Page 16 of Her Wicked Duke
A pink-colored letter lay on her bed. She looked around, a horrible, cold shiver running down her spine. How had it gotten in there? Had the butler delivered it straight to her bedroom? That was not how he usually did it…
Almost afraid to look at the letter, Anne slowly walked toward it.
It had been a while since this had happened. She had mistaken the silence for safety.
She picked up the letter, letting out a dismayed cry as she saw the telltale line on the back.
My beautiful Anne…
It was as if the secret sender wanted her to know it was from the same person each time. It was not an admirer but a stalker that had haunted her previous Seasons.
Now he was back.
She clutched the letter in her hand, almost crumpling it. Her heart raced. Usually, she went to Christian when she received these letters, but she could not anymore. She did not know when he would be back.
Anne considered staying quiet. She read the contents, the lines imprinting on her mind, so like the other letters she’d received. Each word weighed heavier on her heart.
My beautiful Anne,
What a glorious night it was at the stunning Angleton residence! I watched you from afar, as I often do.
Do you remember those first events, Anne? You did not yet know of my presence, but I bided my time, waiting for the perfect moment to introduce myself in words to you.
I hope it pains you as much as it pains me, this secrecy. We cannot be together yet, but someday we might get that chance. I swear I shall be a bold enough gentleman and will make you proud to find out who I am. We must converse in secret so I can come up with a solution!
As ever, my most angelic Anne, the lady of my dreams, the true love I have held in my heart from afar, I wish for a response to my letters. I only ask for small signals we can send each other.
Wear a pink flower in your hair, and I shall know you return my affections. If you do not, then woe to the other suitors you may choose over me. It would be a shame if any fellow gentlemen’s reputations affect yours, Anne…
Ever yours,
The Man Who Holds Your Heart.
Anne clapped a hand over her mouth in distress and thought about telling her mother about this man who thought she harbored affection for him already.
But her mama loved attention and saw negative attention as catching someone’s eye. To her, negative attention did not exist. She would find a way to twist the meaning of the letters, and perhaps encourage Anne to find out who her stalker was and dance with him at the next ball.
No, Anne could not tell her mother. Not yet, anyway.
But her sister… Yes, Mary would know how to comfort her. At the very least, she would listen to her.
Anne folded the letter, called for a coach, and went to her sister’s home.
Chapter Six
“Lady Anne,” the butler said as Anne stood in front of the door to the grand home of the Earl and Countess of Yore. “Her Ladyship does not know you are here?”
Anne shifted nervously. Did the stalker watch her? Did he deliver his letters personally, somehow gaining access to the Angleton residence, or did he have them delivered via post? Did he watch her every move? And did he see her at the ball, hiding away upstairs with the Duke of Winsor?
“No, I did not send word ahead,” Anne said, her words rushed. Her hands twitched, crumpling the letter. She had read it again and again on the carriage ride here, growing more and more agitated. “May I come in?”
“Of course.” The butler stood back and let her in. “Her Ladyship is in the garden.”
Anne thanked him and hurried through her sister’s home, which was filled with portraits of all the previous Earls of Yore before Patrick Leeds, the man she had married three years ago. There had to have been at least ten generations of them, all wealthy. And now her sister was part of that, and Anne wondered what her own future home might hold from its past.
Desperate to put the stalker out of her mind, she thought of the Duke of Winsor. She wondered if family portraits hung on the walls of his castle.
Most likely, if to show off just how influential his family is.
