The Earl's Outrageous Lover Page 0,12
this challenge.”
Jessica hated the woman on sight, but there was no polite way to reject the woman’s kind words. She just wished that the blond would go away and leave her alone to wallow in her own pity party.
Was this jealousy she was feeling? Jessica went through the motions of being a good hostess, but the whole time, she was examining her feelings towards the other woman. Julianna was a beautiful female who looked exactly right standing next to Edward. Her delicate beauty and her gentle mannerisms indicated that she and Edward were a perfect match. So why was she so angry that Edward was touching her as if they were intimate?
Pull yourself together, old girl! She admonished herself for the crazy and inappropriate jealousy she was feeling and mentally shook herself to get back on track.
And unfortunately, Jessica couldn’t even say that Julianna was mean or cruel. The blond goddess was kind and sweet and looked as if she were genuinely sincere in wanting to offer her help and discretion.
With a deep breath, she regrouped as quickly as possible, not daring to look at Edward for fear that she might break down in tears over something that felt like a betrayal. So he’d told another person about her father’s absurd will. She had a very short period of time to meet the deadline. Get over this anger and move on to accomplishing the task.
Turning to her housekeeper who had been hovering in the background, she said with as much dignity as her strange emotions would allow, “Beth, would you mind adding another place to the table?”
Beth nodded her head and disappeared. “What can I get everyone to drink?” Jessica offered, motioning her hand towards the living room where Beth’s husband, the groundskeeper John, had started a fire in the large, stone hearth earlier in the evening. The room was cozy and warm now that the fire was crackling away at the logs.
The three of them moved to the living room and Jessica stepped behind the highly polished bar, taking down several glasses and looking towards her guests.
“A glass of white wine would be lovely,” Julianna said.
“Scotch, if you have it,” Edward replied.
Julianna nodded and pulled out her father’s twenty-five year old scotch and a bottle of white wine. She had to trust Beth that the vintage was a good one, because Jessica preferred the more plebian beer or a heavy duty martini. She’d drink the white wine simply because it was more appropriate, but it wouldn’t be her preference.
As they all took a seat in front of the fireplace, Jessica wracked her brain to come up with something to talk about. She definitely couldn’t discuss the things she’d previously been prepared to chat about, the desired qualities in a husband being the main issue on her mind. So what was there to discuss?
Thankfully Julianna came to the rescue. “So you’ve been traveling for the past several months, I understand?” the blond woman asked with a polite expression.
Jessica sighed with relief, grabbing onto the conversational lifesaver with both hands. “Yes. I’ve been wandering all over Europe, discovering small cities and wonderful restaurants, sites off the beaten trail to explore.” She related some of the smaller cities she’d visited and found that Julianna wasn’t as cold as she appeared. In fact, they’d visited several of the same cities, although for different reasons. Julianna was an antiques dealer who loved to find out of the way shops and venues to add to her gallery’s inventory. Jessica had traveled to several of the same cities, just in search of a husband instead of antiques.
They were laughing about some of the smaller Swiss villages they’d visited when the doorbell rang. Jessica jumped a bit as she looked around, not sure who could possibly be at the door now. She was startled to see that Edward was glaring at her as if he intensely disliked her for some reason and she was hurt by the look. He hadn’t known her long enough to dislike her and if anyone were going to abhor someone, she should hate him!
Julianna turned to look at Edward. “Did you invite someone else, perhaps?” Jessica thought she detected a frosty tone but she didn’t know the other woman well enough to make that determination.
Jessica set her wine glass onto the coffee table and stood up as gracefully as possible, trying to hide her surprise and the misery that comes from irritating and disapproving men. “I’ll just go see who it is.