A Bluestocking Christmas Read Online Free Page A

reverberated in her ear, and a warm breath caressed her cheek as if someone. A soft cry of fear escaped Ivy’s lips, and the books she carried crashed to the wooden floor as she ran toward the front of the library. She’d only gone a few steps when the necklace she’d put in her pocket materialize in front of her. Heart pounding in fear, she took two quick steps backward, her gaze never leaving the necklace as it swayed in mid-air.  
    “Who’s in here? Show yourself,” she croaked.
    “As you wish.” The deep, gravelly voice came from the end of the aisle, and Ivy turned to see a swirling white mist moving toward her.
    Dear lord, a ghost. No one had ever mentioned anything about a ghost in the library before. She trembled as a shape took form in the pearly cloud of air moving toward her. Slowly, the mist evaporated to reveal an elderly gentleman. The man’s hair and beard were neatly trimmed and white as the snow falling outside.  
    He wore a black suit coat with two rows of buttons down the front, a pair of striped pants, and white material layered over the tops of his shoes. A cane completed his unusual appearance. While he looked exceedingly dashing with his neatly trimmed white hair, Ivy couldn’t remember ever seeing any man dressed so oddly. The elderly gentleman leaned on his cane, his gnarled fingers curled over the silver wolf cane top. Arching a white eyebrow, he smiled.  
    “Well, do I meet with your approval?” The question made Ivy start.
    “You’re not real,” she muttered as she braced herself against the nearest bookshelf. “Either that or I’ve gone mad.”
    “No, my darling, Ivy, I’m as real as you.” He smiled before something like pain crossed his face. “You wished that you’d never met Simon. If after our travels tonight, should you still wish to forget Simon, I shall grant you that wish.”
    There was a courtly manner to the man as he closed the distance between them. She recoiled from him, but not quickly enough. To her amazement, his touch was warm as lifted her hand and brushed his mouth against the back of her hand. She shuddered. How could a ghost’s hand be so warm?
      “I don’t understand,” Ivy shook her head and tried to pull her fingers free of the man’s grasp. For someone her imagination had conjured up, he had a strong grip.
    “You will in time, my dear,” the elderly man said as he squeezed her fingers. “Come, there’s a great deal at stake. I only have a few hours to show you how much you love Simon.”
    “No, you’re wrong,” she exclaimed bitterly as she tried to jerk her hand free of the man’s incredibly strong grip. “I don’t love him. I’m through with him.”
    “I find that difficult to believe, but if after our journey you still wish to forget Simon, I will help you do so.”  
    The man’s hand tightened on hers and Ivy gasped as the mist she’d seen moments ago reappeared and swiftly engulfed the two of them. In an instant, the library was gone and she was floating in nothingness.

 
    Chapter 2
    The newspaper in Simon’s hands rustled like a noisy wind in the quiet of the London Library. He’d already read the daily once today, but the pretense of reading allowed him to observe Miss Ivy Beecham undetected. A soft growl of aggravation rumbled out of him. He’d found it necessary to rearrange his entire morning schedule because of Miss Beecham.
    In fact, if it were not for Anthony’s wayward behavior, he’d most likely be enjoying a sparring match at the club. Instead, he found himself lodged here in the library’s scholarly setting simply to put an end to Anthony’s outrageous notion of marrying beneath his social station. This was his nephew’s second unacceptable infatuation in less than a year, but this time the boy had gone too far. A dalliance with a commoner was one thing, but marrying one was an entirely different matter. He was ready to thrash the boy. As his nephew’s guardian, Simon took his duties seriously, but