by Jane Charles
Jordan grinned at her. “A serving wench took a liking to me.”
Audrey rolled her eyes. All women took a liking to Jordan and if she ever thought he found pleasure outside of the marriage she would be miserable. But, she believed that he loved her and given their regular intimacies, at any hour of the day, she ensured he didn’t have the energy to seek out pleasure elsewhere. Not that she thought he ever would, and she rather liked their spontaneous encounters.
“The ballet starts in an hour. Please hurry.”
Jordan kissed her quickly and ran up the stairs. Audrey wandered into the sitting room and poured herself a glass of medera. He seemed so boyish when he grinned. She hadn’t asked if the man had been arrested, the answer was in Jordan’s face. He had been plagued by the plight of young Thain and once he told her, Audrey had worried as well. The staff was on the alert and knew young Thain would be joining the household. Jordan had plans to have him work in the stables and Audrey truly hoped it worked out for the young man. As much as her own mother irritated her, she would hate to be without her, let alone witness her violent death. Audrey hoped Ulger Abbott rotted in Newgate for a very long time.
Jordan appeared downstairs within half an hour, freshly bathed and dressed for the ballet. She sniffed but couldn’t even find a hint of the awful rosewater. Jordan’s hair was damp so she knew that he had bathed as well as washed his hair. Thank goodness, she had not wanted to smell that scent all evening.
They arrived as the rest of the family was getting out of their carriages. As the brothers had accompanied Jordan to confront Abbott, she assumed they had needed to bathe and dress for the night as well. Acker was waiting for them in the lobby and escorted them up the stairs. He was the only person who did not have someone to escort this evening.
Audrey and Jordan were seated with Acker, Bentley and Eleanor. Grace, Matthew, John, Elizabeth, Madeline and Brachton were one box over. They had barely taken their seats before the production began.
The stage filled with ballerinas, all beautiful in their matching costumes as they began to tell the story with movement. One in particular caught her eye. She was the closest to their box and Audrey could not take her eyes from the young woman. She seemed familiar and she searched her memory for the reason why and then it came to her. The woman was a striking resemblance to the painting of Adele which hung in the Bentley townhouse.
Acker leaned forward. “There she is,” he exclaimed.
“Who?” Eleanor asked.
“The one who wished to audition.” Acker smiled and pointed to the woman Audrey had been watching. “The one who disappeared.”
Bentley shifted and leaned forward. “It can’t be?”
Jordan focused on the dancer and straightened. “Is it possible?
“What?” Eleanor asked.
“More importantly, who.” Bentley answered without looking at his wife.
“Jordan?” Audrey placed a hand on his arm.
“Julia,” he whispered, not taking his eyes from the stage.
More titles from Jane Charles
A Gentleman’s Guide to Once Upon a Time Series
His Impetuous Debutante
His Contrary Bride
His (Not so) Sensible Miss
The Wiggons’ School for Elegant Young Ladies Series
To Walk in the Sun
To Love a Governess Series
Sacked – Regency Short
Handfasted – Regency Novella
Ruined – Regency Short
Anthologies
A Summons from His Grace – Compromised for Christmas
The Betting Season – Landing a Laird
A Season to Remember – Devil in Her Dreams
*All three of the Novellas from the Anthologies above appear in one Compilation
Scots, Spies & Salacious Lies
The Tenacious Trents
Compromised for Christmas (A Summons from His Grace)
A Misguided Lord
A Perfect Gentleman
A Lass for Christmas (Novella)
A Reluctant Rake
Titles by Amy De Trempe
Loving Lydia
Pure is the Heart
The Healing Tree
She Talked (Short Story)
High Court of Love (Short Story)
About Jane
Jane Charles is a Historical Romance author who also writes Inspirational Historical romance under the name of Amy De Trempe and lives in Central Illinois.
As a child Jane would more likely be found outside with a baseball than a book in her hand. In fact, Jane hated reading until she was sixteen. Her passion for reading came about quite by accident when out of boredom on vacation she borrowed her older sister’s historical romance. She fell in love somewhere between Florida and Illinois and her love for reading never died.
Jane is lucky enough to be married to her own personal hero. Not only does he offer words of encouragement but has taken over much of the housework so Jane can have more hours writing. She has also been blessed with two fantastic daughters and an awesome son, all of which have brought various animals into the house. Currently the count is one dog and three cats.
Jane can be contacted at: [email protected]
http://www.JaneACharles.blogspot.com
JaneCharlesAuthor.com
or on Facebook and Twitter: JaneACharles
