Page 25 of Once Upon a Midnight Dreary
And yet, he stood there like a statue.Towel clutched tightly in his hands.Eyes guarded.Walls so thick she’d need a chisel to get through them.
Was it that he didn’t want her here?Or was that just who he was—distant, cold, unknowable?
Either way, if she didn’t find a way to coexist with Gabriel Allward, her new life would be far lonelier than she’d imagined.
“I can’t have you doing it all,” she said, stepping farther into the room.“I intend to send out inquiries today.The house needs a proper staff.A cook, for sure.A housekeeper.A groundskeeper.Possibly a butler.”
His jaw ticked.Barely.But she noticed.
“As you wish, Miss Ravenwood,” he said, folding the towel with precision.“I’d be happy to deliver the letters on your behalf.”
She arched a brow.“No need.I’ll manage.A walk will do me good.”
Something unreadable passed through his expression, then vanished as quickly as it came.“As you say.”
She left the kitchen with a new sense of purpose and a touch of unease.The manor might not want her here, and Gabriel certainly wasn’t going to make it easy.
But it was her house now.
And she would make it her own.
When she left the kitchen, Gabriel sagged against the sink.The quiet returned.But it wasn’t comforting.Not anymore.He braced himself against the sink.The thought of strangers roaming the halls again, touching things best left untouched, made his skin crawl.
Apprehension swept through him at the thought of the lady hiring more staff.If she hired staff, where did that leave him?He was bound here.He could not leave, even if he wanted to.He knew, from experience, that would not go well.Ravenfell would not want that.
Nor would Lenore.
He hadn’t sensed her presence all morning.A reprieve, he hoped.The moment new employees arrived, she would become ever present.Lingering in the shadows and doing her best to make life unbearable for everyone in the manor.
Himself included.
He hadn’t had a chance to look over the ledgers he took from the study.But the fresh ink with Victoria’s name haunted him.He suspected he knew what that meant, but he didn’t want to admit it.He preferred not to think about the past.
And he certainly could not think about a future with the new mistress.
The scent of lilacs lingered, enveloping him.As though his thoughts conjured her.She was here.
You cannot allow her to hire staff.
His chest constricted.“Please, don’t,” he whispered.“She is the new mistress.”
She’s already disturbed the west wing more than once.
“She didn’t mean to.She didn’t know.”
That doesn’t matter.It didn’t then.It doesn’t now.
His mouth went dry as he turned to face the sink.His gaze fixed on the window over it, peering into the garden where the herbs swayed in the wind and the flowers fluttered against the breeze.
The days of serenity were over.His solitude was gone.And with that meant the return of Lenore and—
No.He wouldn’t think of that now.He couldn’t.The memory was too painful.He shoved the thoughts back down into the shadowed recesses of his mind.His eyes closed against the cheerful garden to push those dark thoughts back.
Darkness.Yes, he deserved to live in darkness for the rest of his miserable days for what he did.He deserved to be alone and forgotten.
Get rid of her.Or I will.
Lenore was gone leaving behind her dangerous threat.
