Read Online House of Glass by Jen Christie - Free Book Online Page A

beneath my feet, and I felt a freedom of spirit that had been missing since my father died.
    Maxie bolted toward the gardens. I followed her. I could smell the blooms. Already their perfumes were waning. They were past their nightly peak and would soon close their buds, like they did every day, and drop to the ground. I followed her to the fountain, past the magnolia trees and moonflowers and through the low hedges, until finally we had reached the heart of the garden. The fountain glowed white from the light of the moon.
    When I stepped into the clearing, I saw a figure already there. It was Lucas St. Claire and he was sitting on the bench next to the fountain. He was hunched over, with his head between his hands.
    He was a ravaged man. I saw that so clearly, and mourned for the man I saw only once, all those years ago. Since I had been employed here I had never seen joy in the man, only anguish. He must have had a love so deep for his wife in order to feel such despair. I watched him for only a few brief seconds, and when I heard a distant rumble of the storm, I knew that I must go.
    Maxie had disappeared and came bounding out again from somewhere in the bushes. She saw him and growled, her hackles raised and tail stiff.
    He shot up and hesitated, staring at me for a moment. In my white nightgown I must have looked like quite a fright.
    “Mr. St. Claire,” I said.
    It was an awkward predicament and I felt ashamed of my behavior, not just for going to the glass house, but now for crawling around the grounds at night, and I began to blabber. “I’m very sorry. Being out here, I mean. See, I try to feed the dog at night—”
    He came rushing over to me. His height blotted out the moon and he held up a hand to stop me from speaking.
    Maxie growled again, but I shushed her.
    He looked away. “It doesn’t matter.” He grabbed my arm and seemed almost surprised that it was solid. “Why have you become the ghost in my gardens? Why do you visit the house at night, roam the grounds at night?”
    The knowledge that he knew my curious habits made me flush. “I don’t know,” I said. “I can’t help it.”
    The sound of thunder filled the air. It was a booming, vibrating sound.
    “Where did that dog come from?” he asked.
    “She’s a stray, and I guess that I’ve adopted her in a way. I feed her scraps at night. She comes to my window after everyone is asleep.”
    “So, you roam the grounds at night? Have you thought that you might be tempting danger?”
    “Not danger,” I said.
    “What then, if not a thrill?”
    I looked around. A gust of air blasted us with the cool air of the coming storm. “Beauty,” I said. “Life.” All around me the flowers danced in the wind. “What are you doing here?”
    A few cold drops of rain pelted against us.
    He gave a cynical sound. “I have a dark nature. It’s at peace here.”
    The skies opened up and rain drenched over us. Lucas St. Claire grabbed my arm. “You’re coming with me,” he said. He shooed the dog away, and Maxie disappeared into the bushes once more.
    He pulled me along in his halting gait. I was acutely aware that I wore only the thinnest barrier, a mere gown. When we arrived at the manor he threw open the door to the house and led me up the stairs to the second floor and to a back bedroom. He pulled open another door, and led me up another flight of stairs. We were in an attic.
    I could smell the dust. All around us, white sheets floated, covering the bulky, forgotten items of the house. There was an enormous arced window, wide enough to feature the whole sky, which was alight with the thunderstorm.
    Lucas dragged an old chair across the floor and placed it just beneath the window.
    “Sit.”
    I sat.
    “Stay here.” He disappeared.
    I was alone. Maxie was outside somewhere. I watched the storm, with its great veins of white heat that shattered the heavens into a thousand pieces. Strangely, I was not afraid, only breathless, waiting to see how the