The Ragged Heiress by Dilly Court Read Free Book Online Page B

voice ringing in her ears. ‘Self-control, young ladies. Self-control and self-discipline are the two factors that made this nation great. When you go out into the world you must always remember this.’
    By the time Naomi arrived with the breakfast tray, Lucetta was sitting primly on the veranda combing her wet hair. The aroma of the coffee mingled with the flower-scented air and Lucetta drank two cups, one after the other. She devoured a plateful of sliced mango and then peeled the wrinkled purple-brown skin off a mangosteen, sinking her teeth into the crisp white segments. She would miss all these exotic fruits when she returned to London. Apples and pears were nothingcompared to sweet, delicately scented star fruit or a succulent, slightly acidic rambutan.
    Lucetta sighed. Just thinking of leaving this island paradise made her sad. A few short hours ago she had been dreaming of home and the diversions that she missed most, but meeting Sam had changed all that. She would have been happy to stay here forever, as long as he was with her. She tore a freshly baked bread roll in half, spreading each section with the strawberry jam that Lady Boothby had sent to her in a regular order from Fortnum and Mason’s. While she ate, savouring each mouthful, Lucetta decided that she could not exist for a whole day without seeing Sam. The need for him was consuming her like a fever, and if he could not come to her then she must go to Benoa harbour and seek him out.
    There was just one flaw in this plan – Papa had forbidden her to leave the consulate. She must catch him before he left on his next buying expedition, and apologise humbly for her bad behaviour. Despite his gruff manner, she knew that she could wrap Pa round her little finger if she tried, and she was genuinely sorry for causing him so much distress. Perhaps she could persuade him that she was in desperate need of a new riding hat and crop as hers had been taken from her at the temple, and these could be purchased in Denpasar. He might have threatened to stop her allowance but no one could accuse Pa of being mean, and a hat was an absolute necessity in this climate. If he agreed to her request she would take Naomi as chaperone and it couldn’t be too far from the townto Benoa harbour where she was sure to find the
Caroline
. It was a simple plan and hopefully foolproof.
    ‘Mr Froy left for the other side of the island shortly before daybreak, miss.’ Jackson, Sir John’s English butler, stared at a point just above Lucetta’s shoulder. ‘I believe a consignment of teakwood furniture has come to grief at the bottom of a ravine.’
    ‘Do you know when he is expected to return?’ Lucetta asked, assuming an innocent air and trying hard not to look pleased by the unexpected reprieve.
    ‘No, miss.’
    ‘Is Sir John at home?’
    ‘No, miss. Sir John has gone to Lombok on official business and Lady Boothby is at the hospital, as is her custom on this day of the week.’
    ‘And my mother?’
    ‘Is in her room. She is not to be disturbed.’
    ‘Thank you, Jackson.’ Lucetta could hardly believe her good luck. She watched Jackson as he stalked off towards the servants’ quarters with an irritated hunch of his shoulders. She knew that he did not approve of her, or her nouveau riche parents, but she did not care. Today nothing was going to upset her. This was the beginning of the rest of her life and that life included Samuel Cutler.
    She hurried back to her room where Naomi was clearing the breakfast things and a maid was mopping the wet floor.
    ‘Leave that, Naomi,’ Lucetta said, taking the tray from her hands and thrusting it at the astonishedmaidservant. ‘Please tell the girl to take it back to the kitchen. You and I are going to Denpasar.’
    Lucetta shooed the maid out of the room, closing the door behind her. ‘Denpasar,’ she repeated, pointing to Naomi and then to herself. ‘You and me. We go to Denpasar now, this minute. No time to lose.’ Without