Promoted to Wife (Destiny Bay) Read Online Free PDF

Butler’s Work Is Never Done  

    Terry's father called her three times in the next two hours. Each time she answered the phone with butler-like aplomb, and each time he launched into some new concern without any preamble.  
    “Mind you attend to the silverware before the master arrives,” he warned her on the first call. “Every piece should gleam with a new sheen on the day the family returns to Mar Vista.”
    Mar Vista was the name of the Carrington mansion. The estate had a beautiful view of the ocean, though it was somewhat obscured these days by the huge black oaks lining the driveway. The grounds swept out away from the house in shades of green, from the emerald-green lawns to the soft, clover green of the fields beyond, to the dark green of the forest. There was a cliff leading down to the rocky shore, where the Pacific came calling on stormy days. Terry was enchanted by the sea and the grounds. She’d always loved the place.  
    But it looked like a good bet that the phone calls from her father would continue without let-up throughout her stay. She had her phone on vibrate and her pocket was quivering at least once an hour.  
    “Make sure you put out the egg cups for breakfast,” he told her excitedly on another call. “Mr. Carrington does love his soft-boiled egg in the morning. Exactly three minutes, not a second more.”
    She agreed, even though she was sure the Mr. Carrington he was referring to was happily eating his soft-boiled eggs in the comfort of Queen Anne’s Acres in Santa Barbara right now. That was what she’d been told, at any rate.  
    “Grandfather is preparing to come to live with us here,” Rick reassured her at one point. “That’s the plan. He’s still recuperating from a bad case of the flu. Some things just don’t want to heal right. But he’s bound and determined to get here.”
    “And you’re going to live here in the meantime?” she’d asked him.  
    He’d shrugged. “For the summer, at any rate. Then, who knows?”
    That all seemed a little vague to her, but it wasn’t her grandfather, and it wasn’t her mansion. Her own father was the only one she was concerned about. This was all for him and she was glad to do it.  
    “How many footmen do you have working for you?” her father demanded later, and was horrified to hear there weren't any at all. “How can you possibly run a house that size without footmen? Who will take care of the deliveries? Who will wait at table?”
    The calls didn't annoy her. Terry knew he was just trying to keep in touch. She also knew her father had no doubt that she was going to be a great butler. She only hoped she could live up to his expectations—and her own goals.
    She raced around the house, putting bedrooms in order for the two children, dusting the furniture, making sure the house was presentable.
    Rick went out for an hour. He came back carrying books and a heavy briefcase. On his way in, he stopped by the kitchen, where Terry was making up inventory lists.
    “Got anything you want me to do?” he asked, and it seemed to her that he really meant it. “Any heavy stuff to be lifted or tall ladders to climb?”
    She gave him a skeptical look, wondering what his angle might be. Was it just her, or was he being a little too nice to the help? She wasn’t used to getting this sort of consideration from the men she worked with.
    She hesitated for a moment, tempted. There were some heavy logs that needed to come in for the fireplaces. She would have loved to ask for his help there. But she quickly stifled the impulse, knowing that his offer was just another sign that he really didn't think she could do this job. Nope, she had to do things on her own. That was the only way she would ever be able to prove herself.
    “No thanks,” she said, keeping her eyes on her lists. “I can manage.”
    He disappeared into the den. She saw him going over papers when she peeked in. It seemed that Rick Carrington wasn't quite the playboy she'd