Fenella J Miller by Lady Eleanor's Secret Read Free Book Online

following morning. Was she stepping from the frying pan into the fire?
    Lord Bentley had shown himself to have a fearsome temper. Had she not seen for herself how he had ripped his sleeves from his jacket in order to…? Why had he done so? Now that she recalled the incident more clearly he had not railed at her, had not been shouting or swearing. In fact, he had made no move to harm her. Only when Ned had attacked him had he seemed angry.
    Was it possible that she had misjudged the situation? Had she attacked an innocent man? In which case it made no sense for him to offer to marry her in order to make amends for his behaviour.
    No, he had regretted his fury and wished to make things right.
    She sighed. She could not fathom this at all. What mattered was he had offered her an escape route.
    Did he not say in his letter that he had already decided she would suit him as a wife? The incident had only precipitated matters; no doubt he would have spoken to her at a later date. This way her brother would not be able to prevent it. His permission was not legally necessary—she was well past her majority—but Society would have expected Bentley to speak to him first.
    No point in repining; she would be better off spending her time selecting something suitable to wear for the ceremony the following day. Taking two candles, she walked into the dressing room and pulled open the doors of the massive closet.
    Well, it wouldn’t take her long to make a decision; she only possessed six gowns.
    Two of these had been turned and re-sewn twice already, two were plain brown and even her brother said she looked hideous in them and one she had ruined with Bentley’s gore.
    This left her the one smart ensemble she owned, and that was really a misnomer. She fingered the faded silk which remained a pretty pink. Fortunately the waistline was fashionably high, but that was all that could be said to recommend it as a wedding dress. At least this gown possessed silk stockings and slippers to match as well as a gossamer wrap.
    Perhaps, if she added a new sash and refurbished the silk roses sewn around the hem and neckline, it would do. Her sewing box had been brought down with her other things. Eagerly she rummaged through, she was certain there was a length of ribbon that would be perfect. Over the years she had become expert at trimming bonnets and such. She was allowed no pin money at all and was entirely dependent on her brother for any purchases she wished to make. However, Jane had often brought her back little gifts of haberdashery which Eleanor treasured and used to embellish the sad garments that were her wardrobe.
    The sun was rising before she had completed her task. She hung her dress back in the closet, satisfied she would not look quite such an antidote in the morning. As soon as the girl appeared she would demand a bath and wash her hair; that alone would make her feel more feminine.
    Finally tired enough to sleep she scampered into bed, forgetting to extinguish the remaining candles. She was drifting off to sleep when she remembered her dereliction but for the first time since her dear mama died, she ignored this duty. For some strange reason she was now being treated as a true house guest, and no one, this time, would rail at her for such extravagance.

    Alex took the laudanum the physician had left him and slept dreamlessly through the night. He was roused by the sound of clattering in his dressing room. He must attempt to stand upright. He was not going to be married from his bed, however urgent the matter might be.
    His memory had not returned. He still had no recollection of anything past his entry into the wood. Once they were safely married he would demand that Lady Eleanor tell him exactly what had taken place. Fortuitously, this woman fitted his requirements perfectly. He would have been obliged to marry her even if she had been a veritable pea- goose.
    “Sam, where the hell are you? I want to get bathed and dressed.”
    The