Free Thunder and Roses by Mary Jo Putney Page B

leave you to your own devices for the rest of the afternoon. We dine at six. If you wish to bathe first, ring from your room. The staff should be able to manage hot water. Until dinner?”
     
    He withdrew, already feeling less oppressed by the house. Three months of Clare’s sturdy good sense should improve Aberdare immeasurably. Perhaps, in time, it might no longer feel so much like his grandfather’s house.
     
      Clare spent the next hour examining the public rooms. The basic layout and proportions were appealing, but the furnishings seemed to have been chosen more for grandeur than comfort, and there was too much of everything.
     
    When she finished her survey, she went to her bedchamber, which was as large as the whole ground
     
    floor of her cottage. It was also cluttered, but the blue draperies and bed hangings were pretty. If she removed all the unnecessary furniture and the two dismal paintings of dead animals, it would be quite pleasant.
     
    Feeling drained, she self-indulgently flopped across the bed, then folded her hands behind her head and thought about what had happened since she had arrived at Aberdare. It seemed as if days rather than hours had passed.
     
    She was still incredulous that the earl had casually handed the reins of his household to her, with blanket permission to spend what she wished. But now that she had recovered from her surprise, she relished the prospect of improving this gaudy, dusty, neglected mansion. For the rest of the afternoon, she thought, made lists, and jotted down question to herself.
     
    She was drawn from her plans when the clock struck five. Time to prepare for her first dinner with Nicholas.
     
    Work had steadied her, and she no longer felt as emotionally fragile as she had by the lake. Nonetheless, being in such a grand house was unnerving. Even ringing for a bath made her uncomfortable, since the Morgans had never had any servants.
     
    Trepidation vanished when the little maid who responded to the bell turned out to be a former student. Dilys was a sweet-natured girl who had always adored her teacher, and she accepted Miss Morgan’s presence as if it were perfectly natural for a schoolmistress to be the guest of an earl.
     
    For her part, Clare found that asking Dilys for a bath was no harder than asking a student to recite the times tables. However, she was unable to stop herself from helping when Dilys staggered into the room with two heavy coppers of steaming water. If she were a real lady, Clare supposed that she would have stood by and let the girl struggle.
     
    The enormous hip bath was delightful; Clare had never had the luxury of so much hot water. She soaked for so long that she had to fix her hair and dress in a rush.
     
    Only one of her gowns was suitable for evening wear, and it was old and had never been stylish. However, the rich blue fabric matched her eyes, and the neckline revealed several inches of smooth skin around her throat.
     
    She glanced down at herself and tried to envision what she would look like in a fashionably low-cut gown. Regretfully she realized that even if she owned such a garment—and had the courage to wear it—the result would be unremarkable.
     
    After brushing her hair and pinning it into a shining coil at her nape, she examined herself critically in the mirror. The moist heat of the bath had caused her dark hair to wave softly around her face, lessening her usual severity. Fortunately her complexion was good and she had naturally rosy Welsh coloring.
     
    Her reflection showed that she appeared exactly as she was: a modest woman of modest means. For the sake of her pride, she looked as good as she was capable of looking, yet she was too ordinary to drive the Earl of Aberdare to uncontrollable lust. T hank heaven for that. It was bad enough that he viewed seducing her as a game; if his heart and loins were really in the pursuit, she might not be able to withstand him.
     
    Wiping palms that were suddenly damp, she