106. Love's Dream in Peril Read Online Free PDF Page B

of her hand against her face to catch a tear that had suddenly welled up.
    “You are upset?”
    “I have to find her.”
    Jane moved towards the door.
    He reached out and caught her hand in his.
    “Wait!”
    The strong grasp of his fingers around hers was like nothing she had experienced before.
    The electricity of his touch ran through her whole body, as he held her there, standing by the little table in the teashop and her limbs felt so weak she could not move.
    “Miss Hartley, please, do sit down. You must not distress yourself.”
    Jane could not argue with him. She sat back down onto her chair.
    He let go of her hand, but her fingers still felt warm where he had touched her.
    “Adella is my best friend and if anything happened to her – I should not have let her go off like that.”
    Lord Ranulph was looking closely at her as if he had seen her for the first time and a shiver struck her as his dark eyes bore into hers.
    No one had ever looked at her in quite that way, as if to peer into her soul and discover all her secret thoughts.
    “You are very fond of Miss May,” he suggested.
    “Yes. She is the very best, the kindest friend that anyone could wish for. I cannot bear to think of the way your friend has tricked her and I am worried about her.”
    Lord Ranulph held her gaze.
    “Please, allow me to assure you that she will be quite safe. Digby is used to the company of young ladies. He has a bevy of younger sisters he loves very much. He may behave towards me, his friend, in a rascally manner, but he will take good care of Adella, I am certain.”
    Jane heard these words with a mixture of emotions. Clearly Lord Ranulph was a proud man, he did not like anyone to better him, not even his friend.
    And yet, he seemed to understand how she felt and be genuinely anxious to reassure her.
    “You concern for your friend is most admirable,” he was saying with a much gentler expression in his eyes.
    Then Jane remembered and the thought made her shiver, that, if this noble handsome aristocrat knew her true situation that she was a humble teacher who must make her own way in life, he would get up and leave the table.
    He had noticed her unease.
    “Please, you must believe me. All will be well with your friend. Perhaps you would care for some more tea?”
    Jane thanked him and smiled. How could she refuse when he spoke so kindly to her?
    Just for one moment she allowed herself to dream of how different her life might be if she was a young lady of means.
    Then the door of the teashop rattled and Jane saw that Adella had returned safe and sound and with a happy smile on her pretty face.
    Lord Ranulph flashed a grin at Jane, as if to say, ‘I told you so!’ All was well as he had said it would be.
    But there was no time to linger and Adella caught Jane’s hand.
    “We should leave at once,” she whispered. “I have just heard the clock strike and it’s a quarter-to-five!”
    Lord Ranulph and Digby took their leave of the two girls with low bows and many polite thanks for the tea.
    Adella found it very hard to say goodbye to Digby, but she felt a great deal happier when he whispered in her ear that he would write a note to her and deliver it to the school in the morning before she left.
    “I was so worried about you,” Jane said, as the two girls left the teashop and set off along the pavement.
    “Oh, Jane, why? I had a perfectly lovely time, but quick, we must hurry.”
    “What happened? Did you go to the Botanical Gardens after all?”
    Adella nodded and then she felt suddenly shy as she recalled the touch of Digby’s lips against hers.
    Somehow she did not want to tell Jane that she had been kissed. She wanted to keep that precious memory to herself, at least for today.
    So she simply replied,
    “It was most interesting. So many extraordinary plants. There was even a pineapple.”
    “And Digby wasn’t badly behaved, he didn’t – ?”
    “Didn’t what?” Adella wondered for a moment if Jane had read her