"So how long are you here?"
"Just until Monday, but I'll be working here all summer."
"That's wonderful!"
"What's wonderful?" Holly wanted to know as she went to hug Jordan.
"Jordan will be home this summer."
"Now we only need Miles," Holly sighed, accepting the tea Sunny passed to her.
Chelsea joined the young people, and when they were just finishing, Jordan remembered a favor he wished to ask of Holly. Holly was more than compliant and rose to go and find the book he was looking for.
"Good old Holly," Jordan commented as she was leaving. "She's always a pal."
Holly didn't turn on these words, but Sunny was seated in such a way that she could see her niece's face as she left the room. What she saw so alarmed her that for a moment Sunny could not school her features.
"Why, Sunny," Chelsea commented when she spotted her distressed look. "Whatever is the matter?"
Sunny gave a small laugh and tried to sound normal. "Oh, nothing really. Maybe the sandwich didn't agree with me."
Sunny's hand trembled as she reached to smooth her hair, but no one noticed and, thankfully, Holly's departure had caused her to miss the entire exchange.
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Jordan stayed for another hour, and during that time Holly behaved so normally that Sunny began to wonder if she had imagined the whole thing. By bedtime, Sunny had convinced herself of this very feet, but sleep would not come. She tossed and turned for what felt like hours before finally leaving her bed and going down the hall to Holly's door.
There was no answer to her knock, and Sunny was certain that Holly was asleep. She was about to go in anyway when a voice startled her from the rear.
"Now what are you up to at this time of the night?" "Oh, Boots dear," Sunny said with a hand to her pounding chest. "I need to talk with Holly.n
"Why, love," she spoke affectionately, "I'm sure she's asleep, just as you ought to be."
"But I've got to talk with her."
"Would you like me to get your brother? If you're upset, you know you can go to him.**
"No," Sunny was adamant. "It's Holly I must see." Mrs. Boots could see no help for it, so she opened the door and crossed silently into the room. The noise they had made in the hallway, however slight, was enough to awaken Holly. Upon seeing this, Mrs. Boots turned back to Sunny.
"Well, we've certainly woken her, but you are not to be in here long. You'll not be able to stand up in the morning after this little midnight jaunt. I'll be back shortly to check on you." With that she made her way quietly to the door and then to the downstairs study to tell Lord Randolph that the girls were awake.
"What's the matter, Sunny?" Understandably, Holly was looking for answers. She'd been awakened from a deep sleep only to sit and listen to Mrs. Boots as she said the most cryptic things to Sunny. "I need to talk with you, Holly. Can I light the lantern?" By way of answer Sunny heard Holly removing the chimney. Within moments the bed was bathed in a soft glow. Holly pushed herself up against the head, and Sunny sat on the edge-Sunny's mind raced with how to begin. She studied Holly and wondered if there was anyone in the world who was half as lovely. She knew of no one else who had hair as dark as a crow's wing, or whose complexion was like that of a rose petal. Her eyes were dark and expressive, and her figure was lovely and full.
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Sunny thought Holly must be every man's ideal, but as much as Sunny wanted to tell her, the words would not come. Instead she suddenly blurted out the only question that had been on her mind.
"You're in love with him, aren't you?"
Holly saw how easy it would be to pretend, but instead her whole body slumped in defeat. Sunny would hate her now.
"Yes, I am, and I'm sorry."
"You're sorry? Why wouldyoube sorry? I'm sorry I never knew. I'm sorry that I'm always taking all his time and controlling the conversation."
"You don't hate me, Sunny?" Holly's voice was filled with wonder.
"Why would I hate you?"
"Sunny," Holly became very still. "Aren't you in love with Jordan?"
"Of course I love Jordan, just like I love Miles. Holly, you know I'm not going to be married."
Holly burst into tears. Sunny came closer and put her arms around her, which caused Holly to sob all the harder. Her voice shook when she spoke, but Sunny caught every word.
