Teasing your wicked heart

there was a flurry of

Two days had passed since that awful piece of pork pie, and eve

r grandfather in that manner as she stood in fr

hough his house was falling apart and his daughters had married off handsomely,

nths, Sarah Jane had delighted in her residence. She had even received an occasional pat on t

out his service to the country's navy and had regular baths. She might

, teetering at the edge of the

past five years, so she wondered, "W

on. It would have been funny enough to make people laugh if s

nted to ask, but even Robinson, who k

citor, Mr. Collins, is waiting for you i

g that this might be the seventh... No, perhaps for the

her father had become a major issue because both Earl Rosenberg and his earlier son, the 6th Earl of Rosenberg, had been

at had been

a thin thread. She had been there to bid them far

he solicitor-a dapper man in his early

ins, perhaps sixty or seventy years old. When she was eighteen, she communicated with the older Mr. Collins. Frequently, he had been utterly per

rah Jane moved from house to house more frequently than a typical English

nce, must be the new Mr. Collins, the son of her father's solicitor.

entrustments. She welcomed him politely, "Good

he front couch, not even considerin

Rosenberg, we have a lot to talk about," he beg

h, got up, and went to

ternoon," and returned with a loud fl

ht in this somewhat annoying situation. He had a great angula

ression. He started off by saying, "Since your move from the 13th Earl Rosenb

"The 8th Earl was very disorganized and had lost it in his home while you were

, although only parts of it were discovered. My lady and I fear that the

he said, "I would have to read it to

e old earl passes away, the surviving earl will inherit her as well as the associated estates. The inher

to a new owner, that's a matter for

requested that Nurse Harpers, who was now lovingly referred to as Mathilda, and her dependable butler and secretary, Mr. Robinson-who was now Mathilda's husba

ang

gh he acknowledged the changes

discovery of her father's origina

ignature on the bottom seal and said, "May I

ce were all faded from her memory, but she di

ed herself a cup and held it to her lips to contain any unwanted

moved in his chair and rearrange

be transported to Trowbridge in 3 days, in the home of a Viscount Killsworth. He has not yet confirmed nor responded t

the paper from the mess while a few blots o

rrectly. This was undoubtedly the first. Nobody in his right mind could

ociety, denying was def

ven though she had not spent a season in town. It's possible that s

ttle bit of an exa

she didn't know anyone outside of the household. And she

to inform him and instructed a footman to deliver the urgent message to him. You will be dep

see, your former guardians have neglected a few important details, and this origi

ing increasingly agitated with this man as the minute passed. "U

e attorney

ha

"This Earl is the 14

just to get the last say. She was sick of being tak

st appalling behaviour to be quite unthinking." "This Earl, I adored

cautiously. "We follow l

was still playing with dolls. Why are they hurrying whe

e to the magistrate. I dare you." With a dramatic flourish that Mr.

round to asking what "changes" Mr. Collins was ke

arely talk Mathilda out of departing so early; the footmen were already loading them into a closed carriage. However, M

rah Jane stared at Mathilda, her mouth h

aying, "Oh, do stop." Sarah Jane was dying to know what Mathi

d night long, without even asking me if I wa

pared to Mathilda, who had an abundanc

uched Sarah Jane's leg. "We know y

lf and said, "I didn't

to her reticule from inside. "You must know that with all the legalities surroundi

, causing her throat to tighten and maybe burst into tears. "We will find out soon enough what we are to d

er a brief rundown of some things, but in reality, he was just telling her what was going on; they weren't havi

, considering her life following the death of her beloved father. Not only had that anxi

nately, Robinson and Nurse Harpers developed a strong bond, and he persuaded her to become Mrs. Robinson. Their inability

d become even rarer, if that were possible, because her father's side of the family had all but died out. The King will d

, then all of this was to be done, and Mr. Collins, the yo

ome distant relative of hers, then

ying so hard to interpret the faint murmurs that it slippe

he carriage door open. Mathilda asked if she wanted some dinner served to her room as her stomach rumbled. She gave them a gent

it. "As you may well know, I am thoroughly irked by the fact that you

ed his spouse's lips becoming taut, deciding how much information she should divulge at that

ked, "There are many details which are not yet of any certainty, which brings

me insight to it? My own opinion?" Robinson looked

expression as he got himself

ant his life. "Did my father give the Earldom away?" she questioned, uncertain, wondering how

ts. The understanding was drafted clearer in a series of correspondences a

asked, trying to make sense of th

iends from Eton, and as peers, they came into society together and m

cular piece of meat on her plate, i

he heavy influence of drink, then we will just have to wait and see what w

her father and this Killsworth lord horribly long to become so waste

ht mind award an honour

ir had matured into the heir apparent, had passed away, and ultimately died. There must be someone in heaven laughing at her. Because it

nd eve

ty, chewing it precisely and tossing it to her left teeth before smashing it with her right. While she w

o didn't fit her needs, but no one wou

y trip. She was thinking about the event

estinal illnesses. First of all, her father died on a Tuesday after

grandpa, could hardly even raise his legs. After their grief subsided, they disco

n in better health and had been smoking and drinking n

other for history and the arts. The Earl's sole way of showing the little girl that he cared was

when the Earl, in all his drunken stupor, staggered down the spiral staircase belongin

young Sarah Jane's early bleeding was caused by the stress of moving and the Earl's passing. Concerned as ever, M

tess had been a delight to be around, showing Sarah how to dress stylishly, dance,

nd that godforsaken pork pie, the 14th Earl descended from the 12th and 13th

ous books, she had always desired one and

ch less provide social support for her to do

head, not too gently. Yes, Sarah Jane was certain that this would be a demanding week. Af

days, simply nodding her head slightly in

jolted her so much that h

mpted to strike up a discussion. She had really had enough of this introspection. They were getting

rled upward at the corners, indicating a smile. "Is it

trips, and leisurely horseback riding. Regalia's home was obviously falling apart, but Sarah Jane was more interested in meddling in tenant and home repair matters than in practicing her music, n

d, "Just how you make it, with ple

"How many jars?" The 14th Earl's generosity and the

pped a ribbon on one so we may give it as a gift to the

t to see her, so surely a jar of luscious jam wouldn't

e was not only gifting her an earldom,

s to know she wouldn't back down i

ast part about the c

-