“Garrett Hillyard! You will do something about those children of yours. And you will do it today.”
At the sound of his mother’s voice coming from the library, James quickly changed direction and took the stairs to his chamber. His original destination had been the billiards room and a glass of brandy, but so long as his mother remained in the same wing of the castle, he was going to put distance between them. Though he did wonder what mischief his darling nieces had gotten up to this time.
James stepped into his chamber and paused, taking in the room. Yes, this was the one he’d been assigned and where he’d changed his clothing before he went for a ride with Epworth. His toiletries were on the dressing table and that was his trunk beside the armoire. What he didn’t recognize was the beautiful woman lounging upon his bed. She really was lovely with her blonde tresses, only a shade darker than Diana’s golden curls, though her clothing was odd, given she wore a blue gown with gold trim over a deep blue petticoat—a dress worn in a much earlier era. Was there to be a costume party this evening? An odd choice for a wedding party, but this was Cornwall and oddities were normal here most of the time.
The woman watched him with intensity, staring at him, but she wasn’t smiling. Instead, she seemed a bit forlorn.
“I believe you’ve mistaken my room for yours,” James said and opened his chamber door. He did not know her and the last thing he wanted or needed was to be caught in a compromising position with a woman he’d never met. He still had at least twelve years before he ended his bachelor state and wasn’t about to have his plans disrupted by a stranger.
Her blue eyes widened. “You can see me?”
He glanced around, wondering if she spoke to someone else.
She sat forward. “You really see me?”
“Of course,” James answered. “However, this ismychamber. Should I call Mrs. Bray so that she might escort you to yours?”
Instead of embarrassment, the woman smiled brightly as she pulled herself from the bed.
“You really do see me!” she cried, then did a little twirl.
This was very odd, even for Cornwall, and James inched his way back toward the entrance.
“And we’re talking!” She laughed. “You’ve no idea how happy this makes me.”
“I’m glad you are pleased,” James answered slowly. Perhaps this odd woman was the real bedlamite.
“I’ve waited and I’d hoped, even prayed that it would happen. That’s why I’ve gone from chamber to chamber, only those assigned to a bachelor of course, in hopes that I might be noticed.”
She was visiting the chambers of bachelors! Did she wish to be ruined?
“It’s soon to be the anniversary and I’d hoped that this year everything would finally align, freeing me from this place.”
“What anniversary would that be?” James backed toward the corridor. If she were married then at least he wouldn’t be forced to marry her, but an irate husband might take issue with finding his wife in James’ chamber.
“Of my death,” she answered as if her response explained everything.
James could feel his jaw drop as he stared at the woman. She didn’t appear to be a ghost, but whole, though very pale.
“It’s been three hundred years, or it will be with the summer solstice, and I’d begun to give up hope that I’d ever be free of this place after so many failures.”
“You’re a ghost.” Maybe she’d laugh and tell him this was a prank. James hoped that was the case.
“Of course.” She smiled. “And you, dear sir, are going to help me gain my freedom.”
When he’d not encountered any ghosts on his prior visit, James assumed he was immune somehow. Apparently, that was not the case. “How exactly am I going to help free you?”
“By falling in love.”
He gaped at her, then nearly laughed at the ridiculousness of the situation. The last thing he had any intention of doing was falling in love. He absolutely refused to do so until his thirty-ninth birthday.
“I must hasten to make plans and meet the misses so that I can pick the perfect one for you.” Then she was gone, disappearing into thin air and leaving James very much alone.
Chapter 2
By the following afternoon,James had convinced himself that he’d imagined the lady in his chamber. Or she’d decided to plague another bachelor.
“Uncle James!” his nieces cried as they rushed forward, skipping around the other guests also enjoying the mild weather in the vibrant gardens behind the castle.