"All this time I thought you loved him. I thought you were just waiting until you were older to say anything. I've hated myself for caring so much, but I've loved Jordan for years, and he just thinks of me as a little sister.
"I know he'll marry someday, and I'll have to go away because I won't be able to stand seeing him with someone else. Until tonight," Holly added as she'd begun to calm, "I thought that someone else would be you. Please don't tell him, Sunny, please. I'll do anything, but please don't tell him."
"I won't; I won't," Sunny assured her, "but you could, Holly. You could talk with him. Maybe he loves you too, and if you were to tell him, he would feel like he could declare his own love."
Holly studied Sunny's face in the lamplight and could have cried all over again.
She's serious,Holly thought to herself.She really doesn't know. We're all such grand pretenders. I'm eating my heart out over Jordan, and he practically worships Sunny with his gaze. She can't even see it*$ there.
"I don't think that would work," Holly said slowly. "But that's all right, just as long as you're not upset with me."
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"Of course not. I just can't believe how blind and insensitive Fvc been."
The girls talked until all was well between them. They were sleepy, but closer than ever when at last they went to bed. Mrs. Boots came to check on them some minutes later, this time with Rand on her heels, only to find both girls in Holly's bed, heads nearly touching and fast asleep.
THE DUKEAND HIS FUTURE DUCHESSRODETHEIRHORSES at a leisurely
pace and talked about their life together. So eager was he to be married to the woman he loved and have her settled at Bracken that Brandon was beginning to count the weeks.
The park in London where they rode was not nearly as private as they would have liked, but in any other place they would have to be chaperoned. That morning Dinah had finally selected the style and fabric for her gown, and even though Brandon could see she was dying to tell him, she had kept silent. He was now in the midst of teasing her, but still she wouldn't say.
"Let me guess. It's covered with tiny pearls and has a very long train."
"Do you wish my dress was covered with little pearls, Brandon?" Dinah's voice was very unsure, and Brandon shouted with laughter. Her very look and voice told him exactly how her dress didnotlook.
"You're terrible, Brandon," she said as she caught onto his game. "It's supposed to be a surprise."
"You mean bad luck and all that?"
"You know I don't believe in luck, but it is tradition for the groom to be surprised."
"Is it also tradition to be married on your late mother's birthday?"
"Oh, Brandon, I know," Dinah's voice was a sigh. "When father suggested it, it sounded so thoughtful and tender, but I didn't think about the fact that it would be months away."
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"I'm sorry I mentioned it." Brandon's tender smile accompanied his apology.
They had already talked it out, and he shouldn't have brought it up again. In any event, it was just three months away now, 86 days to be exact, and then the business of chaperons and separate homes would all be a thing of the past.
Chelsea knew that her face was going to give her away in a moment. She had spent so much time telling Rand not to worry, and now Sunny had finally confided in her. Rand was going to explode when he found out, or worse yet, grow very, very quiet.
Chelsea shrugged. There was no help for it at this point, so she might as well get it over with. She took a deep breath, hoping he would be too busy to talk with her, and entered Rand's study.
Hi
s "hello, love" was not what she wanted to hear at the moment.
"Are you busy, Rand?"
"Come in."
Just as Chelsea had feared, Rand immediately read something in her face. He watched in silence as she took the chair opposite his desk and tried to smile. Rand smiled back in genuine amusement.
"You might as well give all, love, because I know something is amiss."
Chelsea's smile dropped, and her shoulders slumped. "Oh, Randolph, you must try to stay calm."
"Randolph, eh? As bad as all that?"
"Yes, and Sunny is already asleep, so you mustn't wake her."
Rand's frame tensed. "What has she done?"
"She wants a job at the mill."
"The mill? One of our mills?"
"Yes," Chelsea said softly.
"Well, it's out of the question." Rand's voice held a note of finality.
"It's already done."
