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    Mistletoe Moment
    Mistletoe Moment
    Mistletoe Moment
    Ebook71 pages1 hour

    Mistletoe Moment

    By Blair Bancroft

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    About this ebook

    After suffering social disaster at her very first ball—severely aggravated by the horror of an unfeeling family—Miss Pamela Ashburton hides herself in the country, expecting to live out her life as a spinster. Major Will Forsythe, injured in body and spirit at Waterloo, comes to the country to escape the concern of well-meaning relatives. Privacy, peace and quiet—that's all he wants. Until he meets a holiday sprite in search of mistletoe. And the Christmas spirit, in the form of a cluster of white berries, gives them both a second chance.

    Author's Note: This novella-length Christmas story was previously published under the same title.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherBlair Bancroft
    Release dateNov 16, 2016
    ISBN9780996188753
    Mistletoe Moment
    Author

    Blair Bancroft

    Blair Bancroft recalls receiving odd looks from adults as she walked home from school at age seven, her lips moving as she told herself stories. And there was never a night she didn't entertain herself with her own bedtime stories. But it was only after a variety of other careers that she turned to serious writing. Blair has been a music teacher, professional singer, non-fiction editor, costume designer, and real estate agent. She has traveled from Bratsk, Siberia, to Machu Picchu, Peru, and made numerous visits to Europe, Britain, and Ireland. She is now attempting to incorporate all these varied experiences into her writing. Blair's first book, TARLETON'S WIFE, won RWA's Golden Heart and the Best Romance award from the Florida Writers' Association. Her romantic suspense novel, SHADOWED PARADISE, and her Young Adult Medieval, ROSES IN THE MIST, were finalists for an EPPIE, the "Oscar" of the e-book industry. Blair's Regency, THE INDIFFERENT EARL, was chosen as Best Regency by Romantic Times magazine and was a finalist for RWA's RITA award. Blair believes variety is the spice of life. Her recent books include Historical Romance, Romantic Suspense, Mystery, Thrillers, and Steampunk, all available at Smashwords. A long-time resident of Florida, Blair fondly recalls growing up in Connecticut, which still has a piece of her heart.

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      Book preview

      Mistletoe Moment - Blair Bancroft

      Mistletoe Moment

      by Blair Bancroft

      Published by Kone Enterprises

      at Smashwords

      Copyright 2016 by Grace Ann Kone

      For other books by Blair Bancroft,

      please see http://www.blairbancroft.com

      Smashwords Edition, License Notes

      This book is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Smashwords.com and purchase This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy.

      Chapter One

      Hampshire, December, 1811

      Dazzling! Miss Pamela Ashburton, eyes alight with the wonder of her very first dance, gazed down the length of the Trentham’s elegant ballroom. Her blood bubbled like champagne. Yes, dazzling was the only word to describe the scene before her. Beautifully gowned ladies, their jewels sparkling under three crystal chandeliers with a hundred candles each. Finely turned-out gentlemen handing the ladies through the steps of a stately quadrille. The lilting notes of the orchestra mixed with the hum of conversation. Swaths of Christmas garlands and wreaths, brightened with sprigs of holly, mistletoe, and red velvet bows. Ah, but it was glorious!

      Yet tonight was merely the first step toward her spring season in London, where the Trentham’s ball would be as nothing compared to—

      No! No matter what delights London hostesses offered, nothing could be finer than this, her very first venture into Hampshire society.

      The intricate figures of the quadrille slowed to a close. The gentlemen bowed, the ladies curtsied. Lovely. She would be just like them, Pamela vowed. Graceful and charming, pleasant-faced. Unlike her sister Arabella, whose sharp tongue sent gentlemen fleeing to kinder partners. She would play society’s game, because at the end of this stylized, if sparkling, charade she would find the man of her dreams. She would marry, have her own household, children—

      Playing statue, little minx? Her brother Chauncey’s teasing words broke through Pamela’s euphoria. Oh, drat. Mama and Bella were already seating themselves in chairs on the far side of the spacious room. Her sister, unsympathetic with Pamela’s flights of fancy over what Bella described as a mere country ball, was bound to add mocking words about her younger sister’s inability to find her way across the ballroom. Or about gaping like a country bumpkin.

      Pamela sighed, lifting an anxious gaze to her brother. You will stand up with me, Chauncey, will you not?

      He offered a sympathetic smile, his hand resting lightly on her shoulder. You look fine as a fivepence, Pammie. You’ll have a whole slew of young men wishing to dance with you, but if you need a partner, I’ll be there. Agreed?

      Oh, thank you, she cried on a breath that whooshed with relief. You are the best of brothers. If only Chauncey were not home so seldom, leaving her to Bella’s unkind tongue, her mother’s obsession with readying her for a grand London come-out, and her father’s indifference to anything domestic, including his two daughters.

      Come, laggard, Chauncey said, taking her arm. You must join Mama and Bella before their tongues turn to knives. Chin up. Smile.

      Dutifully, Pamela allowed Chauncey to steer her to a seat beside her mother and sister, where he immediately proffered a bow and took himself off to wherever young gentlemen went at a country ball. Probably seeking out old friends, Pamela thought, or surreptitiously ogling the young women. Lucky Chauncey, heir to a barony, who could spend most of his year frivoling about London—

      No, no, no! She had no right to be jealous. He was male; she, female. He could do as he pleased. She could not. That was the way of the world, and a female questioning the order of things at age seventeen was, well . . . laughable.

      No, it wasn’t, Pamela corrected stubbornly. Having no say in her life was sad. Sad, indeed.

      May I have this dance?

      Oh, thank goodness. Pamela wiped the frown from her face. Standing tall before her was Tom, the squire’s eldest. She’d known him all her life.

      Though Tom proved to be more good-hearted than adept at dancing, he was but the first of a swarm of young men seemingly happy to dance with Baron Ashburton’s younger daughter. Before the evening was half over, Pamela’s euphoria had returned in full measure. Lady Ashburton was smiling in triumph, and the only thing Bella could find to criticize, Pamela noted with glee, was her younger sister so obviously having a good time.

      Hoyden! Bella declared behind the cover of her fan. Ladies dance with grace and elegance. They are never boisterous. Pamela returned what was possibly an overly smug smile, plus a wave of her fingers, as she accepted a young gentleman’s outstretched hand for a set of country dances.

      The tempos were the liveliest of the night. Pamela suspected the members of the orchestra had been sampling the punch during their breaks. Stately

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