Beloved Enemy

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He laughed but with a bitter note. “You are correct, Miss Julia. My cousin would attest to that fact. I am Robert Montgomery of Rhinebeck, New York, and I bid you a good night.” He cocked his head, then spoke again, this time in Shakespeare’s sweet words. “Sleep dwell upon thine eyes, peace on thy breast.”

“And to you, Major Robert Montgomery,” she whispered.

He touched the brim of his hat again, then let himself out of the gate. It closed with a small click behind him as he disappeared amid the swirling snow. All the warmth of the night went with him. Just then, all the church bells in the city tolled the hour of midnight. Christ Church began its complicated peal to ring in the New Year—1864. Roused by the bells and the cold, Julia hurried through the back door and up the stairs to the safety of her room.

She was well and truly out of her mind. Mother would surely die if she knew she planned to meet a Yankee in public tomorrow. But she would—and not just to get rid of Payton!

Chapter Seven

“Oh, my heart!” Clara Chandler dropped her coffee cup. Missing the breakfast table and the corner of the Oriental carpet beneath it, the delicate English bone china smashed against the bare floor. Hot coffee pooled around the broken bits of the rose-pattern design.

Jonah set down his fork on his plate before giving his complete attention to his wife.

Clara stared at the scathing letter she held in one hand while she clutched her bosom with the other. This time there was no need for subterfuge. The loathsome words written by Melinda Winstead were vile enough to bring on a true seizure. “I shall die,” Clara moaned, dropping the blue notepaper.

Jonah caught it in time before it landed in the puddle of coffee. “Hettie,” he called over his shoulder. “Please fetch my medical bag and some smelling salts, as well.”