Once Upon a Kiss Read Online Free PDF Page A

little but enmity. Despite
tales to the contrary, she imagined he was the spitting image of his despised
father—if not in coloring, then in temperament.
    Be that
as it may, she’d already determined to do what was necessary for the sake of
peace. Too many at Amdel depended upon her. Moreover, she wanted her brother
back—the William who had shared confidences with her, that sweet soul who
had loved and laughed with her as a child, the boy who had lived for something
other than revenge.
    The
very last thing she intended was to allow the Dragon to muddle their plans. If
he meant to look for cause to mistrust them, then she vowed he’d never find it.
She would make absolutely certain all appeared as it should. And henceforth,
till he found it within his heart to trust them, she would slay him with
kindness.
    She
only hoped he would feel reprehensible when the truth came to be known.
Considering that, she struck the mattress with a clenched fist, thinking that
the bastard Dragon probably knew naught of compunction, and she was likely
wasting her time.
    With a
heartfelt sigh, she fell back upon the massive bed to await Alyss and the
arrival of her coffers.
    To her
dismay, she waited a very long time.
    “M’lady!”
Alyss exclaimed with surprise, peeping in hours later to find Dominique lying
in silence, staring at the ceiling. “Ye’re awake?”
    “Aye,”
Dominique said. “I could not sleep.”
    Who could sleep
surrounded by his effects?
    Alyss
entered, closing the door softly behind her as Dominique sat up.
    Alyss
was young and pretty, with dark hair that fell braided to her waist and a face that
stole men’s attentions, but she was no true lady’s maid in truth. In fact, till
merely a week before, she’d been her brother’s leman, and neither of them were
as yet at ease with the new arrangement, for neither had Dominique ever had the
luxury of someone to serve her. Her brother, however, hadn’t wished to leave
Alyss behind, nor did he think it looked entirely proper for his sister to
arrive without a maid.
    “Forgive
me,” Alyss entreated, her expression dejected. ‘They said were resting and that
I should not disturb you.”
    Dominique
sighed wearily. “I tried but could not,” she repeated. And then, recalling the
Dragon’s parting promise, that he would send Alyss forthwith, she asked, “Did
the Dragon not find and speak with you?”
    Alyss’
face seemed to suddenly animate at the mention of Drakewich’s Dragon. Her
shoulders rose and she hugged herself like a lovelorn girl. “Oh, yea, m’lady!
But William... er m’lord... as I said, he bade me not to disturb you.” She came
forward excitedly and seated herself upon the bed beside Dominique in a most
familiar way. And though Dominique was slowly becoming used to the assuming way
in which Alyss conducted herself, it took her aback. “Oh, m’lady!” Alyss
exclaimed. “Is he not magnificent!”
    Dominique’s
brows knit and her face screwed. “The Dragon?”
    Clearly
they were not speaking of the same man.
    “Aye!”
Alyss declared. “That face!” She bit at her lower lip, and shivered. “He has
the face of a true man, m’lady. And those eyes...” She smiled at Dominique.
“Lonely eyes, is what they are—but compassionate too.”
    Dominique’s
brow furrowed. “Compassionate?”
    Could
they possibly be speaking of the same man?
    ‘Fie,
Alyss! How can you say such a thing when you know him not at all? That man is a
Philistine!”
    Alyss’
brows collided. “A Philistine, m’lady?”
    “Aye, a
Philistine—a—” Alyss looked so hopeful that Dominique shook her
head in frustration, thinking it best not to enlighten her this once. She
seemed too taken with the devil for Dominique to disappoint her. “Never mind,”
she relented. She was simply being contrary anyway, she decided, and the last
thing she wished was to spoil Alyss’ good humor. If Alyss thought the man
compassionate, then so be it. She, herself, had thought him