Read Online Carla Kelly by One Good Turn - Free Book Online Page A

way.”
    “I suppose I could have,” he agreed. “Sophie needed me, and I suppose I will imagine that Luster did.”
    For the first time, Liria seemed to lose some of her self-possession. “I did not mean to imply that your presence was not required, sir.”
    He looked at her, enjoying the sight of her face, so unlike that of an Englishwoman. I have missed the people of Spain, he thought with a pang. “I know you did not imply any such thing, Miss Valencia. I can only be grateful that you did not answer the summons of the coachman’s horn—heavens, is it five days ago now?—and leave me to the fate I probably deserved.” He hesitated, then plunged on. “But for Luster, I would have left you and Juan beside the road in the rain. I suppose you know it, but I feel a need for confession.”
    “I know,” she said softly. “I do not suppose that you are accustomed to helping women like me.”
    It was honestly spoken and left him no room to hem or haw. “True,” he admitted. “Appearances are deceiving. Excuse the cliché.”
    It was her turn to hesitate briefly. “Would it anger you to know that I was having the same thought?”
    He laughed. “No, it would not.” He looked at her and she returned his gaze, not boldly, as one of her class and station might, but in a measuring yet friendly way that startled him even more, because he knew that somewhere down deep, they were equals.
    He thought then about Huddersfield. I wonder if she is seeking work in the mills, he thought. Juan will not be able to be with her then. “Liria, are you planning to work in the textile mills in Huddersfield?” he asked suddenly when she kissed Juan, deposited him on the sofa, and went to the door.
    She nodded. “I have heard of a mill owner who has a school.”
    “That may be, but you will be long hours at the loom. Must you do that?”
    “If Juan and I are to live,” she replied, and turned the door handle.
    He was on his feet then. “Have you another choice? Could you return to Spain?”
    “No,” she said, and nothing more.
    That is the short answer, he thought, but could not help noticing that she seemed to want to say more. “Is there more?” he asked, knowing how intrusive it was to question her.
    He thought she would tell him, but the moment passed. “Very well. I only ask that you come with me to Knare until I can get Sophie and Luster situated. I intend to pay you for your services, and pay your fare to Huddersfield.” He waited for her to object, but to his relief she did not.
    “That is kind of you, sir,” she said. She hesitated, and he hoped for one small moment that she would tell him more about herself. “I suppose I should have asked this sooner in our acquaintance, sir, but should I be addressing you differently? Luster told me you are a duke.”
    Bother it, he thought, disappointed. “I am. I live in relative splendor in a pile of stones called Knare. I am the despair of my tailor because I dress as you see me. My sister Augusta rails at me because I never bother to go to the House of Lords in velvet and ermine. Now, why should a man wear velvet and ermine? My housekeeper sighs and clucks her tongue because I insist on eating belowstairs.”
    “That
is
eccentric,” Liria interrupted, and it pleased him, because it was almost a joke from such a serious woman.
    He continued, pleased to be amusing her. “Augusta is nagging at me to marry and set up my own nursery, but . . .” He hesitated. Why am I telling you all this, he asked himself. “Well, I was in love with another, and she married someone else.”
    “You can’t forget her?” Liria asked, when he did not continue.
    “I should, shouldn’t I? She married a wonderful man, someone I even like, damn his eyes.”
    “Forgetting is difficult,” she said.
    “Yes, it is,” he agreed. And what are you having to forget, he thought. “Augusta is right, though. I will make a serious effort to find a wife this summer. Oh, the original question, I