What happened in the dish room couldn’t happen again.

No.

We would just get through this week and go our separate ways.

I just had to make sure everything went smoothly for my sister’s wedding. I owed her that much. Then maybe later I could tell her and Mom about the whole dropping out of college thing. Not now with all of this going on.

“So, should I call my maids up here to do your hair and makeup?” Cecily asked, raising an eyebrow.

I shook my head, waving my hands. “Oh, you don’t need to do that.”

She grabbed her phone off the table, tapping a few buttons. “Too late, already did.”

“Really, you don’t have to.”

She smiled. “Of course I do. My dear cousin Jacob is going to crap himself once he sees you like this. And so will Mother and Father. The little sister from North Carolina in Balenciaga looking like the hottest dime in the room.”

My face and neck itched as heat bloomed through my cheeks. “I don’t think that’s necessary. It’s just dinner.”

“Madison. Can’t I just help you out?”

“Why?” I asked, wondering where the courage came from to even ask that.

She sighed, dropping her shoulders. “Look, your sister has done wonders for my brother and for all of Webley. She may still kind of hate me after the way my mother and I treated her when she first came to the manor, but I’m trying my best to make it up to her. And if that includes helping you out and making sure that our little Jacob is also distracted, then why not?”

I gulped. “So, is this about my sister or about…um…Jacob?”

She shrugged. “Why not both?”

I raised an eyebrow. “Do you think he’s planning something?”

She sighed, plopping down on the settee near her bed. “I don’t know, honestly. I don’t think he’s only here to make peace with the family. But I can’t be sure, either. I know that whatever’s going on with the two of you, I hope it’s enough so we can get through this week smoothly.”

“You don’t think…he’d try and ruin the wedding, do you?” All the heat now drained from my face as a chill traveled down to my stomach.

She shrugged. “I don’t know for sure, but as long as you keep him occupied, we shouldn’t have to worry, right?”

I swallowed hard.

So that was where this niceness came from.

She wanted to make sure I kept an eye on the odd duck of a cousin so that he wouldn’t do anything outrageous for the wedding.

I’d be helping my sister and maybe having a little fun with the guy. But could I really do all of that?

Staring at Cecily’s wide, pleading eyes made me think of my sister and mother. When Natalie had first sat down with us and said she was going to take a job in England. That it would help the piles of medical bills we had for Mom. Not only had she gotten the job, paid all her bills, but she’d also paid off my college tuition.

The one I hadn’t followed through with.

I had to make it up to her for everything she’d done for me.

If that meant making sure that the odd duck cousin wasn’t planning anything nefarious…well…then I had no choice.

Chapter Ten

Jacob

After another long, cold shower, I put on my suit, adjusting the tie as I tried to focus on tying a Windsor knot instead of thinking about a certain gorgeous redhead’s lips.

The way Madison had kissed me had been desperate. Frantic. Yet those soft lips and her tongue dancing against mine had turned everything into pure ecstasy. One I wanted to slow down and keep tasting.

Shite. I shouldn’t have let her get close.

I’d come here to get the help my family needed. And I still hadn’t done shite to get it done. Madison was a sweet distraction, but I couldn’t let her get in the way of my plans.

I had to focus.

Tonight’s dinner would be the chance to put things into perspective, especially since the rumor around the kitchen was that Lord Edwin and Lady Helena had made the trip in early to see the long-lost MacWebley nephew.

Of course, most