Page 45 of A Delicate Deception
Dearest Amelia,
I shamelessly stole your most recent book from Lex’s bookcase and leftMoral Talesin its place. I stayed up unconscionably late reading it. I found myself wishing that Mary, Queen of Scots really had killed all those people. Unfortunately, this means I’ve now read all your books. When will the next be finished?
Yours,
Sydney
3 September, 1824
Dearest Sydney,
The next book is still in its larval stages and we won’t speak of it. However, in the spirit of full disclosure, I can tell you that I have written another book, but I couldn’t put my name on it for reasons that would make themselves abundantly clear as soon as you saw it.
You may be interested to know that I have not had a single blackberry in over a week because Georgiana has brought them all to the duke and Leontine. First the strawberries, and now this. It’s nothing less than robbery. This might seem unremarkable if you did not know how jealously Georgiana guards her sweets.
Yours,
Amelia
5 September, 1824
Dearest Amelia,
Are you telling me what I think you’re telling me? Give me the title. I promise I’ll destroy the letter immediately upon receipt.
Yours,
Sydney
7 September, 1824
S—
A Princely Imposition.
—A
9 September, 1824
Dearest Amelia,
If you had told me two months ago that I would have had occasion to visit the sort of bookseller that carries obscene literature behind the counter, and would look forward to it, I would have assumed I had run mad. Booksellers of illicit material are very warm and welcoming, as it turns out. I only blushed the color of a tomato and stammered four times before I could utter the title aloud. The engravings are very educational and I’ve also learned a good deal about history.
Ever yours,
Sydney
11 September, 1824
Dear Sydney,
I’ll regret to my dying day that I wasn’t present to see you blush and stammer at the bookseller. I ought to tell you that I didn’t write the entire book. I was responsible for the historical content while a friend wrote the more interpersonal segments.
Yours,
Amelia
13 September, 1824
