Read Online Once Upon an Accident 01 - The Accidental Countess by Melissa Schroeder - Free Book Online

knew, especially in the constricting environment of society. But he was also thankful. She’d smoothed over an awkward moment.
    Colleen cleared her throat, and a fine blush worked up her cheeks. She shot him a dirty look. “Thank you, Lady Anna. Why don’t you make yourselves comfortable while I make tea?”
    “Oh, that would be wonderful, Colleen. You know, it is so very cold outside, and Mother and I were wandering forever trying to find this place. There is a lot of confusion here because of the blizzard. Do you want some help fetching the tea?”
    He almost laughed out loud when Colleen agreed, knowing his sister would drive her batty. Anna linked her arm through Colleen’s and winked at Sebastian as she passed him. He watched them leave, and as soon as the door clicked, he knew his mother would not hold back any longer.
    “Sebastian, what on earth is going on?”
    He turned and looked at his mother. In her late fifties, she was still a very attractive woman. On any other day, there was a sparkle in her blue eyes, and she was always ready with some sort of witty joke. Her sense of humor, along with what they called bluestocking ways, had made her an Original during her first year in the ton. The story was that his father apparently had to fight off several suitors, many of whom started reappearing within a year of his father’s death. Although he knew she’d had more than one or two offers of marriage, she’d turned down every one.
    She was a good mother, patient and loving, tender but strong. Since reaching majority, he had enjoyed their relationship. At the moment though, memories of being called onto the carpet flitted across his mind. He felt as if he were eight years old again.
    “Mother, let’s get your wet cloak off of you, and then I’ll explain.” He helped remove her cloak, then escorted her to a pair of comfortable chairs near the fire. After she was settled, he joined her in the chair opposite. “A week ago, Miss Macgregor found me passed out in the snow, the day the blizzard struck.”
    She frowned at him, her finely arched eyebrows wrinkled in disapproval. “ Sebastian . You’ve never been given to drink.”
    “Well, I hadn’t then, either. I’d been hit on the head. She brought me inside and nursed me back to health.” He went on to explain how sick he had been, and just how much Colleen had done to save him. “Unfortunately, the vicar found me with her in her bedroom, and so the marriage was forced.”
    “She trapped you into marriage?” Outrage filled her voice.
    He laughed, and his mother’s eyes narrowed. “No, I can assure you she did not. She’s none too happy about being married to me.”
    Immediately her outrage turned another corner. “Why, what is wrong with the girl? I’ll have a talk with her and set her straight. She should be overjoyed to have you as her—”
    He laughed again, stopping her defense of him. “Thank you, Mother, but that’s really not needed. No, really,” he said, grabbing his mother’s hand as she rose from her chair. She reseated herself and gave him a good frown. “No, listen, the idea was I would send her news of my death when I returned to London. She wouldn’t marry me without that one promise. I didn’t know what else to do, Mother. If I did not marry her, she would have lost her reputation and probably this house. It is the one thing she has left in the world. That is not the way to pay back a woman who saved my life.”
    Her eyes softened, a slight smile curving her lips. “You were always such a good lad.” She raised her hand to his cheek as she had when he was young. “Always taking in those strays. Drove your father mad when you snuck in that mongrel… What did you name her?”
    “Winifred.”
    She stood and walked to the window. “Winnie. She was a good dog.”
    “Yes, she was.” He remembered sneaking her in, and the staff helping him to hide her for a week. “Father was furious for a whole day.”
    His mother chuckled.