Anne Barbour Read Online Free PDF

And what had he meant about her efforts to gain his attention? Surely, he could not believe she would engage in a complicated fraud simply to attract his notice? The man must be possessed of a monumental conceit!
    She glanced over her shoulder at the wooden box affixed to the rear of the gig. In it were packed the artifacts she had removed from the villa site over the past months. It had cost her a pang to give them up, for she had not thoroughly examined them or sketched them as she had planned to do, but she was determined to restore them to their legal owner at the earliest possible moment. She had no intention of taking them personally to the odious Mr. Wincanon. She would simply travel to the site, remove her tools from the little shed, and replace them with the boxful of artifacts. She would then send him a dignified note apprising him of her actions.
    “With any luck,” she confided icily to her companion, “I shan’t be obliged to see or speak to the wretched creature ever again. Hopefully, as soon as he has completed his work at the site, he’ll return to London, or wherever it is he resides permanently.”
    Again, Jasper had little to say in response beyond an obliging woof.
    Passing the tower, she grimaced at the stone altar, which could be glimpsed through the trees. So much for the efficacy of offerings to ancient spirits. A mutter of thunder echoed her reflections.
    Upon arriving at her destination, she was surprised to behold a handsome bay tethered to a tree nearby.
    “Oh, no,” she breathed, whereupon Jasper stiffened to attention. He bent his attention on the horse, but being trained not to offer gratuitous insults to neighboring equines, he merely sniffed the air inquiringly.
    Halting the gig, Hilary glanced about before stepping down cautiously from the vehicle. Her feet had no sooner touched the ground than the sound of footsteps caused her to twist suddenly. She stumbled and fell to the ground in an ignominious heap. Her faithful hound, of course, sprang immediately to give her succor, subjecting her face to a thorough licking.
    In the meantime, she found herself gathered into an embrace. At least, it might have been called that by some. To Hilary, it seemed as though she had been grasped by a piece of farm equipment. Two strong arms plucked her from the soil, dusted her off in a brisk fashion, and set her on her feet in a manner that fairly jarred her teeth.
    Mr. Wincanon’s greeting was no more courteous.
    “What the devil are you doing here?” he growled. “I thought I told you—”
    “And good morning to you, Mr. Wincanon,” Hilary replied coldly, removing his fingers from her shoulders. “I did not expect to see you here.”
    “No, I don’t suppose you did,” said James peremptorily. “I thought I told you—” he began again.
    At this point, Jasper, recalled to a sense of duty, took umbrage at this stranger in his domain, and the tone the man was taking with his personal human. He bared his teeth and uttered his most intimidating growl. The stranger merely glared at him.
    “What the devil is that?” he inquired of Hilary.
    “He is my dog, Jasper.” Her tone by now had become positively glacial, but Mr. Wincanon merely grunted.
    “That’s not a dog. It’s something that fell off a cathedral.” He glanced around. “Is this animal your only companion. Lady Hilary? I wonder you should be careering about the countryside unaccompanied.”
    “Jasper provides all the protection I need,” Hilary said stiffly. “What he lacks in beauty and form he more than makes up for in intelligence and devotion. I am perfectly safe in his company. In any event—”
    Mr. Wincanon interrupted with a wave of his hand. “I thought I requested that you desist your activities on my site.”
    “No, you did not request—you ordered, Mr. Wincanon.” She placed a hand on Jasper’s head. The dog was becoming increasingly hostile and, although she was almost tempted to bite the insufferable