Yours Until Dawn

385 Pages·2004·1.46 MB·English

by  Teresa Medeiros

To my Michael, one of my greatest blessings is
waking up to your sweet face every morning.
To my very own Axis of Angels—you know who
you are . . .
To all of the angels of mercy at Western State
Nursing Facility. May God bless you for all you
do to take care of my mom.
And for my sweet Lord, who healed the lame and
made the blind to see.
Dd
Who ever loved, that loved not at first sight?
christopher marlowe
CONTENTS
Chapter 1
“So tell me, Miss Wickersham, have you any… 1
Chapter 2
As Samantha groped her way down the curving… 21
Chapter 3
Gabriel came creeping down the stairs the next… 43
Chapter 4
When Gabriel emerged from his bedchamber… 57
Chapter 5
“Miss Wickersham? Oh, Miss Wickersham?”… 75
Chapter 6
“Insufferable man,” Samantha muttered to herself… 93
Chapter 7
For a dazed moment, Samantha didn’t even dare… 113
Chapter 8
When Samantha entered Gabriel’s bedchamber… 127
Chapter 9
“I used to boast to all my friends that I could… 139
Chapter 10
When Samantha heard a muf.ed bang, she sat… 149
Chapter 11
“What is it?” Gabriel demanded, his sense of… 167
Chapter 12
Samantha was sulking. 183
Chapter 13
The man standing at the head of the long table… 191
Chapter 14
Promptly at two o’clock the following afternoon… 207
Chapter 15
Ignoring the marquess’s outstretched hand… 225
Chapter 16
Gabriel sat just inside the door of the folly, listening… 243
Chapter 17
“Does she have to be here?” the marchioness of… 261
Chapter 18
“Have you gone stark raving mad?” Samantha… 273
Chapter 19
“Beckwith!” 289
Chapter 20
“She can’t simply have vanished into thin air. 299
Chapter 21
The stranger made his way through the crowded… 315
Chapter 22
Gabriel Fairchild stood at the head of the stairs… 325
Chapter 23
Cecily stood before him in the .relight, wearing… 341
Chapter 24
Cecily gazed out the carriage window at the… 353
Chapter 25
As Cecily met Gabriel’s cool green gaze, a shudder… 365
Epilogue 371
About the Author
Praise for Teresa Medeiros
Other Books by Teresa Medeiros
Copyright
Cover
About the Publisher
DChapter 1 d
England, 1806
My dear Miss March,
I pray you’ll forgive me for being presumptuous
enough to contact you in this rather unconven-
tional manner...
“S
o tell me, Miss Wickersham, have you any
experience?”
From somewhere deep in the sprawling Ja-
cobean mansion, a tremendous crash sounded.
Although the portly butler who was conducting
the interview visibly flinched and the house-
keeper standing at rigid attention beside the tea
table let out an audible squeak, Samantha re-
fused to so much as blink.
Instead, she drew a neat packet of papers from
the side pocket of the battered leather portman-
teau resting at her feet and held them out. “I’m
2 Teresa Medeiros
sure you’ll find my letters of reference are in or-
der, Mr. Beckwith.”
Although it was midday, the light in the mod-
est breakfast parlor was abysmal. Shafts of sun-
light bled through the cracks in the heavy velvet
drapes, striping the rich ruby weave of the Turk-
ish carpet. The wax candles scattered across the
occasional tables filled the corners with flicker-
ing shadows. The room smelled musty and
close, as if it had gone unaired for ages. If not for
the absence of black swags over the windows
and mirrors, Samantha would have sworn some-
one very dear to the household had recently
died.
The butler took the papers from her white-
gloved hand and unfolded them. As the house-
keeper craned her long neck to peer over his
shoulder, Samantha could only pray the dim
light would work to her advantage, preventing
them from studying the scrawled signatures
too closely. Mrs. Philpot was a handsome
woman of indeterminate age, as sleek and nar-
row as the butler was round. Although her face
was unlined, silver frosted the black chignon
anchored at her nape.
“As you can see, I served two years as gov-
erness for Lord and Lady Carstairs,” Samantha
informed Mr. Beckwith as he gave the papers a
cursory thumbing-through. “Once the war re-
sumed, I joined several other governesses in vol-
unteering to treat sailors and soldiers who
Yours Until Dawn 3
returned from sea or the front with debilitating
wounds.”
The housekeeper could not quite hide the faint
tightening of her lips. Samantha knew there were
still those in society who believed women who
nursed soldiers to be little more than glorified
camp followers. Immodest creatures who
wouldn’t even blush to look upon a strange man’s
nakedness. Feeling heat rise to her own cheeks,
Samantha lifted her chin another notch.
Mr. Beckwith examined her over the top of his
wire-rimmed spectacles. “I must confess, Miss
Wickersham, that you’re a trifle bit . . . younger
than what we had in mind. Such strenuous duty
might require a woman of more. ..maturity.
Perhaps one of the other applicants...” At
Samantha’s arch look, he trailed off.
“I don’t see any other applicants, Mr. Beck-
with,” she pointed out, sliding her own ill-
fitting spectacles up her nose with one finger.
“Given the generous, even extravagant, wages
you offered in your advertisement, I fully ex-
pected to find them lined up outside your
gates.”
Another crash came, this one even closer than
the last. It sounded as if some sort of massive
beast were lumbering toward its den.
Mrs. Philpot hastened around the chair, her
starched petticoats rustling. “Would you care for
some more tea, my dear?” As she poured from
the porcelain pot, her hand trembled so violently