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Authors: Claire Firth
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evening, then sank back down on her chair. ‘As you wish,’ she murmured.
‘ We have not talked in any great detail since our wedding. Are you quite settled in at Sheldon Hall now? Is your room to your liking, for example?’
‘ I am quite settled Sir, thank you. And my room could not be more comfortable although it still feels a little strange to be living somewhere new.’
In truth she could not believe her good fortune. Sheldon Hall was a magnificent old residence set in beautiful grounds that she could not wait to explore more thoroughly, and she was enjoying being mistress of such a house. Her belongings had all been transferred from her previous home and from Sophia and Ralph ’s house, without her even being aware that it had happened, and for the first time in many years she had felt pleasure as she’d walked into her bedroom and seen all her familiar things surrounding her.
She felt a deep sense of gratitude at how her life had changed overnight yet she could not thank the one man who had made it all possible. The balance of power was a strange thing and at the moment she felt they both held their own cards. She was fearful of relinquishing any of it by highlighting her indebtedness to him.
‘Good,’ was all her husband said? He moved over to the fireplace and drew one of the large chairs closer to the fire.
‘ Come sit with me for a while and tell me a little about yourself, Isabelle. Your family for example.’ His look was shrewd . ‘I noticed you did not invite your brother and his wife to remain with us for dinner the night of our wedding. Am I right in suspecting there is something of a rift between you and your family?’
Isabelle shrugged. ‘I was never particularly close to my brother and though it pains me to say it, I feel I can never forgive him for being overly influenced by his wife in arranging what turned out to be a disastrous marriage.’
‘ I can understand why you would feel that. And your parents? Do you remember much of them?’
‘ Very little of my mother sadly. She died shortly after my sister was born due to complications that were not recognised at the time.’
Images of blond hair and a soft smile floated fleetingly through her mind, and as always when that happened she clung to them, trying to draw them more fully into her conscious mind. But as always, they were far too nebulous to form into a perfect picture. She had been four years old when her mother had died and it grieved her immensely that she simply had no memories of her at all, apart from a few trinkets of jewellery and a bottle of scent that had surely lost its original fragrance over the twenty two years that Isabelle had possessed it.
‘My father was a good man though and I remember him well. He sadly died in a riding accident when I was seventeen years old.’
‘ So you have been something of an orphan these last few years?’
‘ It certainly feels that way, although I look forward to re-acquainting myself with my sister, Louisa soon. She is expecting her first baby next March as you know and …’ she broke off, wondering if he would think she had overstepped her mark. ‘I trust you will not object, but I have offered to let her come to us for her confinement so that I may help her when the time comes?’
Guy lifted an amused eyebrow. ‘As long as you are not expecting me to participate in any shape or form, you are of course free to do as you wish.’
Silence fell in the room before Isabelle found herself asking, ‘And you? What of your life and family?’
‘ My mother you have seen enough of to form your own opinion. But suffice to say she has been a staunch ally for as long as I can remember. My father too was a good man, who lived for my mother. My sister, Claudia, you met on our marriage day. She is six years younger than I - twenty six this year. We do not have that much in common but we get along well enough.’
Isabelle
‘ We have not talked in any great detail since our wedding. Are you quite settled in at Sheldon Hall now? Is your room to your liking, for example?’
‘ I am quite settled Sir, thank you. And my room could not be more comfortable although it still feels a little strange to be living somewhere new.’
In truth she could not believe her good fortune. Sheldon Hall was a magnificent old residence set in beautiful grounds that she could not wait to explore more thoroughly, and she was enjoying being mistress of such a house. Her belongings had all been transferred from her previous home and from Sophia and Ralph ’s house, without her even being aware that it had happened, and for the first time in many years she had felt pleasure as she’d walked into her bedroom and seen all her familiar things surrounding her.
She felt a deep sense of gratitude at how her life had changed overnight yet she could not thank the one man who had made it all possible. The balance of power was a strange thing and at the moment she felt they both held their own cards. She was fearful of relinquishing any of it by highlighting her indebtedness to him.
‘Good,’ was all her husband said? He moved over to the fireplace and drew one of the large chairs closer to the fire.
‘ Come sit with me for a while and tell me a little about yourself, Isabelle. Your family for example.’ His look was shrewd . ‘I noticed you did not invite your brother and his wife to remain with us for dinner the night of our wedding. Am I right in suspecting there is something of a rift between you and your family?’
Isabelle shrugged. ‘I was never particularly close to my brother and though it pains me to say it, I feel I can never forgive him for being overly influenced by his wife in arranging what turned out to be a disastrous marriage.’
‘ I can understand why you would feel that. And your parents? Do you remember much of them?’
‘ Very little of my mother sadly. She died shortly after my sister was born due to complications that were not recognised at the time.’
Images of blond hair and a soft smile floated fleetingly through her mind, and as always when that happened she clung to them, trying to draw them more fully into her conscious mind. But as always, they were far too nebulous to form into a perfect picture. She had been four years old when her mother had died and it grieved her immensely that she simply had no memories of her at all, apart from a few trinkets of jewellery and a bottle of scent that had surely lost its original fragrance over the twenty two years that Isabelle had possessed it.
‘My father was a good man though and I remember him well. He sadly died in a riding accident when I was seventeen years old.’
‘ So you have been something of an orphan these last few years?’
‘ It certainly feels that way, although I look forward to re-acquainting myself with my sister, Louisa soon. She is expecting her first baby next March as you know and …’ she broke off, wondering if he would think she had overstepped her mark. ‘I trust you will not object, but I have offered to let her come to us for her confinement so that I may help her when the time comes?’
Guy lifted an amused eyebrow. ‘As long as you are not expecting me to participate in any shape or form, you are of course free to do as you wish.’
Silence fell in the room before Isabelle found herself asking, ‘And you? What of your life and family?’
‘ My mother you have seen enough of to form your own opinion. But suffice to say she has been a staunch ally for as long as I can remember. My father too was a good man, who lived for my mother. My sister, Claudia, you met on our marriage day. She is six years younger than I - twenty six this year. We do not have that much in common but we get along well enough.’
Isabelle
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