Enticing the Earl by Nicole Byrd Read Free Book Online Page B

holding horses and lacing harness quickly back into place. She vowed to eat just as quickly so as not to hold them up. But she also became aware of a pressing need to use the necessary and was glad that they had made a stop.
    The earl escorted her up the second flight of stairs and into a private parlor. He held a chair for her, but then turned aside to speak to their host, who was being most agreeable to his important patron, bowing and smiling as he showed off a bottle of his best wine.
    â€œThis here is our most mellow claret, me lord, and, you there”—he turned aside to say to his waiter—“bring up the roast turkey and that ham we had smoked, the big one, now, right away!”
    Lauryn thought that this was not really her idea of a light luncheon, but no matter—she found that even after a hearty breakfast, she was, improbable as it might be, hungry again. After weeks of eating meagerly while the squire’s funds had sunk lower and lower, it was a relief to not have to worry about where the money for one’s next meal was coming from.
    But first—calling over a maidservant who was pouring the uncorked wine into the glasses, she made a whispered query and excused herself briefly. When she returned, she found the table filled with enough food for a small army, and she shook her head at the earl’s idea of a light refreshment.
    She wasted no time in partaking of the bounty, and fortunately her host did not seem to expect her to make conversation. He only offered her, now and then, another particularly pleasing treat.
    â€œTry the jellied apricots,” he said once. “They go very nicely with the ham, which I will admit our host does know how to smoke properly.”
    So she did, smiling her thanks. And when Boxel disappeared, apparently to check on the progress of the team, and reappeared to report that the carriage was now ready, she at once pushed her plate back and prepared to stand.
    But the earl shook his head. “We are in no rush,” he said, his tone firm. “We have not even sampled the sweetmeats. And I have a particular fondness for the apple tarts the inn’s cook prepares.”
    Sinking back into the chair, Lauryn brightened. Their cook at home made a wonderful apple tart. She was more than happy to try this one and see how it compared, so when the earl offered her a sample, she accepted.
    Only after another half hour did they rise from the table and return to the carriage, and she was so replete from the excellent meal that Lauryn was sure she would be dozing again once the hum of the carriage wheels lulled her into somnolence with their rhythmic drone.
    â€œThank you for the excellent luncheon,” she told the earl as he helped her once more into the carriage.
    â€œYou are more than welcome,” he said, smiling at her, his usually stern eyes unexpectedly tender, with a light in them that made her blush. And again, he kissed her hand.
    As she settled herself in the vehicle’s interior, she felt a warmth inside her that had nothing to do with her full stomach. And when she gazed out at the green meadows, she was thinking, instead, of what she might see and experience tonight, at the earl’s residence, and a growing excitement simmered in her veins. But as the wheels turned, the valet on the other side of the carriage was just as loquacious as he had been during the morning, and again her eyelids grew heavy, and soon she dozed.
    When the carriage slowed once more, she sat up quickly. But this time there was no shouting or clatter of wheels on cobblestones as there had been at the innyard. Where were they?
    She looked out and saw that the earl had ridden up to the carriage. He dismounted, and the groom had hurriedly jumped from the carriage and come to hold his master’s mount so that the earl could open the door for her.
    â€œI wanted you to see this,” the earl called to her. “Your first look at the Fens.”
    Bending