Miss Lacey's Love Letters Read Online Free PDF Page A

aunt's excitement. Steeridge was a black, gloomy building that might have been an appropriate abode for Dracula. And Henry, according to Lydia, had a flair for the macabre.
    "It seems awfully dreary," Valeria observed.
    "I know! Don't you love it?" As she climbed from the carriage, Lydia winced. She felt a familiar twinge of pain in her lower back, but she kept it to herself. She did not want to alarm her niece and ruin the moment.
    Side-by-side, Lydia and Valeria admired the edifice in reverent silence.
    "My stomach is in knots," Lydia confessed.
    "You're so silly. Mr. Worthington is a man, just like any other." While she tried to appear cool and collected, Valeria's insides were secretly churning. "Follow me."
    A moment after knocking on the door, they were greeted by a stern butler with very little hair and a solid white eye. Valeria assumed he was blind in that eye, but his other eye burned with fury.
    He kept studying them in silence, so Valeria said, "Good day. We are here to see Mr. Worthington."
    "Oi?!" He sounded surprised. "And who's calling?"
    "Lydia Langley. And this is my niece, Miss Valeria Woll."
    "Is the master expecting you?" the butler snarled. "I would say he ain't."
    "He isn't expecting us," Lydia explained. "He hasn't even met us, but we would like to make his acquaintance. We recently moved into the area, you see, and seeing as we are practically neighbors--"
    "I can take you to one of the sitting rooms," the butler interrupted. "But I don't think he'll like it." He turned his back to them and motioned for them to follow.
    Lydia and Valeria exchanged glances. They had anticipated a recluse, but hearing the crass words of the butler was something of a surprise.
    The butler wasn't particularly tall, but Valeria had to sprint to keep up with him. For an older man, he was shockingly fast. "What is your name, sir?"
    The butler barked an answer over his shoulder. "What's it to you?"
    "Um... well..." She looked to her aunt for support, but Lydia simply shook her head. They were equally taken aback by the butler's rudeness. "I was just being polite."
    "Argus," the butler said with a snort. "Me name's Argus. But I don't expect you'll care to remember that."
    "On the contrary," Valeria protested. "You are quite impossible to forget."
    When the butler turned around, his eyes were narrowed. Even the white one. "In here." He yanked open a door and motioned for her to step inside. "I'll tell the master he's got visitors." Under his breath, he added, "But he ain't gonna like it."
    "Thank you, Argus." It was Lydia who thanked him as they stepped through the doorway.
    Argus snarled at them. "Do ye want any refreshments or anyt'ing of the like?"
    When Valeria sat on the settee, an adequate amount of dust erupted around her. As she was no stranger to dust, she wasn't too bothered, but it made her realize how long it must have been since the sitting room was in use. "No, thank you, Argus."
    "Good," Argus barked. "Cuz I didn't want to ask Cook for none."
    Argus left the room before they could utter another word. As soon as they were alone, Lydia exclaimed. "My word! I don't think I have ever witnessed such rudeness in all my life!" With a click of her tongue, she added, "And I have been alive for a very long time!"
    "Argus does seem a bit...unconventional." Valeria scanned her surroundings. The drapes were tattered, the tapestries were molded, and some of the furniture appeared to be broken. "You know, I think this place might be in a worse state than our new home."
    "And I think you might be right." Lydia tried to tighten her shawl, but her tiny shoulders continued to tremble. "And it's so drafty in here! The windows must be very ill-fitting."
    "Do you still think Uncle Henry would like it here?"
    "After meeting Argus?" Lydia belted a snort of disgust. "I think not!"
    As shaken as they were, they had nearly forgotten the reason for their visit. So when the door opened and Noah Worthington stepped inside, their bodies jolted