Castles by Julie Garwood Read Free Book Online

right, Flannaghan,” Colin began, interrupting his servant’s thoughts. “Let’s try to get to the bottom of this. A princess just decided to take up residence with us? Is that correct?”
    â€œYes, milord.”
    â€œWhy?”
    â€œWhy what, milord?”
    Colin sighed. “Why do you suppose . . .”
    â€œIt isn’t my place to suppose,” Flannaghan interrupted.
    â€œWhen has that ever stopped you?”
    Flannaghan grinned. He acted as though he’d just been given a compliment.
    Colin yawned. Lord, he was tired. He wasn’t in the mood to put up with company tonight. He was exhausted from too many long hours working on the company books, frustrated because he couldn’t make the damn numbers add up to enough of a profit and extremely weary fighting all the competition. It seemed to him that every other day a new shipping company opened its doors for business.
    Added to his financial worries were his own aches and pains. His left leg, injured in a sea mishap several years ago, was throbbing painfully now, and all he wanted to do was get into his bed with a hot brandy.
    He wasn’t going to give in to his fatigue. There was still work to be done before he went to bed. He tossed Flannaghan his cloak, placed his cane in the umbrella stand, and put the papers he’d been carrying on the side table.
    â€œMilord, would you like me to fetch you something to drink?”
    â€œI’ll have a brandy in the study,” he replied. “Why are you calling me your lord? You’ve been given permission to call me Colin.”
    â€œBut that was before.”
    â€œBefore what?”
    â€œBefore we had a real princess living with us,” Flannaghan explained. “It wouldn’t be proper for me to call you Colin now. Would you prefer I call you Sir Hallbrook?” he asked, using Colin’s knighted title.
    â€œI would prefer Colin.”
    â€œBut I have explained, milord, it simply won’t do.”
    Colin laughed. Flannaghan had sounded pompous. He was acting more and more like his brother’s butler, Sterns, and Colin really shouldn’t have been at all surprised. Sterns was Flannaghan’s uncle and had installed the young man in Colin’s household to begin his seasoning.
    â€œYou’re becoming as arrogant as your uncle,” Colin remarked.
    â€œIt’s good of you to say so, milord.”
    Colin laughed again. Then he shook his head at his servant. “Let’s get back to the princess, shall we? Why is she here?”
    â€œShe didn’t confide in me,” Flannaghan explained. “And I thought it would be improper for me to ask.”
    â€œSo you just let her in?”
    â€œShe arrived with a note from your father.”
    They had finally gotten to the end of the maze. “Where is this note?”
    â€œI put it in the salon . . . or was it the dining room?”
    â€œGo and find the thing,” Colin ordered. “Perhaps his note will explain why the woman has two thugs with her.”
    â€œThey’re her guards, milord,” Flannaghan explained, his tone defensive. “Your father sent them with her,” he added with a nod. “And a princess would not travel with thugs.”
    The expression on Flannaghan’s face was almost comical in his awe of the woman. The princess had certainly dazzled the impressionable servant.
    The butler went running into the salon in search of the note. Colin blew out the candles on the table, picked up his papers, and then turned to the steps.
    He finally understood the reason for Princess Alesandra’s arrival. His father was behind the scheme of course. His matchmaking attempts were becoming more outrageous, and Colin wasn’t in the mood to put up with yet another one of his games.
    He was halfway up the steps before he spotted her. The banister saved him from disgrace. Colin was certain he would have fallen backward if he hadn’t had a