Page 52 of The Mistletoe Countess
Her jeweled eyes widened. “I expect an excellent diversion then, my lord, if you plan to abandon me so soon.” She took a few bites of toast and finished every strawberry on her plate, then proceeded to encourage him to share the remainder of his strawberries too.
As he escorted her away from the breakfast room, she asked dozens of questions regarding each room and fixture. She oohed over the beauty of the Great Hall in daylight and expounded upon how she’d like to decorate it for Christmas, while Frederick assured her he’d ask Brandon to locate enough garland to line the entire staircase. Her happy chatter echoed around the room as they climbed the stairs, a joyful addition to this large house.
As they reached the top of the stairs, Grace rushed forward to one of the third-story windows that offered a dazzling scene of the countryside stretching to rolling hills and a fog-fingered horizon.
“This is remarkable,” she whispered as she took in his land. His legacy.
His thoughts corrected.Theirlegacy.
“Is all of that part of Havensbrooke?”
He nodded, drinking in the familiar view. “As far as our eyes can see, all the way up to the vista, there.”
She followed his direction to the tallest hill nearest the house, which rose up to a flattened area filled with rocky outcroppings and evergreens. “The place you would walk with your grandmother?” “Yes and Grandfather too. It provides an excellent prospect of the house.” He shook his head as he stared down at her. “I’ve thought of them more since knowing you than I have in years. I believe you’re a very good reminder.”
“Reminder?”
“Of good things.”
She searched his face with such raw compassion, his throat tightened. He cleared it and tugged her within his embrace, his words near her ear. “Are you ready for your surprise?”
She immediately melted against him, resting her head back on his shoulder, shrouding his senses in rosemary and Grace. “Please say it involves kissing!”
He complied, her fingers finding their way to the nape of his neck and encouraging him to linger. Blast the investigation! He’d rather give Grace a more intimate tour of Havensbrooke instead of keeping his appointment with the investigator. The past few nights aboard ship, he’d introduced her to more familiar and liberal kisses, to which she responded with a degree of enthusiasm to encourage his imagination in all sorts of distractible directions. But making her his? That seemed to wait just out of reach at every turn. He rested his forehead against hers, reveling in the wonder of this unexpected sweetness, this right desire and design. “Close your eyes.”
She feigned a look of suspicion, then acquiesced—grin growing as he took her hands and tugged her forward. The double doors to the library creaked open, but she dutifully kept her eyes closed.
“I smell leather,” she said with a giggle. “And…paper?”
He beamed as he led her to the center of the room. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d felt such excitement. Light streamed in from the windows and cloaked the entire space with a hazy glow. Perfect.
He brought her hands to his lips and stared at her face. “Open your eyes, Grace.”
A slight gasp escaped her lips as she took in the rows and rows of bookshelves rising to meet the oak-paneled, arched ceiling. At the far end of the room, a similarly arched window took up most of the wall, allowing in enough brightness to overpower the electric lights. A red-cushioned bench waited in front of the window, allowing for a view toward the drive of the house and the hillsides beyond.
“This…this is perfect.” She spun slowly, in rapt wonder, taking in the splendor of the room with her hand clasped to her chest. Sunlight glinted off her auburn locks. She giggled and ran to him, hugging him close. “I’m so glad you like books.”
She was much too easy on his heart.
“Does this mean you’ll forgive my absence today?”
“If you’ll send Zeus for company.” She tossed a grin over her shoulder. “I suppose you have provided analmostsuitable distraction.”
“Almost?”
She snatched a book from the shelf and opened it. “My poor fictional heroes have never had such delicious competition before.”
He paused his retreat toward the door. “Competition?”
She smiled sweetly. “My very own real-life hero.”
Was that how she saw him? The tenderness, the faith? He wanted to be that man. He left the room and closed his eyes.Lord, help me remain a hero for her—even when she learns the truth.
Chapter Sixteen
Grace spent the entire morning in the library, even taking tea by the window to enjoy the scenes of varied green disappearing into pale skies. The landscape, both inside the house and without, urged her into a giddy prayer of thanksgiving for another item to counter the many challenges she faced. If she could just hide away in the library for the rest of her life, she’d be the perfect Lady Astley, invisible from the world—for an invisible Gracelynn Percy would prove much more refined than the present one.
Zeus kept her company, finding a cozy spot at her side no matter where she moved in the room, almost as if he were trying to herd her about. It was rather endearing.
