Maid to Be Mine: A Regency Cinderella Story Read Online Free Page B

The stables?!”
    “ I suppose you'll be a groom of sorts. It's a strange job for a lady, but I've done it before, so you should be alright. Caring for the horses can be fun, actually, so we decided to start you off with that.” Tess headed for the door. “Now, I'll leave you to get dressed.”
    When Tess was gone, Cynthia dragged herself out of bed and started to put on the dress, which was so large, it slipped right over her head. Tess was much shorter than she was, so the dress fell to her mid-calf, which was more than a bit awkward. Cynthia hadn't had her ankles exposed since she was in pinafores. She tried to comb her hair and pin it, but the resulting style was a complete mess. Fortunately, she did not have a looking glass, so she was not subjected to the sight of her hair, nor was she subjected to the sight of the immense bags under her eyes.
    Cynthia wandered into the next room, where the three servants were sitting at their usual table. Cynthia sat in the empty seat, and Tess presented her with a bowl of food—if, indeed, it could even be called “food.” It was lumpy, tasteless porridge, but Cynthia was so hungry, she ended up scraping the bowl.
    “ You actually like this slop?” Robert observed. He scooped a spoonful of porridge, raised it up, tilted the spoon, and let the lumpy drippings rain back into his bowl.
    “ No, I do not care for it,” Cynthia said. She hoped she didn't offend the cook, whomever he was. “At the moment, however, I would happily consume anything and everything I could get my hands on!”
    “ Fair enough. By the way, you're with me today,” Robert said.
“I know. I've been warned.”
    “ Warned?!” Robert chuckled. “Is working with me such a bad thing?”
    It was a bad thing. For one, she couldn't shake the feeling that Robert was trouble. Maybe it was the hint of mischief in his eyes, but something told her to be wary of him. Secondly, Cynthia was unaccustomed to being alone with men. She wished Tess would recognize that fact and save her from an afternoon with Robert.
    But it wasn't going to happen. As soon as they finished eating, Robert rose from his chair and held out his hand. “Come on. I'll take you to the stables.”
    As she stared at his outstretched fingers, her nose involuntarily crinkled. His hands, still unwashed, were as dirty as ever. “You want me to take your hand?”
    “ Not especially, Princess.” To prove it, Robert shoved his hands into his pockets. “Come on. I'll lead the way.”
    Cynthia rose from her rickety chair and followed him out the door, but not before casting a desperate look to Tess, which prompted the older woman to shout, “Behave yourself, Robert!”
    “ I'm always well-behaved!” Robert was rolling his eyes as he stepped into the hallway. He glanced over his shoulder, making sure the lady was still following him. He saw that she was lagging behind, so he barked, “Come on. Hurry up!”
    Robert had incredibly long legs, so she had to sprint to keep up with him. “You know,” Cynthia began, “you should really wash your hands.”
    “ I don't see the point in that! After a day's work, my hands are just going to get dirty anyway.”
    “ They're already dirty. They're going to get filthy,” Cynthia said.
    “ I'm not as filthy as you think I am. I do bathe,” Robert insisted.
    “ And when's the last time you bathed, exactly? I imagine it was quite some time ago.”
    “ You imagine ,” Robert repeated with a chuckle. “You need to spend less time imagining me scrubbing my naked body and more time thinking about the task at hand.”
    Cynthia gasped. Never in her life had she been spoken to in such a way! She closed her mouth and held her tongue as she followed him into the stables, because no good could come from conversing with him.
    As soon as they were inside, Robert grabbed a horse brush from the wall and tossed it at her. She nearly dropped it. “Here. Groom the horses.”
    In what world did he think he could order