Read Online Persistent Earl : Signet Regency Romance (9781101578841) by Gail Eastwood - Free Book Online Page A

was saying as David finished whispering in her ear. “I am sure you thought you were being noble. But although your motives may have been the best, I have to tell you that in this case you did not do the right thing.”
    All three boys looked crestfallen at this, and for a moment, they did not seem to Phoebe all that far apart in age.
    â€œDavid, please tell your father and Aunt Phoebe what you just explained to me.” Judith looked very serious indeed.
    â€œThe boys told us there was a man over in the bushes who had been watching us ever since we had settled down in that spot in the park. We didn’t believe them. I thought if there was somebody, he was probably just—you know, cup-shot.”
    Phoebe saw Judith cringe as she heard this comment from her ten-year-old, but she did not interrupt.
    â€œWe looked where they pointed, and sure enough, there was a man there, watching Dorrie and Aunt Phoebe. But when he saw us looking his way, real quick-like he slid out from the bushes and walked away fast. We decided not to tell, because he left, and we thought Aunt Phoebe and Dorrie would just get frightened.”
    ***
    Dorrie had remained most noticeably silent after her siblings’ revelations at dinner. When the children were sent up to bed, Phoebe followed and sought to give her niece some reassurance.
    â€œYou mustn’t be alarmed about the man in the park, Dorrie. He was most likely just a secret admirer, embarrassed at being discovered. He did us no harm, and I’m sure he meant us none. We should feel flattered that he found us so worthy of his attention!” Perched casually on the edge of Dorrie’s bed, she managed to achieve a light, reassuring tone. She only wished she could believe her own words as easily as she hoped Dorrie would.
    When she stopped in the room that David and Thomas shared, the boys in turn assured her that they had sought merely to spare her feelings by not telling her about the unknown man. “There seemed to be no point in it,” David finished, “once the man was already gone.”
    â€œI appreciate and thank you for your attempt to shield me from being upset,” she said gently, observing their chastened spirits, “but I think somehow we have gotten things turned about. It is the adults who are supposed to shield the children, not the other way ’round.”
    She bid each of them good night with a kiss and quietly headed for the stairs, lost in thought. Did the children see her as so fragile, so weak, that she needed even their protection? Did they think, perhaps, that she was cowardly? She had never stopped before to consider how they might perceive her in the light of her reclusive habits. If that was indeed what they thought of her, then it was far and away time to make a change. It was time to take back control of her life and to stop hiding. For the first time all day, she felt glad that she had accepted Lucy’s invitation to tea.
    Mullins was waiting for her in the shadows of the first floor landing. He stepped forward just as she came down the last step.
    â€œOh, Mullins!” she exclaimed, putting her hand to her throat in an instinctive gesture. “I didn’t think there was anyone here but Aristotle,” she added, smiling as she regained her composure.
    â€œSorry to startle you, Lady Brodfield. I never meant to. It’s just that his lordship has been askin’ for you all day. Would you be kind enough to see him?”
    Would she? Phoebe hesitated. She had spent the afternoon with the children and their lessons, and with Judith in her sitting room. She supposed she was not a very responsible nurse if she did not at least check on her patient, much as she might prefer not to. Hadn’t she just resolved to stop hiding from things? “Very well,” she agreed. “I’ll stop in for just a moment.”
    As she entered the guest room, Phoebe was surprised to see by the soft light of the