The Heiress Bride - Catherine Coulter [66]
“Vere Castle is the finest house in all the county.”
She smiled toward Serena. “It’s magical.”
“It’s also falling down about our ears,” Aunt Arleth said. “I don’t imagine that Colin has got you with child yet.”
That was straight talking, Sinjun thought. She heard a fork clatter to a plate and looked up to see Colin staring at his aunt. It was a bit of impertinence, but since Colin had already spoken of it, Sinjun wasn’t shocked as she had been at first.
“No,” she said mildly.
“You will remember the children are here, Aunt.”
“We don’t want any of her children around,” Philip said. “You won’t allow it, will you, Papa? You have me and Dahling. You don’t need more children.”
“We wouldn’t like them at all,” Dahling said. “They’d be ugly, like her.”
“Now, now,” Sinjun said, laughing. “They could be quite beautiful, like your father. And, Dahling, you did admit that my Sherbrooke blue eyes were nice as well as my Sherbrooke chestnut hair.”
“You made me,” said Dahling, her lower lip jutting out.
“True. I twisted your arm and stuck pins in your nose. Already I’m such a wicked stepmother.”
“Pearlin’ Jane will get you,” Dahling said as a last resort.
“I look forward to seeing her,” Sinjun said. “I will see if she is as impressive as our own Virgin Bride.”
“Virgin Bride?” MacDuff cocked his head to one side, his bushy red eyebrows hiked up a good inch.
“She’s our resident ghost at Northcliffe Hall, a young lady of the sixteenth century who was just wedded when her groom was murdered before he could come to her.”
Dahling’s eyes were fixed on Sinjun’s face. “She’s real? You’ve seen her?”
“Oh yes. She appears to the ladies of the family, but I know for a fact that my brother the earl has seen her as well, though he refuses to admit it. She’s quite beautiful, really, with very long pale hair and a flowing gown. She speaks to you but never out loud; it’s in your mind you can hear her, I guess you’d say. She seems to want to keep the ladies of the house safe.”
“Utter nonsense,” said Colin.
“That’s what Douglas says. But he has seen her, Alex told me so. He just can’t bring himself to admit it out loud, because he fears people will think him hysterical and he will think himself hysterical as well. All the Northcliffe earls have written about her, but Douglas refuses to. A pity, really.”
“I don’t believe you,” Philip said. “Virgin Bride, what a silly name!”
“Well, I don’t believe you either. Pearlin’ Jane is a pretty silly name, too. No, I shan’t believe you until I’ve seen Pearlin’ Jane for myself.” As a challenge, it was excellent, Sinjun thought, looking at Philip from beneath her lashes. She wouldn’t be at all surprised to have a rendition of Pearlin’ Jane haunting her room once Colin had left.
“Children, you will leave now. Here’s Dulcie.”
Sinjun didn’t want the children to leave. At least she’d gotten their interest. Philip gave his father a pathetic look, but Colin only shook his head and said, “I will be up later to tuck you up. Be good now and go with Dulcie. Joan, when you are finished, you may take Aunt Arleth and Serena into the drawing room. MacDuff and I have some more plans to discuss. We’ll join you shortly.”
“What a pity that you interest him so little that he must leave you.”
Ah, Auntie, Sinjun thought, you’d best mind your tongue. She smiled lovingly at the woman and said, “I agree. If his marvelously great father hadn’t been such a wastrel bastard, perhaps he wouldn’t have to leave.”
She heard Colin laugh from behind her. She had played her cards all wrong, she decided later. He would leave with no concern that she would have any problems with his relatives. If she had only