Read Online Teach Me Under the Mistletoe by Kay Springsteen - Free Book Online

was the music that drew him toward the manor, and not any desire to see what Lady Caroline might be about. Every muscle in Hugh’s exhausted body called for him to find his bed, but he needed to remain wakeful until the last guests left or word was sent that they would be staying the night. A walk in the brisk night air had seemed the perfect solution. The full moon in the cloudless sky did little to dispel the shadows in the bushes, so he made certain to stick to the well-worn path. The night embraced him like a beloved blanket. Typically, the nights were his own, out of sight of the privileged, when he could do or say anything he wanted without worry of propriety.
    Except some of the things he wanted to do of late involved one of those privileged — a certain willful, walnut-haired temptress, to be exact. And that made his notions something even the nighttime couldn’t forgive. He should go, turn around and head in the other direction… except that way led to the gardens. And the follies. The memory of her soft skin beneath his fingers, the warm responsiveness of her lips against his… He still felt it all acutely, as though it had happened moments earlier instead of hours. No, to revisit the place it had all started would be worse than madness.
    So instead, he allowed himself to linger in the shadows listening to the trill of the pianoforte.
    The lively music brought a pang of sadness and a longing for home, where the family gatherings every Sunday would often turn to dancing in the parlor. Ah, his eldest sister, Fiona could dance a fine reel. And Jean… the wee lass had worked hard to keep up, her little legs not quite as quick. Dougal had often lifted their youngest sister to his shoulders and kept right on dancing.
    Hugh sighed and kicked a small stone into the bushes. Thoughts of his family had dampened his spirits. Their parents had succumbed to catarrh three… no, four years back come January. Both girls were grown and married, Fiona with three young ones of her own last he’d seen her. She and her husband lived in the family house now, worked the land together. It was fitting, as she’d loved the place the most.
    Muttering a particularly foul curse under his breath, Hugh spun on his heel and stalked away from the building. Apparently, the dinner party would be going on a bit longer. A joyful laugh caught his ear, and Hugh allowed his steps to drift to a stop. From his vantage point, he could just see through the window. Family and guests had lined up into a country dance. Someone laughed again. Lady Caroline?
    No, he realized, catching sight of Lady Jennifer with the young man servants had wagered would be her husband one day. Her joy brought Fi to mind again, and his heart lightened. Straining to hear and see more, he stepped closer and peered through the glass. Where was Lady Caroline?
    There! In the middle of the dance, being escorted up the line by a very young man in a stark black coat. The boy’s movements were awkward but the look on his face sincere as he regarded Lady Caroline before passing another couple and switching partners.
    Lady Caroline’s face lit with inner radiance that plucked at Hugh’s heartstrings as she accepted her new dance partner. Was that the man she’d set her cap for then? Stratton? No, Strathern. Hugh’s mind recoiled from the notion. Worldly? The man was far beyond worldly. He had to be in his middle thirties, not late twenties as Lady Caroline had surmised. Why would a beautiful young woman such as Lady Caroline want with him? The young boy returned with the man’s partner. What would the lady think of Lady Caroline’s interest in her escort?
    “Who in…” Hugh leaned closer. The woman looked vaguely familiar. Not vaguely, he realized, reeling backward. What was Lady Frances Braithwaite doing with Strathern? The last he’d heard, she’d been widowed and left nearly destitute as her elderly husband had bestowed his entire fortune on a nephew.
    Money. Apparently,