The Gilded Curse: Will the young heiress be the next victim of her family's curse?

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Authors: Marilyn Turk
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new. I’ll check. Sorry about that, Lexie.”
    “I did speak to a maid in the hallway when I left the room.”
    “And?”
    “She just apologized that the room wasn’t satisfactory. She didn’t really confess to doing it herself—said another maid could have done it.”
    “Hmmm. What did she look like?”
    “About my height, average, thin with brown hair.”
    “Well, that describes a lot of people. Can you tell me anything else about her?”
    “She looks like she used to be pretty when she was younger, but her face appears tired, like she’s had her share of troubles. Of course, they all wear the same black dress with a white apron and cap.” What was it that stood out? Her eyes. “You know her eyes were quite noticeable, that is, what I saw of them. She kept her head down like she was afraid to look at me. I guess you’d call them ‘hazel’.”
    Russell rubbed his chin and nodded. “Sounds like Stella.”
    Stella. That name rang a bell. “Has she been here long?”
    “Ever since she was a teenager. Like most of our employees, she’s been here a long time. That’s why it doesn’t make sense for her to bother your personal belongings. She knows better.”
    “Well, someone did. I didn’t dream this up.”
    That smug grin again. “I never said you did, Lexie.” He patted her hand.
    “I’ll speak to housekeeping about it.”
    “Thank you. You know, Russell, I feel like I’m not welcome here.”
    He raised an eyebrow. “What do you mean? Of course you are.”
    “No, really. I’ve gotten the strangest reactions from people.”
    “You’re talking about Abner, aren’t you? Well, he’s just a strange person.”
    Lexie stretched out her legs, wincing with the movement. She leaned over and massaged her calf.
    “Your leg hurts? Would you like me to look at it?”
    He gave her a little wink. She tried to ignore the flip-flop in her chest.
    “No, thank you. It’ll be all right. It’s just sore, that’s all.” She looked up at him. “It’s not just Abner. That maid—Stella—she seemed afraid to look at me, like she wanted to avoid me.”
    He laughed, his dimple deepening. “Probably just shy.”
    “Maybe.” Remembering the boat captain, she said, “And that fellow that drove the club launch. He was very unfriendly—almost rude.”
    “Jack? He’s Stella’s husband. I admit he’s kind of gruff. He’s always had a chip on his shoulder.”
    “Well, it just seems to me that people aren’t as friendly as they used to be.” She brushed sand off her hands. “It doesn’t matter. I won’t be here long anyway.”
    “You keep saying that. So you came just to see the cottage?”
    Lexie jerked her head toward him. “Well, yes. Isn’t that what your telegram was about?”
    He cocked his head. “My telegram? What telegram?”
    “The one you sent me.”
    Russell leaned close to her face, his expression dead serious for a change. “Lexie, I didn’t send you a telegram.

Chapter 8
    L exie drew back and stared at Russell, her mouth agape. She stammered for words.
    “B … but you signed it.”
    “Did you say it was a telegram?”
    “Yes.”
    “So I couldn’t have signed it.”
    She shook her head. “But it had your name on it.”
    Russell laid his hand over hers. “Lexie, I promise you, I didn’t send you a telegram.”
    She jerked her hand away. “Really? So how did you know I was coming? Why did you meet me at the dock when I arrived?”
    “Lexie. It’s my job to know which members are coming to the island. I review the reservations every day and discuss with the staff what preparations need to be made. So, when I saw you’d made a reservation for the twentieth of January, I knew you’d be coming on the club launch. That’s why I was at the dock looking for you.”
    He must be telling the truth. Yet, someone had sent her a telegram and used his name.
    “I don’t understand. If it wasn’t you, who was it? Why would someone pretend to be you?”
    “Because you might not

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