Page 122 of Storm of Bells
‘Excellent! Shall we?’ Helping the last girldown from the wagon, I took her with one arm and Carol with theother—which left no arm for Mr Ambrose, poor dear—and proceededtowards the manor steps. Half-turning, I gave him a wink. ‘I have afeeling we’re going to have a really interesting chat over tea. ButI’m sure you have important business matters to take care of,right? I wouldn’t want you to keep you from—’
‘I’m coming!’
‘Oh, well, if you insist.’ I nodded at myfriends and family. ‘Come on, girls. Let’s have some fun.’
And, arm in arm, we stepped inside themanor.
If I’d looked back, I might have noticed thedark figure watching out of the shadows.
Maids Made byMakeover
Have you ever had yourmanor house invaded by a gaggle of prostitutes right before yourwedding?
No?
I feel sorry for you. Something is missing inyour life.
‘Up! Up with ye! The early girl catches theearl!’
Groggily, I half-opened one eye, spying Amyat the bottom of my bed. ‘He’s a lord, not an earl,’ I croaked.
‘Even more reason to get up early. Move yerbutt, girly!’
Groaning, I was about to slip out of bed whenAmy’s friends wandered into the room, gazing around with bigeyes.
‘Ehem.’ I cleared my throat. ‘This is abedroom, in case you didn’t notice. A little privacy, please?’
The three exchanged looks.
‘Why?’ Amy asked, curiously.
I gazed at them, wiggling my eyebrowsmeaningfully. Not one of them got the meaning. But then…why shouldthey? They had probably wandered into more bedrooms in their livesthan I could count, and seen a lot more than the fascinating viewprovided by my generous derrière.
Sighing, I climbed out of bed and slippedbehind a modesty screen painted with flowers and birds. It took thethree girls about five seconds to glance around the screen.
‘What’s dis?’ Cora asked, tapping the screencuriously.
‘It’s pretty!’ Full of admiration, Jennyglanced at the birds and flowers. ‘But what’s da point of it?‘aven’t ye noticed ‘ow it blocks the view? Nobody can see ye whileyou undress, ye know.’
‘You don’t say. I never noticed.’
‘Glad I could ‘elp.’ Jenny continued studyingthe pretty birds and flowers. Amy, meanwhile, seemed to be moreintent on studying me. Critically.
‘Do you mind?’ I inclined my headmeaningfully towards the door.
‘Yes, quite a bit actually.’ Scrutinizing methrough narrow eyes, she marched around me. ‘Please tell me disain’t ‘ow ye intend to get married.’
‘Naked? No, I had been planning on keepingthat for later in the night.’
Cora nodded wisely. ‘Good plan.’
Jenny chewed on her lip, thoughtfully. ‘Idon’t know. I always found dat keepin’ clothes on during foreplayain’t workin’ well for me.’
I turned to Amy. ‘Those two do know what awedding is, don’t they?’
‘Hm…’ She scratched her chin. ‘I ain’t reallysure. I meant to explain it on the way ‘ere, but maybe Iforgot.’
Looking around at them, I took in a deepbreath—then focused on Amy, the leader of this little invasion.
