The dinner table had the capacity to sit twenty, but the diners consisted of only five; myself, Lance, his mother, Vivian, his father, Edward, and his evil uncle, Bart – who, to my surprise was Edward’s twin brother; born eight minutes after him.  His brother, Jason, was not in attendance.  The investigator in me wanted to know why, but, as I’d done so often since I’d met Lance just days earlier, I’d refrained from asking questions.  It was quite out of character for me.  Then, everything that I was doing lately was out of character.We were  halfway through the meal when Lance finally asked the whereabouts of his younger brother, Jason.  Since all family members were expected to attend dinner, it came as a surprise to everyone that he was not amongst them, but no fuss was made. Vivian demanded propriety at all times.  She would wait for the appropriate time to find out why her son had not attended

The house was in an uproar.   Several weeks had passed with no sign of Lance’s younger brother, Jason.  Vivian’s temper was at an all-time high over the fact that the rumors that he was somewhere on the plantation kept spreading, yet she was unable to present him to me.  A woman who was devoted to family and tradition, the mere thought that he would miss Lance’s and my wedding was sending her into a frenzy. My fiancé, on the other hand, was more than a little relieved.“I was concerned that he would do something devious to try to stop us from getting married,” he said as he guided me to a nearby bench in the garden.  “My parents are sticklers for tradition.   If my birthday comes and goes without seeing me married and Jason manages to produce a wife, the inheritance goes to him.”“Have you found any mischief started by him?” I asked with both curiosity and conce

I was bedridden well into the afternoon before my limbs were steady enough to support me.  Lance was good enough to carry me to the tub so that, with Jasmine’s help, I could bathe away the sweat and vomit in a most welcomed rose scented bath.  He surprised me by depositing me into the tub and then leaving to wait outside of my bedroom door until Jasmine called him back in to carry me back to bed.  After so many nights of passionate love making, I was sure that he knew every inch of my body.  His display of polite chivalry where my modesty was concerned felt out of place.He sat with me for a while during the day and even played a few games of checkers with me. To both my surprise and annoyance, Jasmine never left the room.  I longed for the privacy needed to speak on certain topics with him.  At one point, I suggested that she go rest while Lance was with me, but he claimed the necessity to exercise propriety for his mother&rsq

Jasmine timidly roused me from my getaway slumber to dress for dinner.  Part of me wanted to send her away, but my mind wouldn’t release the last sentence that I’d heard Lilith speak.  Just what family secrets was she talking about?   I groaned as I pulled myself off the bed to freshen up before she assisted me with attire that was suitable for attending the evening meal.  I’d never find out the truth about this family and what they were up to if I didn’t go down to dinner and mingle with them.Since Jasmine was the only person who knew that I’d slipped downstairs and eavesdropped on Lilith and Lance’s conversation,  I could carry out the ruse of being ignorant about it all while I sought out the information that I needed.She’d supplied me with warm water in my wash bowl.  Unfortunately, by the time I’d managed to get my reluctant body off the bed and functioning enough to walk to the w

The guests were all abuzz with excitement and anticipation of an impromptu wedding ceremony.  The only guest not in attendance was Lilith.  Jason was missing amongst the crowd, but, then, I didn’t consider him a guest.  He was family, after all.  It was just as well that he wasn’t kept abreast of what was happening.  I wouldn’t put it past him to challenge Lance right there in the middle of the ceremony.Even though I came from a time where pre-marital sex was accepted.  Loose sexual behavior was still frowned upon.  The fact that I’d been sleeping with one brother while bonded by a marriage contract to another being openly discussed by strangers was completely humiliating.  I hated Jason Northrup for playing such a dirty trick on me.  I hated him even more for going public with it.  I hoped that my sudden wedding totally destroyed his plans and knocked him right on his ass.Lance was waiting at