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‘Sir? Please tell me you’re not going to do anything stupid, Sir!’
He cocked his head, gazing at me as if I were a bug under the microscope questioning the scientist about his methods.
‘I am not going to do anything stupid.’
For a moment, I wanted to breathe a sigh of relief - until I remembered that a man who had spies in Buckingham Palace transcribe the Queen’s private diary and engaged in sea battles with foreign nations that didn’t appreciate his particular brand of ‘free trade’ policy probably had a different definition of ‘something stupid’ than sweet little me.
‘Then what are you going to do?’
He met my eyes and his gaze was…impassive. Calm. Ruthless.
‘I am going to my room and do some paperwork. There is a file I’ve suddenly remembered I need to take care of.’
‘A…file?’
‘Yes.’
Relief flooded through me. ‘Oh, very well, if that’s all…’
‘Mr Linton! Rick! Come and see! More guests are arriving!’ Suddenly, rapid footsteps were approaching us. In an instant, Mr Ambrose was at the other end of the alcove, assuming a perfectly innocent pose, as if he hadn’t just been ravishing my mouth. A moment later, the curtain was pulled back, and Adaira’s face was framed in bright light.
‘There you are! What are you two doing in here?’
‘Um…we-’
‘Oh, forget it! What do I care about boring business stuff?’
‘Err…yes. Boring. Very boring. Wouldn’t interest you at all.’
/> ‘Come and see! The next coach is rolling up in front of the house right this moment.’
She latched onto me, and reluctantly I let myself be dragged outside, Mr Ambrose following in my wake, colder and more silent than ever. We followed her out into the yard where, indeed, several more carriages were pulling up.
I had to admit, after the earlier surprise with Captain Carter, meeting the ladies was something of an anti-climax. Yes, some of them were - in spite of my best efforts - quite beautiful, and all of them eyed the silent figure of Mr Ambrose as if it was already Christmas and he was the present they wanted to unwrap first. But their arrival had lost the bite of shock. After all, how could anything be more shocking than the captain’s sudden arrival on the scene?
I found out how soon enough.
‘Oh, look!’
Adaira’s excited words made me glance up - and my eyes widened. A coach was rolling across the courtyard - a coach so monumental, so luxurious, so perfect it practically breathed wealth and power. It looked like you’d imagine Cinderella’s coach would have looked like if her fairy godmother hadn’t just been an amateur, but had come with a PhD in fairygodmothering. Only…I was fairly sure that, unfortunately, this coach wouldn’t turn into a pumpkin at midnight.
‘Who is that?’ Lady Samantha breathed.
‘Don’t you see the crest on the door, mother? It’s Lady Caroline!’
‘Caroline…no. That can’t be her. I heard her father had recently made some good investments, but this-’
I swallowed. To judge by the amount of gold on that coach, those had to have been some really good investments. This girl had money. A lot of money.
Unable to look at Mr Ambrose, I stood there like a statue while the most magnificent of coaches rolled to a halt, the door swung open, and out of the interior emerged the ice queen herself. Or at least that’s what she looked like. Blonde hair, brilliant blue eyes, and clad in a breathtakingly bejewelled fur coat under which the hem of a blue-white dress peeked out just enough to showcase the gold on the hem.
This girl, in her current attire, was worth at least five thousand pounds. And the worst thing was: she looked as if she were worth twice as much. I hardly recognised her as the shy-looking girl I had seen in Lady Samantha’s engraving collection. And apparently I wasn’t alone in that feeling.
‘Caroline?’ Adaira’s incredulous whisper from beside me was barely audible.
I guess it was right what they said. Clothes do make the man - and the woman.
‘Hello, everyone. It’s so good to see you again!’ Lady Caroline smiled a brilliant smile, whiter even than the snow around her. ‘Adaira, you look lovelier each day. Lady Samantha! I can’t wait to see your Christmas decorations. I’m sure they’re even more beautiful than last year. And-’
