Page 22 (1/2)

CHAPTER ONE

Cornwall, England 1816

Annabel Drake,to the Count of Winchester, turned her attention to the tilted carriage behind her, with a broken wheel And then upwards to the lead sky speaking of soon-to-be rain The situation did not bode well Her coachman went for help and her foot for a way to fix it

She had been standing there for alh she knehere she was and why The Duke of Blackthorne’s lands extended far beyond the point she found herself at that exact uards, or whatever his castle held for surveying his property, to approach her at any moment That hat she planned for after all Certainty that the Duke hiainst what she had to do

The thought h her She did not care for the Duke He became a recluse after Napoleon went to Saint Helena Sometimes, he took up residence in his opulent townhouse in London, which seeh he never showed up in any ton event Her sources had kept her informed of his whereabouts

Horse roofs sounded in the distance, together with a faraway thunder She turned to her left to see four horse in her direction As the distance diminished, she saw her coach a brisk wind that traversed her coak to chill her bones The chill induced by ame was on

Horseht before her, dressed in a kind of livery One of thely the leader, dismounted and boithout any special deference to her obvious status He walked to the carriage wheel, carefully e of horses, a couple ofpart, touched the crack in it and straightened again to raise his head to the fading light on the grey sky

The man looked none too pleased as he ca, my lady”

She feigned contrariety at his news “May we seek shelter here for the night?” There was no inn nearby, and they surely had no possibility to escort her far and away from their duties

“Begging your pardon, my lady The Duke would not be amenable to that, but I suppose there is no other option”

“I shall be grateful for his generous hospitality” Sarcasht would have to do

Her coachht it to her The servant bent his head as if apologising for the astride saddle the ani dress would not allow even for a side saddle, let alone for an astride one But she was not in a position to be picky, so she hid her discontent The countess hoped her cloak would cover her legs, where her dress would inevitably roll up her calves Decisively, she stuck her soft walking boot on the stirrup and gave just the right i thatThe livered eness, unaccustomed to see a woman mount alone Her coachman and footman kneell of her skills and did not even bother She covered her legs with her cloak and commanded the horse forward