Somewhere I'll Find You Read Online Free PDF Page B

knows you don't owe her anything.”
    “I owe her a fortune,” Damon said grimly. “Or rather, the family does.”
    William shook his head as he handed a fresh glass of brandy to his brother. “You and your damned sense of responsibility. Any other man in your position would cast off Julia Hargate like unwanted ballast. You don't even know her!”
    Taking a deep swallow of brandy, Damon stood from his desk and wandered around the room. “I need to find her. She was a victim in this as much as I. The agreement was made without our consent, but at least we can dissolve it together. Besides, I don't want to take any steps without making some kind of settlement on her.”
    “With her family's fortune behind her, she has no need of a settlement.”
    “There's a possibility she has broken with the Hargates. I won't know until I find her.”
    “I hardly think Julia is destitute, brother. More likely she's amusing herself at some French or Italian seashore and living quite well off her papa's money.”
    “If that were true, I'd have located her by now.”
    William watched as his brother went to stand at the window. The view was spectacular, as it was from nearly every room in the modified medieval castle. It was built on a lake, with great stone arches that rose from the water and supported the ancient building as it reached toward the sky. Many of the once impenetrable honey-colored walls had been replaced by spectacular windows filled with diamond-shaped panes of glass. Behind the castle stretched the endless green countryside of Warwickshire, lush with pastures and gardens. Long ago the castle had served as a staunch defense against invaders of England, but it had now settled into a mellow and gracious old age.
    The Savage family had nearly lost possession of their ancestral home—and everything else they owned—because of the present duke's bad investments, not to mention his taste for gambling. Only Damon's marriage to Julia Hargate, and the dowry her father had provided, had saved the family from ruin. And now they owed her the title of duchess, which wouldn't be long in coming, judging by their father Frederick's failing health.
    “Thank God I wasn't the firstborn child,” William said in a heartfelt tone. “It was a damned strange bargain Father struck, marrying off his son at age seven in order to secure money for his gambling debts. And it's stranger still that you've never met her since.”
    “I never wanted to see Julia. It was easier to pretend she didn't exist. I couldn't acknowledge that she was— is —part of my life.” Damon's fingers clenched tight around the glass.
    “Is the marriage legal?” William asked.
    “No—but that's not the point. Father made a promise all those years ago, one involving me. It's my responsibility to honor it, or at least reimburse the Hargates for the money we accepted from them.”
    “Honor…responsibility…” William shivered and grimaced playfully. “My two least favorite words.”
    Damon swirled his drink and stared moodily into the glass. Although it wasn't Julia's fault, each letter of her name was a link in the invisible chain that bound him. He would never be at peace until the matter was resolved.
    “I've imagined Julia a hundred different ways,” Damon said. “I can't stop wondering about her, and what drove her to disappear like this. God, I'd like to be free of her!”
    “When you do locate her, Julia may want to hold you to your obligation. Have you considered that? You've tripled the family's wealth since you've taken charge of the Savage finances.” There was a teasing glint in William's dark blue eyes as he added, “And women seem to find you attractive, in spite of your gloomy character. Why would Julia be different? She wants what every woman desires—a titled husband and a fortune to go with him.”
    “I don't know what she wants from me.” A bitter laugh escaped Damon. “Nothing yet, apparently, or she wouldn't still be in