Compromising Positions Read Free

important piece. It was not as if it had been designed especially for George Washington or that it had resided at Mount Vernon. It was just an old bed that Washington had slept in on occasion.
    She frowned, remembering Sam Blackstone’s accusation that she was attracted to him. Was she simply looking for a reason to extend her stay? She could go back to Boston and let the lawyers deal with it.
    No, that man had picked a fight and Amelia wouldn’t back down. There was too much riding on this job. Her future, her security; the chance to make her own choices in life.
    She hadn’t always possessed such an independent streak. As the only child of a notable Boston Brahmin family, she’d been carefully groomed to be sweet and compliant, the kind of girl who would grow up to marry well and transfer the family fortune to an equally wealthy family who would preserve it for future generations.
    She’d host luncheons and cocktail parties, she’d bear clever and handsome children, she’d serve on the boards of at least three charitable foundations and she’d see her children married well, too. It had taken her nearly twenty-two years to realize that she wasn’t really a person at all, but a prize.
    She’d had the traditional education for a girl of her station: a private, all-girls day school, four years at Miss Porter’s, then an art history degree from Sarah Lawrence. Though it had been a good education, it had also been a case study in maintaining the chastity of a naïve young girl. The first time she’d even touched a boy she’d been thirteen and taking dance lessons for her tea dance at the club.
    She’d led such a silly life as a teenager, paraded around in a white gown and gloves, her hair sprayed until it barely moved, a smile pasted on her face to indicate she was having fun. Inside she’d felt as though she was on display for all the mothers to judge: Amelia Gardner Sheffield, heiress in search of a husband. Only blue bloods need apply.
    And she’d followed her parents’ plan almost all the way to the altar before she’d realized she was capable of making her own decisions.
    Since she’d walked out on her engagement, she’d been determined to make a success of herself without her family’s intervention. She’d managed to get the job at the museum without any promises besides hard work and dedication. It was only after she’d been hired that she’d mentioned her family connections.
    And until this crazy bed situation had come along, she’d delivered on every project she’d taken on. Now that she’d set her sights on the George Washington bed, she wouldn’t leave town until it was tucked safely in the museum’s trailer.
    But there were some roadblocks along the way. For one thing, she didn’t know anything about her opponent. She’d be much more effective against him if she learned something of his motivations. Millhaven was a small town. Certainly someone in town would be willing to talk about Sam Blackstone.
    He wanted that bed as much as she did, maybe even more. Unfortunately he wasn’t aware of just how stubborn and single-minded Amelia Gardner Sheffield could be.
    Amelia opened the door of the Lexus and got in behind the wheel. She’d made the three-hour drive to Millhaven from Boston that morning and had had the presence of mind to pack an overnight bag in case the weather or the acquisition suddenly went bad.
    But a bag was only part of the equation; she’d need to find someplace close to spend the night. Millhaven was a quaint little village set in the beauty of the Hudson Valley. There had to be a motel somewhere in town.
    As she drove away from the Farnsworth house, she saw a signpost and slowed to read it. It listed three restaurants and one inn.
    â€œThe Blackstone Inn.” She remembered the bed’s provenance mentioning the Blackstone Inn, but it had never occurred to her