Enticing Eve: Scandalous Secrets, Book 2 by Tracy Goodwin Read Free Book Online

that Eve and her grandmother were able to survive with their social standing intact. Additionally, his discretion insured that no one outside of their immediate families ever knew of his generosity.
    When Eve’s parents perished, the family’s estates were part of an entail to be inherited by Eve’s cousin.  
    The loss of her beloved son then, subsequently, the prospect of losing her home devastated the Dowager Viscountess and, for the first time in her life, hatred pulsated through Eve’s veins. She despised her parents. Not for herself or her own pain but for their despicable treatment of her grandmother.  
    Sebastian once again stepped in, paying a hefty sum for their estate. Eve was certain he paid twice what it was worth and felt indebted to him. She once tried to thank him, but Sebastian wouldn’t hear of it, stating that Fiona was like a second mother to him. It was at that exact moment that Eve learned the power of family. It stemmed not from one’s bloodlines but one’s heart. After all, the duke was more of a son to Fiona Weston than her own had ever been.
    Although Eve’s father was the first man to disappoint her, he wasn’t the last. Her thoughts drifted back to Colin. What made him think that he could return after so much time had passed and pick up where he left off?
    Eve shoved herself away from the door.  
    “Damn the past and damn Colin MacAlistair, the insufferable, presumptuous man,” Eve muttered aloud.
    Heading down the wide hallway to her grandmother’s suite, Eve’s resolve strengthened with every step. She survived the wreckage that Colin’s departure had made of her life. So, too, would she survive his return.  
    Upon reaching her grandmother’s suite, Eve rapped on the door. She could discern several inaudible words spoken in a clipped tone before the woman’s usually sweet voice bellowed the command, “Enter!”
    Eve turned the brass knob; however, she encountered resistance while trying to push the door open. Managing to peer through the narrow opening she’d created, her attention was immediately drawn to the floor where a sea of colorful fabrics were strewn about, including several gowns piled high in front of the door.
    “Grandmamma,” Eve called, scanning the room. “I believe your gowns are attempting an escape.”  
    The elder woman’s eyes widened as if surprised that her garments were attempting a massive fashion coup. “Oh, my dear girl, allow me to help you.”
    Wearing a bright fuchsia and violet gown while a fur hat dyed in vivid orange bobbed atop her silver ringlets, Fiona   kicked several garments blocking her path. She stopped briefly to rescue a black and white feather boa and wrap it around her neck before winding her way to the door.  
    Eve stifled a giggle behind her hand as the sweet woman then scooped up several of the gowns that blocked the door before heaving them onto a floral chaise.
    “My dear,” the Viscountess announced, adjusting her hat so it now lay flat atop her mass of curls. “I fear I have become quite boring.”  
    Eve arched her brow as she surveyed the collection of colorful fabrics, feathers, and furs strewn about the room, smiling at the sweet woman’s perception of boring.  
    Although a member of nobility by marriage, the Dowager Viscountess rebelled against polite society
    and its strict rules of conduct by dressing in the most ostentatious manner possible. Her gratification came from quizzing acquaintances at balls and other gatherings in regards to what they thought of her garish garments.
    Such was the Viscountess’s social experiment. By testing members of her peerage, her goal was to see who amongst them would be honest with her. In most cases, her test subjects failed miserably but there were exceptions, those who voiced their opinions or met her grandmother’s exam with a wry sense of humor. These were the friends allowed into the Viscountess’s inner circle – her extended family.
    “Dear Grandmamma,” Eve