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The at No one felt like eating dinner Mrs Thornfield retired to her rooh and Dewhurst

Aware of Analisa&039;s distress, Alesandro took her into the library, settled her on the sofa, and covered her with a blanket He asked Cook to bring her a pot of tea, then disht

Analisa refused the tea, but he insisted she drink it, hoping it would help to calh-backed sofa while she sipped her drink, his led - love for hio, concern for her own safety, sorrow and guilt for Sally&039;s death

"Youthe empty cup from her hand, he placed it on the table, then slid his ar you could have done"

"I&039;ll ht be lonely It was for that reason he had planned to take her to ht Sally had been the only one on the staff close to Analisa&039;s age, and now she was gone It had been centuries since he&039;d had a close friend, years since he had socialized with others Years since he had spent an idle evening dining and dancing or playing cards with his cronies More years than he could recall since he had given thought to anything or anyone aside frohtfully What right did he have to keep her hidden away fronorant of the pleasures of city life Did she secretly yearn to go out e? What kind of life was it for her, to spend her days in near solitude, waiting for him? Still, when he had offered to introduce her to society, she had refused to go

"&039;Lisa, are you happy here, with me?"

"Yes, of course Why do you ask?"

"Are you ever lonely? Bored? Do youaround other people?"

She stared at hi themselves across her face

"Tell me the truth, &039;Lisa, not what you think I want to hear"

She considered her answer carefully It had been nice, at first, playing lady of thehard from dawn till dark At hoather, a garden that was constantly in need of weeding She had to admit she hadn&039;t liked it iven her a sense of acco the day, when everyone else is busy," she admitted "But I&039;m not bored There are some proper etiquette, and Sally" She bit down on her lower lip "I&039; to miss her so!" Tears welled in her eyes, coursed down her cheeks "Oh, Alesandro! Sheher back while she cried out her grief Hefor her hurt, her loss Hard-hearted creature that he was, the maid&039;s death meant little to hiry that Rodrigo had dared to harm someone in his eirl

"I think I should take you away fro at hih her tears "Away?"

"I have a se of scene would do you good"

A fortnight later Analisa found herself walking through the fancy front door of a two-story house on the outskirts of London Alesandro had said it was a small house, but it was small only when compared to Blackbriar Hall The house had obviously been empty for some time There were sheets over all the furniture; the air carried the faintly an opening the s Cook went to look over his new doh stayed outside to see to the horses Dewhurst e into the house

Analisa stood in the e rooh; floral paper covered the walls; a carpet of deep blue and green covered the floor There was a large fireplace with an over desk on another, an eh-backed sofa and a pair ofchairs were situated before the hearth The walls were bare She thought it odd that the cabinet was es on the walls

"Mrs Thornfield, what shall I do?"

The housekeeper looked at her as if she had just offered to walk naked across Trafalgar Square "Why, nothing, child Why don&039;t you go upstairs and have a look at the bedrooms and see which oneyou prefer?"

Analisa&039;s shoulders slu if she did a few chores? She was young and healthy, after all But whenever she offered, Mrs Thornfield wouldn&039;t hear of it

"Go along now" The housekeepers down here Oh, Cook wants to knohat you would like for dinner"

Analisa shrugged "I don&039;t care Tell him to surprise lanced around the roo to hire so help see back, but there was no point in arguing

After re it on the rack, Analisa went exploring The kitchen was downstairs, and off limits to all but Cook and his helper, should he hire one The dining rooular rooh in here as well, the walls paneled The table and chairs were of walnut, intricately carved, as were the sideboard and china cabinet, which was empty

There was also a small breakfast room, similar to the one at Blackbriar It seemed to be the only roo up the stairs, she found three se master bedroom The next floor held the nursery and the schoolroo back down to the second floor, she went into the loves, she tossed the the sheets from the furniture She immediately fell in love with the rooreen and yellow stripe hite tri table and chair, achair beside theIn the adjoining rooreen carpet a few shades darker than the spread on the bed muted her footsteps as she dropped the sheets on the chair, then opened the hich looked out over a se leafy tree, flowers, and a small arbor

She whirled around at the sound of footsteps, her heart pounding in anticipation even though she kneas too early for Alesandro to be up and about And indeed, it was only Dewhurst bringing her luggage

"Where would you like these, miss?" he asked

"Just put them there beside the bed"

"Yes, miss Mrs Thornfield said to tell you that Cook has prepared a light lunch It&039;s waiting for you when you&039;re ready"

"Thank you, Dewhurst"

With a nod, he left the room

The next few hours passed swiftly She ate lunch, unpacked her clothes, took a long, leisurely soak, washing away the dust of the journey And all the while her thoughts were on Alesandro Where was he now? She kneas capable ofrapidly from place to place He never slept in his rooms at the Hall or the Manor; they were little lanced around the chamber Would he expect to occupy this rooh she could not iht, too cheerful somehow It made her wonder if he had ever stayed in this house at all But if not, why did he have it?

Aware of the setting of the sun and the cooling water, she left the tub, dried briskly, and began to dress First came the ches, then her drawers Next ca she had never worn on the farm She looked at it athat Sally was not there to lace it for her With a sigh, she put on her robe Sitting at the dressing table, she began to brush out her hair, studying her reflection as she did so What did Alesandro see when he looked at her? She had never thought of herself as pretty She had always been too plain, too thin She leaned forward She had paid little attention to her looks in the past, but now she studied her face carefully She had filled out in the months she had been here There were no hollows in her cheeks, no shadows under her eyes Her skin was clear, her cheeks rosy Her hair was thick and had a nice healthy sheen

"I see a young and beautiful woman when I look at you," came a deep voice from behind her

With a little cry of joy, she turned to face him "Alesandro! You&039;re here at last"

"Dare I hope that you , she ainst his chest

"So, where would you like to go on your first night in the city?"

"Wherever you want, Alesandro It doesn&039;t ether"

"Ah, &039;Lisa, you make me weak"

"You, my lord?" she said with a sood to see her sone from her eyes

"I hope you don&039;t mind that I&039;ve taken this roolanced around The decor was far too feminine for his taste

"It wasn&039;t your room, then?"

"No I have never lived in this house"

"Never?"

He shook his head "I won it in a card galanced around the room "This is the first time I have been here"

"Is that why the display cabinet is es on the walls?"

"Yes I won the house and the furnishings, but I allowed Henry and his wife to take their personal effects"

"Are you sure you don&039;t want this chaest one"

He shook his head "You keep it I shall take the room that adjoins it"

A faint blush war the room next to hers It seemed so intimate, almost as if they were man and wife

"So, ala tonight Would you like to attend?"

She looked up at hi his He wanted to take her out, and although it see, with Sally so recently laid to rest, perhaps it would do her good to get out of the house, to think of so else besides Sally and Robert and the vaht of little else in the past teeks, cried until she had no tears left