*WhatfsRand came out of his chair so fast he nearly tipped it over.
"She disguised herself, dressed in near rags, and pulled her hair back. She went to the big mill under a false name, and Johnson gave
her work. I knew she was going to the village, but I didn't see her when she left; she only told me about it when she got home."
Praying and trying to stay calm, Rand sat down very slowly. "Did she give a reason for wanting to do this?"
"Yes. She said she'd never really shown much interest in your work with all the sheep and the mills, and she wanted to know how it was for the workers. She was too tired to eat, and I didn't get suspicious until Mrs. Boots said she had taken a bath and gone to bed. When I asked Sunny, she told me everything."
"Well at least she's got it out of her system."
"She hasn't. She plans on returning in the morning. The workers could not say enough about you, and she rather enjoyed the work on the looms even though it was long and backbreaking. She wants to finish out the week."
"Do you know what will happen if she's discovered? I'll have a walkout on my hands. They'll think she's there to spy. Chelsea, I've got to stop her."
"Well, I think you can, but you'll have to talk with her in the morning. I just checked on her, and she's out cold. She's probably never worked a day so hard in all her life."
Rand stared in amazement at his sister. Had he not known it was her, he would never have guessed. Like so many worn at the mill, her dress was shapeless and nondescript. Only a small section of her hair showed at the front of her scarf, and even her face looked darker and rougher. When Rand drew near, she squinted, effectively masking the shade of her eyes. Not until she grinned at him did his shock fall away. She had blackened one front tooth.
Rand turned away from her to hide a smile and to think. He'd wanted to talk with her before she dressed, but she begged him to wait. He'd called through the door that she was not to get dressed for the mill because the plans were off, but she had only put him off. Now, an hour later, he could actually see how she'd gotten away with it the day before.
Rand turned back, and his eyes traveled to her shoddy gloves and old scuffed boots. He was afraid to ask where she'd gotten everything.
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"Please, Rand," Sunny spoke into his silence. "Iwashoping to go all week, but please just let me go this one last day."
"When is this going to stop, Sunny?" The question came softly.WI feel as though I've encouraged you to keep running and searching when I know I have the answer for you."
Sunny looked away, not wanting to face the meaning of his words.
"Do you understand the problems I would face if you were discovered?"
"I won't be, and what if I told you this would be the last escapade?"
"I think you've said that before."
Sunny thought she might have too, so she fell quiet.
"All right,** Rand said after a moment. "You can go, but I'll be around today, all day. And I'll hear no more of this Sunny, ever. You are to stay away from the mills from now on. We won't speak of this or mention it to anyone. I'll sit down with Johnson tomorrow and try to explain why you're not coming back."
Sunny threw her arms around Rand. He hugged her back, but his heart wasn't in it. When was it going to stop?
Thirteen hours later, in order to protect her disguise, Sunny walked back home from her day at the mill. Satisfied she had worked hard, Sunny found herself mentally thanking Rand for saying she could not return. How did they do it? How did the women from the village work those looms day in and day out?
Sunny's thoughts caused her attention to wander, and without warning, her foot caught in a hole and she fell. She wasn't hurt really, just too weary to rise. It was growing quite dark and the temptation to lie there and go to sleep was almost more than she could take.
She did fight the feeling, however, and just as she stumbled to her feet, a rider came down the road, headed away from Willows' End. He pulled alongside her and dismounted before she could move on. Even in the darkening gloom she recognized Brandon.
"Are you all right, miss?"
"I thought you were in London." Sunny spoke without thought and immediately knew her mistake. She took a step back and turned
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to run, but Brandon's hand captured her wrist. Sunny struggled, but it was like fighting against a padded manacle.
"What are you doing dressed like this?" Brandon's voice was furious.
"Let me go."
"Does Rand know where you are?"
"Yes! Now let me go." She tugged harder, but Brandon was not about to release her. He was still trying to puzzle together why she was out here when Rand's carriage came up the road.
