Free Improper Pleasures (The Pleasure Series #1) by Cheryl Howe Page B

weathered gravestones littered with ancient
Celtic Crosses. No doubt Ivy expected Astra to change her mind. Even as a girl
she was timid and found it difficult to make friends during her short-lived
stay at a girls’ finishing school. Astra often listened to the headmistress
while the other girls participated in some mischief that would land them in
trouble. And perhaps Astra would have changed her mind if she didn’t have the
guise of a charitable hand reaching out to a fallen sister, encouraged by
Reverend Fitzgerald no less. Astra strolled to her carriage, not quite ready to
abandon the straight and narrow path, but part of her more than ever intrigued
to discover what delights she might have missed along the way.
     
    ***
    Astra sat in Ivy’s lush garden sipping tea, only slightly
disappointed to find nothing more exotic than Ivy’s purple velvet gown and
plumed hat. On an arbor a riot of English roses snaked around her head,
creeping vines full of tight white buds. Rhododendron already in bloom grew in
a thicket around their feet, attracting fat bees that lazily sipped their
nectar. A classically designed three tiered fountain gurgled in the distance.
Astra was not sure what she had expected behind Ivy’s ornate iron gates,
perhaps a replica of the statue of David or frolicking Greek nymphs locked in
carnal poses.
    “A shame the weather will not last. Surely we’ll have
another cold spell before spring actually arrives to stay.”
    “Yes,” Astra agreed. They had been going this way, talking
of the weather, the church, for half an hour. “My daughter enjoys the out of
doors. She’ll not understand why I keep her in again.”
    Astra met Ivy’s knowing gaze and blushed. Her former
friend had only ever seen Lark from a distance, but she had no doubt figured
out the truth long ago.
    “Your child must be a comfort since your husband passed
away.”
    Astra studied the rich china, gold rimmed and painted with
red and yellow roses in a typical English fashion. At the very least, Astra
would have expected Ivy’s China to have been brought over from the Continent.
“Lark is the joy of my life, though, I feel at a loss to raise her alone.
Lowell was so kind.”
    “I recall that you two were childhood friends. Surely, he
provided well for you.” Ivy tilted her head and studied Astra with clear green
eyes.
    Though things had been settled with James, the idea of her
future as a widow, even a wealthy one, still left Astra a bit queasy. “Your
home is lovely. Do you miss London?”
    “My circumstances have recently changed. So no, I don’t
miss London at the present. I’m content here. Will you take a house in London?”
Ivy sipped her tea once again. The kinship in her open gaze closed once more by
Astra’s evasion regarding her late husband. Astra had longed for a confident,
but some secrets were too damaging to ever reveal. Though if anyone could be
sympathetic to Astra’s plight, it would be Ivy.  
    Rumor had abounded that Ivy had parted company with her
most recent benefactor, a duke no less. Supposedly he intended to take a bride
and needed his notorious mistress tossed to the country. Astra would prefer it
if her mother didn’t spread such gossip, but she could not stop herself from
listening.
    “I will be staying on at Eastlan for now. The new baron is
from America and needs assistance adjusting to his position.”
    Ivy grinned wickedly, that same enticing half-smile that
no doubt landed her in trouble in the first place. “Oh, I’ve heard James Keane
is quite handsome. I’m anxious to catch a glimpse of him. Will you bring him to
church this Sunday?”
    “He’s my deceased husband’s cousin.” Astra stiffened. The
thought of Ivy and James making an acquaintance evoked a sense of panic. “I
have not taken undue notice of his appearance.”
    “I see.” Ivy laughed. “Well, I’m sure others will. I don’t
doubt you caught his notice.”
    Astra’s pale features never competed with Ivy’s