Sweet Talk Boxed Set (Ten NEW Contemporary Romances by Bestselling Authors to Benefit Diabetes Research plus BONUS Novel) by Linda Lael Miller, Sherryl Woods, Brenda Novak, Steena Holmes, Melody Anne, Violet Duke, Melissa Foster, Gina L Maxwell, Rosalind James, Molly O'Keefe, Nancy Naigle Read Free Book Online

was ignoring her presence completely, so maybe she could slip back out of the room unnoticed.
    No such luck. Liam turned back toward Whitney, and much to her distress, she felt the smallest leap in her pulse as his sharp blue eyes focused on her.
    “This is Whitney Steele. She’s the aunt of my niece and nephew — I spoke of them earlier in the week. Whitney, this is Alexandra Masterson.”
    “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Alexandra,” Whitney said, sticking out her hand.
    The woman ignored the gesture and turned back toward Liam. “Let’s go talk privately.”
    Before Whitney knew what was happening, Liam and Alexandra disappeared, and the chatting began again. She wasn’t sure if she should retreat or sit. Where was Frederick? Wasn’t he supposed to be meeting her?
    Before she could decide what to do, Liam returned and, without even asking for her permission, he took her elbow and led her to a chair. Immediately, a maid offered her tea or coffee. Whitney chose tea.
    The people were all so proper —hell, tight-assed was the way to describe it — and she found herself sitting there uncomfortably. Alexandra seemed to have a constant pout on her face while she sat quietly back, every once in a while shooting Whitney a questioning look. Who would want to associate with these people? To tell the truth, who would ever cared to be around these idiots?
    “Here are your finger sandwiches, sir,” Mr. Dixon, the butler, said, while setting down a beautiful dish on the antique table. “I hope you enjoy them, Ms. Steele.”
    “Thank you, Mr. Dixon. They look very … appetizing,” Whitney said, eyeing them with doubt.
    Alexandra took the opportunity and pounced. “Have you not had a proper tea before?”
    The woman could only be described as catty. But even the worst of cats were better than her. The woman, that detestable woman, delicately picked up a tiny sandwich and didn’t even eat the whole thing. One tiny bite, damn her. Alexandra then set it down and picked up her wretched porcelain cup of tea, her face sweet and angelic.
    “No, not really. I think the closest I’ve come is happy hour with barbecue wings and two-dollar drafts,” Whitney said with a smile. “If you don’t need at least five wet napkins, then you haven’t had very good wings.”
    While Whitney delighted in the expression on Alexandra’s face, she was afraid to see Liam’s expression. But when she heard a chuckle escape him, she turned toward him in shock. He quickly covered up the short-lived amusement — he’d have probably called it mirth, the pompous asshole — by coughing, and then once again making his face a blank.
    “Barbecue wings? Interesting. I’ll have to see whether the cook might prepare some for you.”
    At this point, a man who was obviously a member of the Felton staff came up to her.
    “Ms. Steele, a package has arrived for you,” he said.
    She rose slowly. “Are you sure it’s for me? No one that I know is aware I’m here.”
    “Your name is on the box,” the man said. “It was left at the front door.”
    “Um, thank you,” Whitney said before standing and turning toward Liam. “Please tell your father I will look for him in a little while.”
    With that, she turned and followed the man with the package from the room. She was more grateful to him than anyone she’d ever met before.
    “Would you like me to take this to your room?” he asked.
    “No, I’m sure I can lift it,” she told him, and wondered what it could be. It wasn’t exactly heavy, but it wasn’t light, either.
    When she got to the privacy of her room, she opened the box and broke out in a smile. Several beautifully wrapped gifts sat inside the cardboard, and it took everything in her power not to immediately tear into the wrapping.
    There wasn’t a return label, nothing to indicate where the package had come from. The gifts inside the box were addressed, variously, to the children and to her.
    The holidays couldn’t come soon enough.