Silk And Seduction Bundle 2. Louise Allen

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СКАЧАТЬ him for not only having put her in such a state, but also for remaining completely unmoved as he did so.

      A veritable army of staff, in smart black-and-gold livery, were all lined up in the hall to greet them.

      She was momentarily grateful that Monty had lifted her out of the carriage and made sure she would pass muster. She would not have liked to run the gauntlet of all those curious eyes with a trailing hem or her bonnet askew.

      But that brief spasm of gratitude soon passed. For rather than making any attempt to lighten the atmosphere, he stalked along at her side, his hands clasped behind his back, his face unsmiling as the housekeeper went through the roll call of names.

      He looked, in fact, exactly like a stern major, inspecting the troops. She would not have been a bit surprised if he had straightened a footman’s powdered wig or snapped at the lowly boot boy to shine up his rather tarnished buttons.

      But at last, parade was over and the troops dismissed. And the housekeeper, Mrs Wadsworth, gestured towards the grand sweep of the staircase.

      ‘Your rooms are on the west corridor,’ she announced, leading the way.

      ‘You will never get lost,’ Monty murmured in her ear as they followed her, side by side. Then he held out his hands, spreading his fingers in an elongated rectangle. ‘South front, east wing, west wing.’

      ‘His lordship,’ said Mrs Wadsworth, flinging open a set of double doors about halfway along the corridor, ‘thought you would wish to have this set of apartments.’

      ‘Did he, by God,’ Monty murmured to Midge, out of the corner of his mouth, ‘you are honoured. Last time I was here, I only merited one of the guest rooms.’

      ‘Her Ladyship’s sitting room.’ The housekeeper waved her arm round the room they had entered. It was a perfect square, and very green, was Midge’s first impression. Pale green walls, dark green curtains and various shades of green upholstery on all the furniture. Then her eyes took in the ornately plastered ceiling, with generously proportioned picture rails below. And the almost paper-thin, floral porcelain ware that decorated every available surface. And the very expensive-looking carpet in the middle of the highly polished floor. And the low table positioned before the fireplace, with an immense vase, from the same source as the rest of the china, squatting on top.

      It might have looked less hideous if somebody had thought to fill it with fresh flowers, but she supposed there were not many large enough, at this time of year, to do it justice.

      ‘Viscount Mildenhall’s chamber is through that door, and yours through this one,’ Mrs Wadsworth explained, pointing to two doors on opposite sides of the green room.

      ‘His Lordship will be along shortly to meet you and welcome you to your new home,’ Mrs Wadsworth said to Midge. ‘I shall have the tea things brought up.’

      Midge’s anxiety level soared to new heights. She had no wish to drag the poor old earl out of his sick bed. She turned to ask Monty if he thought it might be better if they were to go to him, only to see him stalking through the door that led to his own room. She could hear him muttering to his valet, flinging open doors and slamming drawers. He was clearly not in the best of moods, for some reason. And she did not know him well enough to know how to deal with him yet.

      Not quite daring to tread on the luxurious carpeting, Midge kept to the bare boards round the edge as she made her way to the door that led to her own room.

      She peeped in to see a footman depositing a trunk at the foot of the bed.

      ‘Not there you great lummox,’ Pansy was saying scathingly. ‘Over there, by the cupboards!’

      Midge’s lips twitched at the sight of the brawny footman meekly doing the diminutive Pansy’s bidding, and she backed away to the relative peace of the fussily feminine sitting room.

      The door to Monty’s room was now closed. Well, that answered the question of whether to go and talk to him or not!

      Feeling rather at a loose end, Midge sidled along to a window and gasped with pleasure. She could see a river winding artistically down to a lake that filled the bottom of a thickly wooded valley. And, if she pressed her nose to the windowpane, the corner of a building that looked very much like stables. She hoped there would be a decent mount for her. Her spirits lifted as she regarded the short turf sweeping round the lake and a track leading into the woodland. Oh, how she would enjoy being able to go for a really good gallop again!

      Somewhere, at the bottom of one of her trunks, she’d had Pansy pack the disreputable old riding habit she had brought with her from Staffordshire. She had ensured it survived every single one of her aunt’s culls of her wardrobe, and now she could hardly wait to don it again!

      She was just wondering if it was safe to enter her room yet, to get washed and changed in readiness for the earl’s visit, when she heard a hesitant scratching noise at the main door.

      When she opened it, she saw two identical small boys, dressed in nankeen breeches and rather shabby jackets.

      ‘You must be Monty’s brothers!’ She beamed down at them. ‘You look so much like him!’ And they did, in spite of what he had said about them possibly having different parentage. Both of them had his thick, fair hair, startlingly green eyes and dimples in the centre of very determined chins.

      One of them dug the other in the ribs with his elbow. ‘She means Vern.’

      The other nodded. ‘Spec so.’ Then added, ‘We aren’t supposed to be here.’

      ‘But we wanted to take a look at you.’

      ‘And show you Skip,’ said the first, looking down at the front of his jacket which was filled out by a mass of something squirming. The corner of a dog’s ear promptly flipped out over the edge of the boy’s lapels.

      ‘Oh, is it a terrier?’ she asked, warmed by the first sign of anything approaching informal behaviour since setting foot in the house.

      The twin with the bulging jacket nodded. ‘Best ratter in the county,’ he declared.

      Midge bit back a grin. The boy was probably only allowed to use his dog under the strict supervision of a gamekeeper, within the bounds of his own park. But the fact remained he was immensely proud of his pet and wanted to show it off to his new big sister.

      She pulled the door open wider to let the boys and their dog in. The twins scanned the corridor behind them rapidly, then exchanged a look with each other, before darting into the formal sitting room.

      The minute the door closed behind them, the boy with the dog undid his jacket, and a very excited tan-and-white terrier dropped onto the rug. Tail up, nose down, it embarked on a rapid exploration of the room. Its little paws scrabbled frantically on the smooth surface of the floorboards when it left the safety of the carpet, but it had been running so fast it was unable to slow its skid by much, and landed against the wainscot under the window with an audible thud.

      Midge stifled a giggle as, with a doggy attempt at nonchalance, Skip put his nose straight down and began to sniff determinedly along the wainscoting, as though this was exactly where he had decided to be.

      ‘Looks like he’s got the scent of a rat,’ said his owner knowingly.

      ‘I am sure there are no rats up here,’ said Midge. СКАЧАТЬ