Free Summerset Abbey: Spring Awakening (Summerset Abbey Trilogy) by T. J. Brown

housed in the cavernous barn now. A bittersweet regret filled her as she recognized the Flying Alice she had first gone up in. Closing her eyes, she once again saw the cloud crystals becoming brighter and brighter and the awe-inspiring moment when they had broken through the cloud cover to the blinding-blue sky on the other side. She ran her fingers over the dusty wings of the Flying Alice, remembering the profound enchantment that flying had cast over her. At the time, she had thought it was Jon that made her feel so unfettered and blissful, but she couldn’t help but wonder how much of her love for him had been mixed up with her love of flying.
    She breathed the scent of oil, gasoline, and straw and wastransported back to the time she had flown solo for the first time. She’d been impulsive and rash, making a split-second decision to follow Jon into the air after discovering that he was angry with her. Though the impulse had been reckless, her flight hadn’t been: she’d flown it perfectly. But no matter. Jon had ultimately walked away from her and never come back.
    Her chest tightened and she walked quickly out of the barn and locked the door behind her, breathing heavily. Why had she come back here? Why had she risked certain pain?
    Because she missed her aeroplane. Suddenly she decided that the risk of meeting Jon here would be worth it if she could have access to her Vickers. Besides, it didn’t look as if anyone was coming out here too often. Mr. Dirkes’s factory was in Kent, and if they were overrun with orders, they probably wouldn’t be testing new aeroplanes much. As soon as she arrived home, she would telephone Mr. Dirkes. He would give her permission, she knew he would. He had been one of her biggest supporters when she’d wanted to learn to fly.
    Excited, she rounded the corner to the motorcar and stopped short when she saw a young girl on a large, handsome horse riding toward her.
    The girl reined in her horse and stared. Rowena’s heart raced when she recognized her. The girl seemed to realize who Rowena was at that same moment and swiftly steered her horse away.
    “Cristobel,” Rowena called softly.
    The girl reined in her animal but didn’t turn around. She sat on her mount, her back ramrod straight, with her long, dark hair streaming down her back from under her riding hat.
    Rowena walked around and faced her. The girl’s features revealed a mixture of longing and anger. Jonathon’s little sister didn’t much look like him. Her hair and eyes were dark, unlikeJon’s, whose blue eyes looked like the sky he flew in and whose strawberry-blond hair belied their Scottish heritage. But the stubborn expression the girl wore showed the family resemblance.
    “Many times in the past few months I have wondered how you were,” Rowena said. “I hope you and your mother are well.”
    She hated the formal sound of her voice, but the girl’s sudden appearance had rattled her. Between the visit to the barn and the sudden appearance of Jon’s sister, she hadn’t felt his absence from her life this keenly in months.
    “We’re fine,” the girl said tightly. “Not that you would care.”
    The tragedy of her father’s suicide and the loss of the family’s fortune at the hands of the Buxtons had isolated the girl from society. Rowena knew Cristobel had thought of her as a friend and no doubt felt doubly betrayed at Rowena’s sudden disappearance from their lives.
    “That’s not fair,” Rowena said. “Jon was no longer interested in a relationship with me, and I couldn’t maintain a friendship with you after he made it clear that I was no longer welcome.”
    “Jon? Oh, pooh on Jon. He’s only been home twice all summer and he was a bear both times. There was no reason for you not to visit. Or I could have visited you. You promised to take me on a hunt.”
    Cristobel’s dark eyes accused her, and Rowena felt a pang of guilt. She had promised. “What would George have said to that?”
    The girl