Understanding the scene in a moment as he alighted from the carriage, Rand spoke softly.
"You can let her go, Hawk."
Brandon was swift to comply.
"Get in the carriage, Sunny."
Brandon waited until she'd taken a few steps toward the rig before turning back to the older man. "So you did know about this?"
"Yes, she worked at the mill, but now it's all over. She assured me no one would recognize her, and they didn't. We're not speaking of it to anyone else, and I've told her there will be no repeat performance."
Brandon had a few more questions, and Rand found himself telling him most of the story. The younger man left as soon as Rand was finished, and Rand could see that he had been dissatisfied. Rand hoped that he had handled it well and that Brandon would be accepting of something over which he had no control. He also wondered if maybe he should take over Sunny's finances himself. Perhaps it was too much of a burden for Brandon. Rand knew he had made mistakes as a parent, but he also knew that Brandon could be much too hard on Sunny.
"What could he be thinking?" Brandon stormed at his mother and his fiancee that evening. Hours had passed, and he was still upset.
"You should have seen her. Anything could have happened." "I'm sure Rand was aware of the possible dangers, Brandon." His mother's voice was calm. "You did say his coach was right
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behind her, and he is an experienced parent. I think he's handled Sunny very well." Andrea could see that her son wasn't listening, and she fell silent. She had never seen him like this and wasn't quite sure what to think. Her gaze flicked to Dinah, and Andrea was concerned over the look she saw on her face.
Andrea didn't know that Dinahhadseen Brandon like this before. She had seen it nearly every time Sunny's name was mentioned.
holly sat by sunny's bed, staring at her flushed face and listening to her slightly labored breathing. Feeling totally responsible for her illness, Rand had sat by the bed continuously, until he'd fallen into exhausted sleep in his chair. Chelsea had urged him to bed, and Holly had taken his place. She had been motionless since early that morning, silently praying for Sunny.
Sunny had contracted a cold at the mill that had worsened as each day passed. By the week's end, her chest heaved for air, and her body burned with fever. The doctor was summoned at once, and his prompt diagnosis had been pneum
onia. It had peaked a few days ago, and the doctor said the worst had passed, but Sunny was still very weak, sleeping 18 of each 24 hours, and not able to sit up or feed herself.
Holly thought she looked like a pale skeleton, and fresh tears sprang to her eyes when she remembered how frightened she had been that Sunny might be slipping into eternity before her very eyes. Holly had begged God to spare Sunny and to give her a chance to speak with Sunny about Christ.
It had taken this painful time for Holly to see that she had been very timid where Sunny and Christ were concerned. She knew that her parents had talked to Sunny about God's Son, and Sunny always listened when her father read from his Bible, but Holly knew well that she had been remiss in her own efforts and prayers to introduce Sunny to the Savior.
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Now Holly's reserve was at an end. God had indeed spared Sunny, and when her aunt was once again in full health, Holly would no longer be silent about her Lord. She knew that most people thought her mind was filled with little except piano lessons and the latest fashions, but she knew exactly from whom her salvation came, and worked daily to trust the God who saved her. She knew she wasn't perfect, but she also knew she wasn't frantic, as her aunt seemed to be much of the time.
"How is she?"
Chelsea had come in quietly and gently slipped her arm around her weary daughter. Each had taken her turn at Sunny's bedside, but Rand and Holly were by far the more emotionally upset over her illness.
Mother and daughter exchanged a few words in which Chelsea convinced Holly to eat and get some rest. The older woman saw her daughter to the door and then took up her chair, praying as she did that the lively Sunny they loved so well would soon return to their lives.
Ten days later, Sunny sat on the edge of the bed, knowing she was not supposed to be up at all. The day before, she had finally talked Mrs. Boots into allowing her a bath. She would have liked another Jong soak today, but she knew she would have to be content with a covert walk around the room while everyone thought she was napping.