Her bedroom? She’d been in the front parlor with Ronan locked inside her. Ronan! She flung an arm out to feel for his presence and found cold sheets. That brought her upright. Was he merely up? Was he gone? Was he roaming the house unsupervised? The latter sent a tremor of fear through her. The envelope! Had she been duped at the last? Lucia swung her feet over the side of the bed and grabbed the robe she kept draped over a nearby chair. Thrusting her arms through the silky fabric, she strode to the window. The garden lay directly below her bedroom, empty and silent in the late-morning sun. She breathed a relieved sigh. The envelope was safe. The door to her room opened and she turned at the sound. Ronan stood there, tray laden with breakfast in hand. The sight of food brought a rumble to her stomach. She had not eaten since luncheon yesterday, but she was hard-pressed to remember such mundane needs when all of her attention was focused on Ronan.
