Free Witching Hour by Sara Craven

be said.
    'I've come to talk to your mother, yes.' His brows rose a little. 'Am
    I to infer that you haven't the slightest interest in hearing what I
    have to say?'
    Morgana shrugged. 'It's really none of my business. I just want my
    mother spared any further anxiety.'
    Lyall gave her a long look. 'Really? I imagine one of her major
    preoccupations right now must be you.'
    Morgana was utterly taken aback. 'What on earth are you talking
    about?'
    'Think about it,' he said succinctly. He swung back to Elsa, and
    smiled at her. 'Thanks for the reading. I'll be back for another one
    at a later date.'
    'You'm more than welcome,' Elsa assured him, sweeping the cards
    into a pile, but not before Morgana had seen the Queen of Hearts
    occupying pride of place in the spread.
    Irrationally, she found herself hoping that Elaine would have gone
    by now, but as they emerged from the kitchen passage into the
    hall, there she was, saying goodbye to Elizabeth Pentreath at the
    door, the watery sunlight turning her hair to a burnished aureole
    around her head.
    Morgana heard Lyall catch his breath sharply.
    Mrs Pentreath looked at her daughter, her brows raised in mute
    almost comical query as she saw her companion.
    'Elsa was telling his fortune in the kitchen,' Morgana said shortly.
    'How nice,' Mrs Pentreath murmured helplessly. 'Er— Miss
    Donleven, may I introduce our cousin Lyall Pentreath?'
    Elaine moved forward, extending a hand, her full lips parting in a
    smile of candid assessment. 'Oh, but I think we've met already,' she
    exclaimed. 'Weren't you at Lindsay van Guisen's party at Gstaad
    last Christmas?'
    'Yes, I was there.' Lyall took her hand and showed no sign of
    letting it go again. 'But if you're saying you were there, and I've
    forgotten, then I shall never forgive myself.'
    Elaine laughed prettily. 'Oh, you were far too occupied with
    Lindsay—and who can blame you? She's a very lovely girl, and
    she has all that wonderful money. I'd say it was an irresistible
    combination.'
    'I've managed to resist it so far,' he said rather drily. 'Lindsay's my
    stepsister.'
    'Lucky Lindsay,' Elaine murmured, then she paused, her eyes
    widening dramatically. 'Stepsister? Oh, my God, then you must be.
    . .'
    'Lyall van Guisen,' he supplied. 'I see you know the name.'
    'Well, of course.' Elaine said tremulously. 'Daddy's company does
    endless business with the van Guisen-Lyall corporation. Good
    heavens, this is absolutely amazing! I can't wait to tell him.'
    'Perhaps you'd also like to tell me,' Morgana interposed swiftly.
    'Just what is going, on here? We understood you were Lyall
    Pentreath, only now it turns out you're someone completely
    different.'
    He gave her an almost indifferent look. 'My full name is Lyall
    Pentreath van Guisen. When my mother remarried some years ago,
    my stepfather asked if I would take his name. He was a fine man,
    and I was happy to agree. Is that sufficient explanation?'
    'No, I'm damned if it is!' she retorted hotly. 'It seems to me we've
    taken far too much on trust already. Have you any means of
    proving who you really are?'
    He said wearily, 'I've already provided your lawyer with all the
    necessary credentials. What else do you want to know about?
    Birthmarks? I have none. And if you imagine for one moment I
    would go to the trouble of fabricating a claim to an estate which I
    know already is going to cause me nothing but problems, then
    you're crazy.'
    'Be nice to him, Morgana,' Elaine advised, her smile widening.
    'Most people would be glad to know they'd got a millionaire in the
    family. Owning even part of van Guisen-Lyall is like having your
    own private goldmine. I've often heard Daddy say so.'
    Morgana could feel the colour draining out of her cheeks. 'A
    millionaire? You're actually a millionaire?' The blaze was starting
    in her voice.
    He met her furious gaze, his own eyes cool and guarded. 'Yes—for
    my sins.'
    'There's only one sin that concerns me,' she said savagely. 'The sin
    of stealing