Lady Adalyn (The Saga Of Wolfbridge Manor Book 1), Sahara Kelly [the best e book reader .TXT] 📗

Stay well and keep your chin high,

Yrs,

Adalyn Wilkerson

Wolfbridge Manor

Adalyn put down her quill and re-read the short note. She’d wanted to say so many things, but they would have been far too warm and affectionate for a missive such as this. She couldn’t tell him how much she missed his arms around her, or how she’d been thinking of asking him to paint her…nude.

All these things would be completely unacceptable to anyone outside of Wolfbridge Manor. Which made her realise the uniqueness of her surroundings.

And the risks involved.

Eccentricities were expected from Society, tolerated and sometimes even eagerly welcomed. But Adalyn’s presence without a chaperone in a house such as this…it was truly outside the pale. She, and her men, were skating close to a line with their behaviour and the more she lived there, the riskier she knew it would become.

How long could such secret matters remain behind their doors?

The local area had welcomed and accepted her, and probably most knew that Wolfbridge was not the ordinary country seat. But the help and assistance offered by the Manor more than offset any unusual arrangements that took place within its walls. A chance for a good life weighed far more than other people’s living arrangements. At least here in this small piece of the country.

She had no idea if or when the entire place might become a scandal. But at this moment, she refused to worry any more about it, just folding her note and dropping a tiny bead of sealing wax on it.

She had no ring, no family crest to impress into the soft red blob, so she gently pressed her thumb down, feeling the wax cool beneath the pressure.

A brief scrawl of Trick’s name on the fold and she was done.

Jane tucked it into her basket and set off during the early afternoon, promising to return to Wolfbridge if there was anything of import to be passed along.

“Otherwise, Ma’am, I’ll be going straight home. I can tell you about my visit in the morning, if that’s all right with you?”

Mindful of her earlier thoughts, Adalyn knew this would be the best way. She could not display any overt concern or reveal the true depths of her affection for Trick, even to Jane.

So she simply nodded. “It’s a good plan, Jane. Thank you.”

The afternoon stretched out in front of her after Jane had left. She spent some time curled up in one of her favourite chairs, near the window in the Rose room. But her book lay open, unread, and her eyes remained fixed on the world beyond the glass.

She could catch a glimpse of the lane leading to Wolfbridge from her present vantage point, so instead of diving back into her novel, she prayed for the sight of two black hats—Giles and Daniel returning from their visit. What news would they bring with them?

Her thoughts roamed over the current problem, examining it from as many angles as she could create. How did Sir Amery actually die?

That would be revealed at the inquest, she supposed. If it was indeed poison, would anyone be able to determine what kind? Or make any assumptions on how it might have been given to Sir Amery?

She tried to recall the evening itself, with particular attention to what he had said, and done, and above all, eaten.

But nothing new popped into her head. There was no servant lingering at his elbow after he’d been served, nor acting unusually. She had glanced at the two footmen, curious to see how they compared to her own gentlemen at Wolfbridge. There was, of course, no comparison. But would she not have noticed if one had been sweating, perhaps? Or betrayed any kind of nerves?

She’d seen nothing like that at all.

They’d had sherry from the same decanter, soup from the same tureen, and as far as she could recall, most all of the dishes had been shared amongst them.

Except for the beefsteaks. She’d not fancied them at all, even though the rich mushroom gravy had smelled divine.

She blinked at the thought. Mushrooms?

Was it possible? And if so, had Judith eaten any of them? Adalyn sighed. It might have been a mushroom, but the odds were small. This was a futile exercise.

She shifted on her chair, feeling a slight twinge in the muscles of her hips. And that brought back memories of last night. She’d been doing her best not to think about that at all, since it elicited feelings of embarrassment—and desire.

Just as she’d told herself to think of something else, the two men responsible for those feelings walked in.

“They’re back, Adalyn,” said Jeremy.

She glanced out the window and sure enough, there were the two hats she’d hoped to see.

“Oh God,” she sprang from her chair and rushed to Evan and Jeremy. “Will they come straight in?”

“They’ll probably head for the stables first.”

“Of course.” She tugged on their arms. “Let’s be there to meet them when they come in.”

Evan took one of her hands and Jeremy the other as all three walked through Wolfbridge Manor to the kitchen and the door to the stable path.

Adalyn waited patiently, refusing to let go of them, pulling them close to her and wishing nothing more than to be able to tug them around her and wrap herself in the comfort they offered.

“Easy, dear Adalyn,” said Jeremy, brushing his lips to her ear. “Patience.”

“I have none,” she answered honestly. “This is so important.”

“You’ve waited this long,” said Evan, his voice calm. “A few more minutes…that’s all…”

She turned to him as he looked at her, and her eyes fell to his lips. “Kiss me then. For luck. Fill these few minutes for me.”

Evan did, his mouth eager and demanding, his tongue inside and delving deep.

“My turn,” whispered Jeremy as she pulled back for air. He too claimed her mouth, moaning a little as their tongues clashed and duelled.

A sound outside jerked Adalyn back to the moment and she caught a breath as the door opened.

Two men