Reese's Bride Read Free

little dress shop just opened. Mrs. O’Neal has some very fine fabrics.”
    “You should have told me you wished to go. I would have given you an escort.”
    Having Mason anywhere near her was the last thing she wanted. She had suffered Edmund’s company far too long, and her brother-in-law was even more loathsome. Mason Holloway had squandered every dollar he had inherited. He would have been destitute had Edmund not provided for him.
    But her husband was nothing if not loyal. In his will, he had left Mason and Frances a life estate on their rooms in the east wing of the mansion, as well as permission to stay in his town house in London. Mason and Frances were there, whether she liked it or not, and there was no way to get rid of them.
    “I appreciate the offer,” she told Mason, “but I had Jared to keep me company.”
    He scoffed. “Jared is only a boy. A woman of your position shouldn’t be traveling alone.”
    She hoisted her chin, but the motion made her dizzy. She reached out to catch hold of the stair rail, hoping Mason wouldn’t notice. “I was scarcely alone. I had a coachman and a pair of footmen with me.”
    “That may be true, but next time, I shall accompany you.”
    Not if she could prevent it, but Mason was a difficult man to oppose and lately she couldn’t seem to find the will to fight him. She had begun to feel unwell some weeks back, suffering from headaches and nausea and an occasional bout of dizziness.
    It was part of the reason she hadn’t moved into Holiday House, the mansion on the outskirts of London she had inherited from her father, along with the rest of the fortune he had provided for her. She had wanted to leave but she was uncertain of her health and sure her in-laws would follow. If she tossed them out, she and Jared would suffer the scandal.
    Still, a scandal was better than what might happen if she stayed.
    As she stared at Mason, the suspicion that had begun to build over the past few months expanded inside her. If she was out of the way, Mason and Frances would become Jared’s guardians. They would control the vast Aldridge fortune.
    The thought of her young son left alone and vulnerable and growing even more withdrawn made her stomach roll with nausea. She was all that stood between Jared and theruthless people who cared nothing for him and only wanted his money.
    Sooner or later, she had to do something.
    Her headache worsened, pounded viciously against her skull, and again the dizziness struck. “I am afraid you will have to excuse me. I discover I am not feeling all that well.”
    Beneath his mustache, a sympathetic smile curved Mason’s lips. “Perhaps a nap will help.”
    Turning away from him, she started up the staircase, but Mason caught up easily and fell in beside her, taking her arm to guide her toward the landing.
    “I hope you’re feeling better by supper,” he said as they reached the door to her suite.
    “I’m certain I will be.” But she wasn’t sure at all.
    Fear for her son returned. As soon as she felt better, she would make plans to leave. She closed the door and prayed she could see it done.

Two
    J ared sat in a carved, high-back chair at the head of the long, polished mahogany table in the state dining room. Elizabeth sat to his right in one of the other twenty-six chairs, Mason and Frances to his left. Tall candles burned in the huge, gas-lit, crystal chandelier hanging above the table, and the gold-rimmed plates were of finest Sevres porcelain.
    It was too formal a setting for a shy little boy like Jared. But Frances had insisted, since it was his seventh birthday, and the issue didn’t seem important enough to Elizabeth to suffer an argument.
    The meal was as lavish as the setting: a rich vermicelli soup, roasted partridge with pecan stuffing, lobster in cream sauce, an array of vegetables and fresh baked breads. Dessert was an assortment of cakes and tarts and a fancy custard in the shape of a swan.
    It should have been a horse,