Page 79 (2/2)

A few hours later, the carriage for which she'd been watching so diligently came to a halt in front of the house, and Turner, weary froer to see his wife, hopped down He reached into one of his bags and withdrew a neatly wrapped package, leaving the rest of his luggage with the vehicle for the foot in He looked up at the house and noted that no light was burning in their bedroom He hoped that Miranda wasn't already asleep; he hadn't the heart to wake her, but he really wanted to speak with her that evening and try toto dislodge some of the mud fro for hi as Miranda, opened the door before Turner could knock

"Good evening, Brearley," Turner said affably

"May I be the first to welcome you home, my lord"

"Thank you Is my wife still awake?"

"I believe she is in the rose salon, ed off his coat "She certainly likes to do that"

"We are fortunate to have such a well-read lady," Brearley added

Turner blinked "We don't have a rose salon, Brearley"

"We do now, my lord In the forood for her I want her to think of this place as home"

"As do we all, my lord"

Turner s the household staff The o surprise her now" He strode across the front hall, veering right until he reached what used to be the west salon The door was slightly ajar, and Turner could see the flicker of a candle Silly woht to know that she needed more than one candle to read

He pushed the door open a fewback on the sofa, heracross her belly, and a half-eaten meal sat on the table next to her She looked so lovely and innocent, his heart ached He had ht of her, and their inauspicious parting, nearly every minute of every day But he did not think he'd realized just how deep and ele had been until this very ain, her eyes closed, her chest rising and falling gently in slumber

He'd told himself he would not wake her, but that, he reasoned, hen he'd thought she would be in their bedchao upstairs to bed, so he ht as well be the one to do it

He walked over to the sofa, pushed her dinner to the side, and perched on the table, letting his package rest on his lap "Wake up, dar- " He broke off, belatedly re how she had ordered hier He touched her shoulder "Wake up, Miranda"