Read Online Masked Love (A Christmas Regency Novella) by Nicole Zoltack - Free Book Online
Authors: Nicole Zoltack
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transpired has been my fault and no one else’s.” Lady Theodosia’s sigh echoed throughout the crammed chambers. Her high-waisted green muslin gown looked positively festive, the opposite of her face.
Isabelle had hung a tiny wreath above her bed. She walked over to it and plucked a piece of holly from it. With a careful hand, she pinned it to Lady Theodosia’s gown where it would direct attention to her bosom.
Lady Theodosia clasped her hand for a moment, then placed the letter on Isabelle’s bed, and walked out.
Finding a new employer would be far easier in some ways, but the single hardest reason remained, and would forever.
***
The part of the day Adrian dreaded the most had come: the Christmas toast.
“Adrian, would you like the honors?” Lord Haywood asked.
How could he graciously refuse without sounding like an aloof fool? Nothing came to mind, so he stepped forward. Everyone in the entire manor was in the dining hall, including the servants. Including Isabelle. She looked smaller today, more drawn in, and her plain gray dress appeared too big for her petite frame. He wanted to clothe her in silks and rich colors, gemstone hues to bring out the darkness of her hair and eyes. He wanted to wrap his arms around her and never let her leave his side. He wanted to give her the world.
But he couldn’t.
A gulf larger than the ocean spread between them. No ship could traverse the wicked waves. They were at an impasse that could never be conquered. Not if it meant leaving Lady Theodosia to be ravaged by a man who cared so little for ladies and their worth. Thankfully Lady Theodosia had her head about her and hadn’t run off to be married to the baron. Some ladies did that, married against their families’ wishes, and the results were unanimously disastrous.
Most everyone was staring at him, but he waited until she finally lifted her head and he melted a little at the hopeless resignation he saw in her russet eyes.
Adrian had no idea what to say but once he got started, the words tumbled out of him like a rushing waterfall gushes to the pond it fills. “Christmas is a time for new beginnings. A time for laughter. A time for joy. A time for setting aside differences and making amends. Christmas is about something so much more than the here and now. It’s a time to remember what is truly important.” He raised his glass. “To Christmas.”
“To Christmas!” Everyone raised their glasses before drinking. The sherry in his glass was much darker than in Isabelle’s, he noted.
Lord Haywood’s voice rose above all others. “You forgot one, my boy. Christmas is a time for love.” He nodded above Adrian’s head.
In the air, attached to the ceiling was a kissing bough. He and Lady Theodosia were standing beneath it.
“Go on, kiss her.”
Lady Theodosia prettily blushed and turned to the side, offering her cheek. He lowered his head and may have brushed his lips against her temple. He wasn’t certain; he pulled back immediately. Adrian raised his glass again and gulped the rest of its contents down. Normally, he loved Christmas, but this one was proving to be a catastrophe.
Lord Haywood himself poured more sherry into his empty glass. Adrian conspicuously glanced around the room. Isabelle was gone. Although he didn’t want to see how wounded she must be, he wanted to see her again. He even went as far as to start to walk away, but a plump woman barred his path and shook her head. Her gray eyes were like a hawk’s: wary, watchful, knowing.
Feeling like a slapped child, Adrian rejoined the crowd. All of him, that is, but his heart.
Time passed on in a blink of the eye and before Adrian knew it, the Haywood Manor was filled with more guests than he would have thought could be contained within its walls. Most of the well-wishers he recognized, but each exclamation of happiness left a foul taste in his mouth and no amount of beer could wash it away.
He felt lighter the
Isabelle had hung a tiny wreath above her bed. She walked over to it and plucked a piece of holly from it. With a careful hand, she pinned it to Lady Theodosia’s gown where it would direct attention to her bosom.
Lady Theodosia clasped her hand for a moment, then placed the letter on Isabelle’s bed, and walked out.
Finding a new employer would be far easier in some ways, but the single hardest reason remained, and would forever.
***
The part of the day Adrian dreaded the most had come: the Christmas toast.
“Adrian, would you like the honors?” Lord Haywood asked.
How could he graciously refuse without sounding like an aloof fool? Nothing came to mind, so he stepped forward. Everyone in the entire manor was in the dining hall, including the servants. Including Isabelle. She looked smaller today, more drawn in, and her plain gray dress appeared too big for her petite frame. He wanted to clothe her in silks and rich colors, gemstone hues to bring out the darkness of her hair and eyes. He wanted to wrap his arms around her and never let her leave his side. He wanted to give her the world.
But he couldn’t.
A gulf larger than the ocean spread between them. No ship could traverse the wicked waves. They were at an impasse that could never be conquered. Not if it meant leaving Lady Theodosia to be ravaged by a man who cared so little for ladies and their worth. Thankfully Lady Theodosia had her head about her and hadn’t run off to be married to the baron. Some ladies did that, married against their families’ wishes, and the results were unanimously disastrous.
Most everyone was staring at him, but he waited until she finally lifted her head and he melted a little at the hopeless resignation he saw in her russet eyes.
Adrian had no idea what to say but once he got started, the words tumbled out of him like a rushing waterfall gushes to the pond it fills. “Christmas is a time for new beginnings. A time for laughter. A time for joy. A time for setting aside differences and making amends. Christmas is about something so much more than the here and now. It’s a time to remember what is truly important.” He raised his glass. “To Christmas.”
“To Christmas!” Everyone raised their glasses before drinking. The sherry in his glass was much darker than in Isabelle’s, he noted.
Lord Haywood’s voice rose above all others. “You forgot one, my boy. Christmas is a time for love.” He nodded above Adrian’s head.
In the air, attached to the ceiling was a kissing bough. He and Lady Theodosia were standing beneath it.
“Go on, kiss her.”
Lady Theodosia prettily blushed and turned to the side, offering her cheek. He lowered his head and may have brushed his lips against her temple. He wasn’t certain; he pulled back immediately. Adrian raised his glass again and gulped the rest of its contents down. Normally, he loved Christmas, but this one was proving to be a catastrophe.
Lord Haywood himself poured more sherry into his empty glass. Adrian conspicuously glanced around the room. Isabelle was gone. Although he didn’t want to see how wounded she must be, he wanted to see her again. He even went as far as to start to walk away, but a plump woman barred his path and shook her head. Her gray eyes were like a hawk’s: wary, watchful, knowing.
Feeling like a slapped child, Adrian rejoined the crowd. All of him, that is, but his heart.
Time passed on in a blink of the eye and before Adrian knew it, the Haywood Manor was filled with more guests than he would have thought could be contained within its walls. Most of the well-wishers he recognized, but each exclamation of happiness left a foul taste in his mouth and no amount of beer could wash it away.
He felt lighter the
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