Arrival of the Traveler (Waldgrave Book 1) Read Online Free PDF Page A

the door, but to her dismay, found there was no lock. She sat with her back to the door, hoping to brace herself if David tried to come in. But he didn’t. Standing outside the door, he started talking in an unexpectedly civilized manner.
    “Look princess, Mrs. Ralston told me I gave you quite a scare earlier. You said some things you shouldn’t have, and I forgive you.”
    In all her life, Lena had never met a hotel worker as impertinent as this one. He was talking to her as though she was in the wrong, and not him. His livelihood came right out of Uncle Howard’s pocket, and Lena was now financially tied to Howard, so really he was  her  servant, too. She had never actually yelled at a maid or concierge in her life, but figured that now was as good a time as any to start. She mustered her anger, stood, and opened the door. “What do you mean, you forgive me?! Right now, I should be forgiving you! You ass!” She slammed the door shut and sat down to brace herself again.
    “Well. You are a fiery one.” David paused, but didn’t seem upset. He chose his words carefully, like scouts sent to figure out the best path to an amicable relationship. “If it makes you feel better, I’m sorry you’re upset about me. You’ve got a pretty face, and you shouldn’t waste good looks acting like that.”
    Lena stood and opened the door again, intending to tell him off for his insolence, but quickly found she had nothing to say. So she just stood there, mouth wide open, feeling stupid. He was taller than she remembered. Taller than she was, anyway. With brown eyes.
    “Girls are easy. Give out a compliment, and they shut up.” He headed back to where he was painting, shaking his head and smirking slightly.
    “Excuse me!” Lena called, hoping she would think of an insult at some point in the next few milliseconds. David turned and looked at her, still slightly bemused. “I…need to get dressed for dinner.” Deep down, she was kicking herself.
    “Yes. You do.” He smiled and turned back to his work, dipping his paint roller back into the well of the tray and then squeezing out the excess. It made a sticky noise, like the smacking of gum on teeth, with every pass over the traction bumps on the tilted tray ramp; it disgusted David on a much deeper level than it should have.
    Lena walked down the hall, quickening her pace after she passed him—David’s temper had momentarily cooled towards her, but her mind had painted an unsettling image of him as a coiled snake. Charming, tranquil, and sleek one moment; fangs, rattling, and venomous pain the next.
    Once she had her door open, she took a deep breath to steady herself before turning to look back at him, refusing to live in fear. She shouted, “Hired help!” and watched David turn beet red before closing the door and locking it.
    It was an hour and thirty minutes until dinner started, and she wished she would have brought  Moby Dick  with her. Instead, she walked into the closet and shuffled through the clothes in the closet.
    She sighed as she thought about her stunted collection of attire. In all, she had only five day outfits, and that wouldn’t be enough now that she would be seeing the same people over and over again. She would have to ask Howard about money for shopping, a thing she truly hated to do, as she was already here on his charity.
    But then, he is my legal guardian now, and is responsible for keeping me… Besides, it’s not like he’s a poor man…
    It helped, but Lena still didn’t want to have to ask.
    As she searched for the black dress, she became puzzled.
    I know I hung it up here this morning…right at the end of the line, just like always…
    But it wasn’t there.
    How strange.
    She went to her suitcase, which she had pushed up next to her father’s, and opened it. There was the dress, the lone article left at the bottom, in a heap.
    I know I didn’t leave it like that...
    But as she lifted it out, she saw that it wasn’t alone in the