Not even Gil MacIntosh could accuse him of being anything other than a open-handed, generous man now. Not after he’d paid to have Mrs. Finney transferred to a private room. His insides gave a small shudder when he recalled meeting Mrs. Finney for the first time, and of walking down that row of pa...
was flabbergasted. How dare this man yell at him for protecting Rose from his marauding monster of a child? Thrusting the wriggling boy at his father, who caught him even though the gesture surprised him, H.L. barked, “Take your kid, then, and teach him some manners. Miss Gilhooley isn’t accustom...
He patted her hand in a brotherly fashion. “Are you feeling better now?” Claire decided it was past time she got herself in hand and began to perform the duties for which she was paid. Standing and clearing her throat, she declared, “Yes, thank you. I’m sorry for being so silly, Mr. Parting...
He knew he should leave her, untouched and intact, here in her hotel room. He was a villain not to go. When she walked up to him and put her arms around him and began kissing him with all of the passion he’d always suspected lurked inside her, his resolution faltered. When she whispered, “Please ...
Madame Dunbar’s place wasn’t actually in the city of Los Angeles. Rather, it was located in a foothill community called Altadena, which was north of Pasadena, which Mari’d never heard of either, so it didn’t make any difference. Altadena and Pasadena were both gorgeous places, full of grand homes...
Ma, fork held before her in shock, asked as we sat at the supper table that evening. When I glanced around the table, I saw that Pa and Vi were also staring at me, open-mouthed with astonishment. Oh, goody. After heaving a less-than-ecstatic sigh, I...
Ferrett and Pelch took every moment they were given away from his presence to hie themselves over to his train carriage and try to saw through the wrought iron railing on his private observation deck. It was slow going. “I don’t think we’ve even made a dent, Mr. Pelch,” said Ferrett, wiping his f...
Her huge, warm, hazel green eyes watched him with fascination as he told her his vision for the motion picture industry, and she sat still with her hands folded in her lap. Christina had a capacity for stillness he hadn’t seen in very many people. It was very restful. The quality in her made him ...
And her eyes no longer looked bloodshot. Eulalie figured that if she acted cheerful and happy—which she was, really—no one would notice the remnants of her crying jag. She smiled at her escorts. “It’s very nice of you to walk me to the stage stop.” “We’re both looking forward to meeti...
Winkworth’s estate from the vulgar world, I understood why at least one of the Pasadena coppers had been sent to this so-called set. In all his uniformed glory, he stood guard at the gate. I guess the regular gatekeeper wasn’t tough enough for the job. Or perhaps the picture-makers expected viole...
Win couldn’t remember the last time he’d been this relieved and overjoyed. She was his! She wasn’t going away! Thank God, thank God, thank God. “We’re going to be great together, Belle. This partnership is going to be the best thing since the invention of the camera.” She was breathless with laug...
Becky continued to blossom under Callie’s care, the gardens at the mansion took on an autumnal cast, Figgins started talking about instructing the gardeners to lay in firewood for the winter and having the storm windows put up, Mrs. Granger and a minion hired for the purpose finished the yearly p...
As I carefully positioned my high-crowned felt cloche hat and stuck a pin in to hold it to my neat bun, a trickle of perspiration ran down my cheek. My sister frowned at me. “You need to get your hair bobbed. I don’t know why you persist in keeping your hair long. Bobbed hair is ever so much...
Along with anger was another emotion he couldn’t pinpoint, but it didn’t feel good. He hated emotions. They were so—so uncomfortable. He much preferred the silent, unsentimental world of academia. He was comfortable there; ever so much more comfortable than when he was forced to confront the unst...