'Til Death Do Us Part Read Online Free PDF

“Yes, I can see that.”
    He let himself out into the hall and closed the door in a deliberate manner that said more than words.
    He did not intend to return.
    Just as well, Calista thought. But the atmosphere in the study suddenly felt several degrees colder than it had a moment ago.

5
    T HE INTE RVIEW WITH Calista Langley had not gone well.
    Trent walked into the front hall of the town house braced for a controlled display of sorrowful disappointment, hurt, resentment, and a few accusatory tears from his sister.
    But for the first time in a very long while, Eudora managed to take him completely by surprise.
    She stormed down the stairs in a cloud of outraged fury.
    â€œYou went to see Miss Langley, didn’t you?” she demanded. “How dare you? My business with her is just that—my business. It is none of your concern.”
    Eudora was in her midtwenties, perhaps a year or two younger than Calista, Trent thought, but she gave the impression of being the older of the two.
    Today Calista had made a fashionable impression in an elegant blue gown. Her chestnut-brown hair had been caught up in a delightful confection on top of her head and anchored with several handsome hairpins. The style served to underscore her striking profile andintelligent hazel eyes. There was something bright, vivid, and dynamic about her. He had found himself oddly fascinated. She was an interesting, intriguing woman and he was quite sure she would be interesting and intriguing at seventy or eighty. Some qualities never aged.
    Eudora, on the other hand, had, until recently, appeared to be fading before his eyes. Determined to play the role of the devoted sister who had sacrificed herself to the task of managing her brother’s household, she wore her bright blond hair parted in the center and scraped back in a tight knot. Her gowns were fashioned of dull, dark, practical fabrics.
    She pursued her self-assigned career with a vengeance. The house they shared functioned like a finely tuned machine. From dawn until bedtime there was a serene, orderly cadence to life. The staff went about their duties with flawless precision. The gardens were maintained with exquisite attention to detail.
    But over the years the spirited, vivacious girl who had once insisted on learning how to ride a bicycle and playing croquet had vanished. In her place had emerged a woman who appeared to have locked herself in perpetual mourning. Eudora did not go about in widow’s weeds or wear a veil, but she might as well have done so in Trent’s opinion.
    Nevertheless, she had appeared to be going through some changes lately, and he had been pleased, at least at first. She was certainly paying more attention to style and she had even gone shopping for some new earrings.
    He knew he would have been relieved by the transformation had he not realized that it was linked to Calista Langley’s weekly salons.
    â€œCalm yourself,” he said. He handed his hat and gloves to Guthrie, the butler, but he kept his grip on the cane. “I made the appointment with Miss Langley because I was curious about her and her services.”
    â€œI don’t believe that for a moment,” Eudora snapped. “You called on her to try to intimidate her. Admit it. You could not persuade methat she was a fraud and a con artist or worse, so you attempted to frighten her into severing our association.”
    â€œIf that was my plan I can assure you it failed,” Trent said. “Approximately three minutes into the conversation it became clear that it would take someone far more ferocious than a mere author to throw a scare into Miss Langley.”
    Eudora halted on the last step, startled. Then she appeared pleased. Triumph gleamed in her blue eyes.
    â€œSo Miss Langley gave you a proper setdown, did she? I am delighted to hear that.”
    â€œI comprehend that you are angry that I went to see her,” he said. “But I felt it necessary to