Excerpt:
“He said that?” Mia asked.
“Yes, can you believe it? It was
the most perfect thing anyone has ever said to me,” Emily said.
“Indeed.”
“Are you having a good time, Mia?”
“Yes, it’s been lovely so far and
even my parents seem to be enjoying themselves.”
“Good, I’m glad for it. I can’t
wait for my dance with Mr. Preston.”
For the rest of the evening, she
could think of nothing except the dashing Mr. Preston. Her dance card had
filled quickly and she had no lack of partners dancing nearly every dance. When
her dance with Mr. Preston was finally announced, she was not disappointed. He
was charming and witty, and she floated around the dance floor with a smile
that lit up her beautiful face. She never noticed Ethan Richardson stealing
glances at her.
When the dancing ended, she found
her parents and they all said their goodbyes to Lord and Lady Tisbury.
“Thank you for such a lovely
night. It was magical,” Emily said with a curtsy.
“I’m glad you enjoyed yourself.”
Lady Tisbury turned to Catherine. “Shall we have tea soon?”
“That would be lovely,” Catherine
said.
Later that evening, Emily
recounted her time at the dance with Nesmith. “Oh, Nesmith, you should have
seen the room. It was so beautiful with all the flowers and the candles lit up
the room. Mia and I danced almost every dance.”
“Who did you dance with?” Nesmith
asked, helping Emily out of her dress.
“With almost every gentleman in
attendance, but I danced twice with Mr. Connor Preston. He’s so handsome and quite
dashing. I think he likes me.”
Nesmith hung up the dress in the
wardrobe before she began to take the pins out of Emily’s hair. “Really? Did he
say anything to indicate that he liked you?”
“He winked at me, and told me I
put the stars to shame. We danced two dances together.” Emily didn’t bother to
tell Nesmith that one of the dances was the quadrille and Connor’s partner was
actually Elizabeth Curry. Nor did she tell her the thrill that went through her
when their hands touched.
“I see. Miss Emily, don’t get your
hopes up. It might not mean what you think it means. Men love dancing with
pretty girls. When he comes to see your father, then you’ll know he’s serious.”
“Oh, Nesmith, don’t be so harsh. You
weren’t there. It was wonderful and I just know he likes me.”
“If you say so,” Nesmith said, a
frown creasing her face. The older woman combed out Emily’s hair and braided it
before helping her into her nightdress. “There you go. Do you need anything
else?”
“No, thank you, Nesmith. Good
night.”
“Good night, Miss Emily.” Nesmith
left the room, closing the door behind her and hurried down the hall to attend
to Mrs. Stanton.
Emily grabbed her evening
reticule. She brought the candle from the vanity over to the small table next
to her bed. She climbed into bed and snuggled into the soft feather pillows.
She opened her reticule and pulled out her dance card to look at Connor’s name
again when a slip of paper fell out. “What’s this?”
She unfolded the note and inhaled
sharply as she read it.
I have eyes for only one
In the sea of colorful silks
With eyes of blue
And a smile that
Gladdens my heart
You are my Bright Star
“The stars again! Such a beautiful
letter. Oh, Mr. Preston, I knew you liked me,” she said hugging the slip of
paper to her breast.
***********************************
Blurb:
Eighteen-year-old
Emily Stanton is excited to attend this season's society balls and begin her
search for a husband. She is thrilled when the dashing and handsome Connor
Preston begins to show her more attention. After each ball, Emily finds a love
note in her drawstring reticule, and she expects a marriage proposal from
Connor any day.
When her father objects and forces Emily to accept the proposal from Lady Tisbury's shy nephew, Ethan Richardson instead, her heart is broken. How can she love her new husband when her heart belongs to the man who wrote her such beautiful love letters?
When her father objects and forces Emily to accept the proposal from Lady Tisbury's shy nephew, Ethan Richardson instead, her heart is broken. How can she love her new husband when her heart belongs to the man who wrote her such beautiful love letters?
LOVE BY
SECRETS is ON SALE for only .99. Grab a copy before the price goes back to $2.99.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Your post will be published after administrator approval.