Love's First Flames (Banished Saga, 0.5) Read Online Free PDF Page A

from his sentry position to grab his piece. In his absence, a rotund woman burst into the room.
    “What are you doing in my kitchen?” she demanded in a low voice. Jeremy and Richard shook, although they continued to scarf down their pieces of bread. “Who gave you permission to pilfer from my pantry?” Her pristine white apron failed to cover her girth, bulging over her pronounced bosom and abdomen.
    “We were hungry, ma’am,” Gabriel said, holding his bread in his hand. “Our aunt told us to wait here, and we didn’t know when we’d eat again.”
    Her face softened as she studied them. “Ah, you’re the orphans, taken in by the missus.” At their nod, she waved toward the bench, and they all sat. “A good meal can make almost anything right. It won’t in this case, although it will help a little.” She bustled toward a cupboard, pulled down three battered ceramic bowls in a mixture of rust and brown. She clunked them on a small workspace near the stove before reaching for a ladle. “Well, young sir, you seem to know where the bread is. Go and fetch it.”
    Gabriel moved toward the pantry for the bread as the cook ladled out generous servings of beef stew for them. She placed a bowl in front of each of them, extracting the butter from the oak ice chest and cleaning a knife with her apron. “Tuck in afore the missus returns.” She raised her eyebrows knowingly at them as the three boys gobbled down their food. In a few short minutes, the bread and stew had been devoured, and the bowls were in the sink in another room waiting to be washed up.
    “I’m glad I can count on you boys to keep your part of the bargain. When I decide to feed you, eat up. Understand?” All three nodded, and she winked a hazel eye as she bustled toward the stove, slamming the ladle down a few times just as their aunt burst back into the room.
    “Oh, Mrs. Thynne, you’ve had to deal with these wretched boys in my absence. I hope they’ve been no bother,” Mrs. Masterson said.
    “Not at all, missus. I found them sitting at the table, and they’ve watched me work until you arrived.” Mrs. Thynne smiled at Mrs. Masterson. “I’ve a lovely beef stew prepared for supper.”
    “It would be perfect with your oatmeal bread.”
    “Alas, it failed to rise this morning. I fear you’ll have to make do with the rolls from last night. But never fear, I’ve a lovely Indian pudding to settle the entire meal. Will the young men be joining you in the dining room?”
    “No, they will not. And I don’t want them eating anything until this evening, as their insolence knows no bounds. Especially the eldest, Gabriel. They must learn to respect those who are willing to take in their wretched souls.”
    “As you say, missus. They will not eat at this table until this evening.”
    “I’d be lost without you in the kitchen, Mrs. Thynne. I’m the envy of every woman in the area. You truly are a magician in the kitchen.”
    “I thank you, ma’am.” Mrs. Thynne nodded toward the boys. “Do I need to organize baths for them?”
    “If you would be so good as to have the girls do so. I know it’s not the day for it, but it would be a help as they smell like cinders. I’ve been looking through Henry’s and Nicholas’s clothes, but I find little that would be of any value to this brood. I’ve had Adams send one of the boys out for clothes.”
    “That’s very kind of you, ma’am,” Mrs. Thynne said as she moved toward the pantry.
    “If you ruin this set of clothes I’m purchasing for you, you will be naked. Do you hear me?” she warned as she turned toward her nephews.
    “Yes, Aunt,” they intoned.
    “Although it might have been better for the three masters to go with the boys to help with sizing,” Mrs. Thynne said from inside the pantry.
    Mrs. Masterson moved toward it but did not enter before Mrs. Thynne exited. “I asked for the clothes to be big. That way they’ll grow into them.”
    Richard leaned over and whispered in