Free Too Wild to Wed by Jayne Ann Krentz Page A

was in a room full of exotic strangers.
    One of the them
    — a young, pretty woman with a mass of burnished gold hair flowing out from under a fillet — spotted Sheldon and started toward him. The woman's gown was cut considerably lower than Letty's and revealed a great deal of healthy cleavage. She looked to be about college age. She was fit and tan and extremely energetic. There was something in the sway of her walk and in her open, fresh good looks that spoke loudly of Southern California beaches.
    "Hey, Shelly babe," the young woman exclaimed in the bright breezy accents one associates with cheerleaders, "gee, I'm glad you made it. I've been looking forward to seeing you again." She gave him a quick, proprietorial kiss on the cheek and then turned speculative eyes toward Letty. "Oh, hi there. Who's your little friend, Shelly?"
    An oddly flustered expression appeared in Sheldon's eyes for a few seconds. He got control of himself quickly. "Dr. Letty Conroy, meet Jennifer Thorne." Sheldon smiled warmly at the blonde. "Jennifer's father is one of the trustees of Rothwell College. You've heard of Rothwell, haven't you, Letty?"
    "Rothwell," Letty repeated thoughtfully. "Isn't that the college down in Southern California that features pictures of students playing beach volleyball on the cover of its brochures?"
    "Rothwell is what is familiarly known in the trade as a party school," Sheldon said. "Isn't that right, Jennifer?"
    "Like absolutely for sure. Shelly. At Rothwell we believe in having fun while you get an education," Jennifer said. She giggled and her cleavage bounced exuberantly in response.
    "You're attending Rothwell?" Letty asked politely.
    "For sure. I'm a senior this year."
    "Majoring in history?"
    "Oh, no. I'm a drama major. What on earth would I do with a degree in history? I'm going to be an actress. But I just love fooling around with medieval history, don't I, Shelly babe?"
    "Er, yes. Yes, you certainly do, Jennifer." Sheldon cleared his throat and gave her a serious, confidential look. "Would you mind if we got together a little later, babe? I have a few things to discuss with Dr. Conroy."
    "For sure. Shelly babe. See you later." Jennifer smiled her blinding smile and waggled her long-nailed fingers. It was apparent she did not consider Letty much of a threat. '"Bye, Doc." She swayed off into the crowd.
    Letty wrinkled her nose. "Doc?"
    "Hey, babe, you've got a Ph.D.," Sheldon said, clapping her jovially on the back. "Might as well flaunt it. Most of the other folks here tonight are real amateurs
    — dentists, stockbrokers, secretaries, all kinds of people who just happen to get a charge out of the medieval thing, you know?"
    "I think that's nice. It's good to see non-academic people taking an active interest in history."
    "I'll let you in on a little secret. The Inner Circle would like to attract a few more members with some legitimate academic credits. They see it as a way of raising the academic credibility of the Order. Get my drift?"
    "I didn't realize the Revelers were interested in raising their academic credibility."
    "Well, it's true, they're all amateurs and hobbyists, but a lot of 'em think they should get more respect from mainstream historians." He winked broadly. "Play your cards right with Sir Richard and I have a hunch you're a shoo-in for membership."
    "Sir Richard? That would be Richard Hodson? The Grand Master of the Order?"
    "You got it. He'd love to get a few more genuine historians on board. It would make him look good. By the way, Letty," Sheldon continued amiably, "speaking of academic credits, I read your last paper. The one on medieval marriage contracts of the early thirteenth century. Very interesting." He nodded with a wise air. "Not a bad job, my girl."
    "Thank you."
    "I've been wanting to discuss it with you. I detected one or two weak points, but on the whole, I believe you're on the right track. Recently I've been doing some new research in the same period and it occurs to