A Love That Never Tires by Allyson Jeleyne Read Free Book Online

does it say?”
    Mr. Talbot-Martin read and reread the letter again for good measure. “It is from my cousin. Congratulating me on my inclusion in the New Years Honours List,” he explained. “She says I am to be knighted.”
    “Knighted?”
    “I don’t know how we could have missed something so momentous,” her father said. “But I suppose when one spends months in French Morocco, one tends to become a bit out of touch with the goings on in London.” He laughed in spite of himself. “I could not tell you the last time I sat down with a copy of The Gazette.”
    She stared at the letter in his trembling hands. “Papa, what on earth are we to do?”
    “There is only one thing to do, Button. We must go to London straight away.”
    Linley grabbed the back of her father’s chair, bracing herself. London.
    He looked up at her. “Naturally, you will accompany me. There is no reason you shouldn’t enjoy the fruits of our labor—everything I will be honored for, we have done together.”
    She still could not speak.
    “And you are of an age to where you should be presented. I think it would do you good to enjoy the company of other young people,” he continued. “I will write to my cousin immediately. She will know the proper way to go about introducing you to society and securing invitations for the season…”
    Her father’s voice trailed off as Linley’s mind reeled at this new development. It all happened so fast. He would be knighted. They would go to London. There would be drawing rooms, dinner parties, operas, and balls. She shook her head to scatter those thoughts. London. The British Museum. She always wanted to go…so why was she so nervous?

    ***

    “Are we all to go, then?” Reginald asked.
    Linley poured them both a cup of tea. Handing one across the table, she explained, “Papa and I will be there for one month. With all the new press about our work, he expects there to be a great deal of interest in funding future expeditions. He thinks the social season will be a perfect place to meet potential investors. It won’t be all fun. There will be work involved.”
    “All the more reason for us to come along,” Reginald said. “Between Archie, Schoville, and myself, we could take some of the pressure off of your father so he could actually enjoy himself.”
    She gave him a wink across the table and whispered, “You just want to come to London.”
    He grinned. “I rarely get a chance to dust off my formal attire—and I do look so good in it.”
    Linley took a sip of tea and then placed the cup back onto its saucer. “I will have a word with Papa about it.”
    “Wonderful. Now, tell me how you’re getting on.”
    “I grow more nervous every day. I started three books on the history of England just last night, and haven’t even scratched the surface. There’s so much to learn and remember that I’m afraid I’ll get there and they’ll think me a complete idiot.”
    “No one will think that, Lin. They will all be so distracted by your charm and beauty they won’t remember any of their history lessons either!”
    She resisted the urge to reach over and slug him on the arm. Secretly, she hoped he and the others could come along. How on earth would she ever face London society without them?
    The sitting room door swept open, revealing Mr. Talbot-Martin holding stationery in one hand and his eyeglasses in another. “Ah, Reginald, my boy! What brings you to Malta?”
    Reginald rose to his feet. “Your happy news,” he explained. “I was on my way to Rome when I heard, so I thought I would pop in and offer my congratulations in person.”
    “How very kind of you,” Mr. Talbot-Martin said. “But it is an honor I should like the entire team to share.”
    Linley took that moment to press their case to her father. “Then, Papa, wouldn’t you agree everyone deserves to come to London for the investiture? No doubt Reginald and the others could increase our fundraising endeavors a