A Scandalous Secret Read Free Page A

what’s ta be done with my boys. They’re angry and miss their father, and…here I sit in some silly shop, lookin’ at drawings of gowns that I’ll never feel like wearin’.”
    With an understanding nod, Caroline offered Hannah another handkerchief. “It’s just that it’s so fresh, darling. You’ll start to feel yourself again. Being around people is the best solution, I’ve always found. It forces you to be human. So order some of these silly gowns and we’ll get you readjusted.”
    “Ye’re very kind.”
    Caroline laughed. “That is not a word that is often used to describe me. Meddlesome, interfering, stubborn…those I hear more often. Though I prefer resourceful.”
    For the first time that day, Hannah grinned through her tears. “I’ll consider myself warned.”
    “Good, because I’ve just decided that I’m going to host a dinner in your honor.”
    Bethany returned then, with a stack of more plates to go through. When she saw Hannah’s tear-stained face, she looked at once panicked. “Oh, dearest, are you all right?” She rushed to Hannah’s side.
    But Caroline jumped up from her spot and intercepted the countess, which sent her golden brown curls bobbing up and down. “I’m afraid I’ve terrified the poor woman, as I’ve threatened to host a dinner in her honor.”
    A horrified expression settled on Bethany’s face. “Dinner?”
    “Well, yes, why not?”
    Beth shook her head. “ Just a dinner?”
    Caroline giggled. “I think Hannah would enjoy a dinner, don’t you?”
    ***
    Caroline flounced into the library, where she knew she would find her husband. Staveley was nothing if not studious. He sat in a large, overstuffed chair, and was thumbing through some old, ancient tome. She could never understand how he found such things interesting, but he could very easily barricade himself in the library for days if she didn’t insist he rejoin the world of the living.
    Entranced in his reading, Staveley absently brushed his light brown hair off his forehead. Caroline smiled when her eyes fell on him. Had she been given a choice all those years ago, she would never have married the quiet, reserved viscount; they didn’t have a thing in common. It was a good thing her brother, Robert, hadn’t given her a choice in the matter. Now, more than decade and three children later, she loved her husband dearly and couldn’t imagine life without his steady influence.
    Poor Hannah Campbell. All alone in the world.
    Caroline crossed the floor, picked up the heavy tome from her husband’s hands, and dropped it to the floor with a loud thud. Staveley’s brown eyes watched her with amusement. “Are you looking for my attention, dear?”
    “Mmm-hmm.” Caroline nodded, then dropped herself across her husband’s lap and wrapped her arms around his neck. “I’ve decided to host a dinner party.”
    His eyes narrowed suspiciously. “ Just a dinner party?”
    He didn’t have to look so skeptical about the idea. “Yes, just a dinner party.”
    Staveley wrapped his arms tighter around Caroline and dropped a kiss on her cheek. “Whatever will make you happy, my dear, but you must admit that normally your events are on a much grander scale.”
    She nodded in agreement. “That is true. But I went shopping today, and—”
    “Oh, and how much did that little excursion cost me?”
    Caroline playfully thumped his ear with her fingers. “Watch yourself, Staveley, or I’ll go back out tomorrow and spend double what I did today.”
    When he simply chuckled at the threat, Caroline leaned her head against his shoulder. She was so fortunate to have him. “As I was saying, David, I went shopping today with Bethany Carteret and Lady Hannah Campbell.”
    He sat up a little straighter and adjusted Caroline in his arms. “Little Hannah’s in Town already?”
    “Little?” The woman was at least full head taller than Caroline.
    Staveley grinned. “Is statuesque better? James said she’d be arriving, but I