Read Online Truly I do by Katherine West - Free Book Online

raw-silk
curtains that hung sumptuously over the deep box mantle of the
stylised gothic-arched window. The invitingly soft bed was dressed
in a matching red and gold counterpane. The carpet was plush and
modern but Julie-Anne was equally comforted by her certain
knowledge that beneath that soft carpet lay an ancient oak floor,
probably worn smooth by the feet of many happy visitors and almost
certainly glossy and dark - she felt that the invisible history of
this room added to it's character as much as the lovely dressings
on display.
    Although the
room was cosy, outside it was dark now and very cold. Julie-Anne
could not see the world outside and was pleased to think that there
was a lot of exploring to look forward to in the morning. She flung
her shopping on the bed and set about running a hot bath to ease
her aching back and feet. But as she relaxed into a perfumed bubble
bath, she started once again to feel isolated and emotionally
neglected. She could not allow Russell Bryson-Steinar to become her
undoing, she decided. So long as she didn't get carried away with
her growing feelings for him she would be all right. After all,
this break could be such an adventure and it really was an
opportunity for her to re-define herself and gather some inner
strength to get her through her life to come. But that was going to
be a life alone by the looks of it. Who would ever fall in love
with such a dull, miserable widow? Even when she'd got married, it
seemed, her husband had no real love or passion for her and she, as
she now believed, was a passionless woman with nothing to offer.
She would have to settle for attempting to find some interesting
friends - or at least seeking out a few people like Russell who
could give her an environment for conversation and a few shared
interests form time to time.
    Julie-Anne was
beginning to get quite miserable, she'd just climbed out of the
bath and had wrapped her hair and body in the hotel's large white
towels when there was a knock on the door. Cautiously she cracked
the door open and saw a smartly dressed member of staff holding a
huge bouquet of red and gold flowers.
    "Oh!"
Julie-Anne gasped, throwing open the door to receive the flowers.
The boy holding them grinned cheekily at her, "Your, er, gentleman
friend sent these up!" he explained, "There's a card." The smug
expression on the boy's face suggested that he might have had a
sneaky look at the card but Julie-Anne didn't care. She took the
flowers and thanked him, retreating quickly back into her room to
investigate them.
    The card
simply said "Beautiful flowers for a special companion." That's a
pretty little non-committal phrase, Julie-Anne thought. It reads
like something they put as standard in the florist's shop - not
exactly a personalised declaration of new found love! Still, what
did she expect? She was just here to provide company and convenient
conversation as usual, and they were quite lovely flowers. They
were arranged in a special cellophane wrap that had water in it so
that she could stand them by the bedside as they were. She couldn't
help but smile as she noticed that the floral arrangement went
perfectly with the decor of the bed room and the decadent colours
cheered her up immensely.
    Determined not
to carry on wallowing in her loneliness, and with a lightness in
her step brought n by the prettiness of the flowers now perfuming
her room, Julie-Anne got on with organising her new clothes in the
wardrobe. While she moved around the room she'd wrapped herself in
her new cuddly robe and thick bed sox. While she dried and brushed
her hair to a lustrous shine she confined her thoughts to wondering
what supper would be on offer downstairs. She dare not allow her
mind to wander to Russell and that delicious kiss he'd used to
entice her to come here with him. What a pity that brief moment of
seduction had been nothing more than a type of bribery. Russell had
certainly known how to bait the hook to catch this silly little
fish