Read Online Lily (Song of the River) by Aaron McCarver, Diane T. Ashley - Free Book Online

here with us soon enough. In the meantime, you should work on your sampler.”
    “I don’t want to.”
    “Young ladies must learn how to make neat stitches, or you’ll never get married.” Camellia’s voice was a perfect imitation of her aunt Dahlia’s.
    Tamar shook her head. “Miss Jasmine is much too young to be thinking on such things.”
    “Aunt Dahlia says one is never too young to be a lady.”
    “I’m sure she’s right, Miss Camellia, but that doesn’t mean your little sister should be worrying about marrying.” But that day would come. Miss Lily was likely to be wed before the year was out, and no one could doubt Miss Camellia would be snapped up before she was eighteen.
    It seemed like only yesterday when the three girls had come to live with their grandpa and grandma. So sad they’d been to lose their ma in that terrible storm. Tamar’s heart had been torn by their tears, even though she’d never rightly known her own ma. That was to be expected for a slave. But not for the privileged white children of a wealthy family. Then they’d lost their pa, too. She’d heard the others slaves say Master Isaiah had made him promise to stay away. Such a sad thing—
    Her thoughts were interrupted when the door to the nursery burst open, and two young men stepped inside. One sported a thatch of straight red hair while the other had a head of dark, curly hair. But their relationship was obvious in their facial features and stocky, square bodies.
    The older one sketched a bow and advanced to the sofa where Camellia and Jasmine sat. “I’m Adolphus Marvin Jr., and this is my little brother, Samuel. It’s a pleasure to meet you.” A smile of assurance turned up the corners of his mouth.
    A handful that one would be. Tamar shook her head and picked up Miss Jasmine’s porcelain doll, placing it carefully on a shelf. He was the type who would catch a girl in the shadows and steal a kiss or even more, if possible. She might be a slave, but she could recognize trouble when it walked into the room.
    The younger boy wore an expression of admiration as he watched Adolphus Jr. talking to the two girls. It seemed Samuel was likely to follow in his older brother’s footsteps.
    Tamar continued to move around the room, straightening the books and toys that had not been put away as she listened to the children getting acquainted. They talked about whether they would become related and how odd it would be if the two girls were to become their aunts. A smile touched her lips at the idea.
    “I brought my marbles.” The younger Marvin boy held out a hand to show off four shiny orbs. “Do you want to play?”
    “Of course they don’t want to play, Samuel.” The older boy rolled his eyes. “They’re girls. They can’t sit on the ground to play.”
    “I can.” Jasmine put down her sampler and slid from the sofa to the wooden floor. “See?”
    Tamar stepped toward her. “Now, Miss Jasmine, you’re going to get your dress all dirty.”
    Adolphus Jr. sneered. “Leave her alone, slave. It’s not up to you to tell your betters how to act.”
    Tamar stepped back as though she’d been slapped. She might be a slave, but as the maid to the beloved granddaughters of the Blackstone home, she had earned a place of respect. Miss Dahlia might scold her for some perceived infraction, but no one ordered her around like one of the field hands.
    Both Marvin boys laughed. Camellia giggled, but Jasmine stood up. “You don’t talk that way to Tamar. She’s my friend.”
    Camellia’s face went slack with surprise. She glanced from her little sister to the two boys, who were laughing. “Stop laughing.”
    Samuel made a rude noise. “You can’t tell me what to do.”
    Tamar knew it was her duty to maintain order in the nursery, but she
was
only a slave. She didn’t need to make any enemies, especially if these boys were going to visit often. She had heard below stairs how much Miss Dahlia and her husband wanted Lily to marry Mr.