The Heroic Baron Read Online Free PDF

for supper
when I get back”
    Alain watched Daniel go, envious of his friend’s opportunity for a leisurely ride to Romney on such a brilliant spring day. He had managed to arrange for his morning to be taken up with the business of bricklayer,
but he could not put off the responsibilities of the estate. He would spend the afternoon poring over ledgers
and bills in the estate office. Alain raised his arm, signaling to the foreman that he was leaving. He would
treat himself to a stroll down the promenade before going home to The Refuge.

    The breeze off the Channel cooled his heated body,
drying the splotches of sweat in his shirt. Alain
scooped up a handful of pebbles as he walked and
skipped them in the water. On such a clear day, the
coastline of France was visible. Only twelve miles separated France from where he stood.
    Unbidden, his thoughts dared to drift towards the enticing stranger from the streets. What was she doing
now? Was she spending the money on useful items?
Was she saving it? Had she squandered the francs on a
fancy new gown and girlish fallals? He hoped she
would spend it prodigiously. He’d discerned she had
great need of it. He’d witnessed the fleeting struggle
she’d had with herself over trading the money for information about the Panchettes. Her pride and integrity
had won. Those were the qualities that impressed him
most, beyond the rich brown pools of her eyes and the
pearly translucence of her skin.
    His conscience nagged at him for thinking of her at
all. Alain threw the last pebble and headed back towards
High Street. From High Street, the town rose in a pleasant hodgepodge of houses and shops. The tower of St.
Leonard’s church halfway up the hill drew his attention.
He resolved to stop and say a prayer to quiet his heart.
    The interior of the church was dim and soothing. Alain ran his hand over the smooth stones of the
arches. The church had been built in Norman times under the edict that every town must have a stone church.
The church had lasted for centuries. Alain sank into a
polished wooden pew. He hoped his resort would last
half that long. He hoped people would come to it to escape the rigors of everyday life.

    He fervently believed that all people needed time to
discover themselves beyond the drudgery of daily routines. The advent of the new world would make that
possible by creating machines that used time more efficiently than manual labor. People would be free to do
something besides work. They’d be able to spend time
educating themselves and studying their world through
travel and books. They would come to Hythe and have
the summer adventures he’d had with his friends,
roaming the hills or swimming in a river. What would
the French girl think of his grand vision for the future?
Would she enjoy hiking through his hills and splashing
in his rivers or would she, like Alicia, shun such boisterousness for more sedate activities?
    That was patently unfair, Alain reprimanded himself.
He didn’t even know the girl and he was constructing a
personality about her. It should not be a mark against
Alicia that she preferred needlepoint and flower arranging to vigorous walking and swimming. It was those
delicate qualities that had endeared her to him. He’d
grown up with a sister who was all hoyden and horses.
Alicia with her fragile brand of gentility was an exquisite novelty to be cherished. Alain knelt swiftly and offered a prayer for the dearly departed.

    “You are the most blessed man in England!” Daniel
exclaimed, pushing away from the table and patting his
flat stomach. The dessert plate in front of him was
nearly devoid of any signs it had held a hefty serving of
peches et creme gratin. “I couldn’t even tell the
peaches were from last year’s preserves. I wouldn’t
have known the difference at all if your chef hadn’t sent
his regrets”
    Alain dabbed at his mouth with a linen napkin,
chuckling at the recollection of