Dancing the Maypole (58 page)

Agent 1680
materialised beside the kissing couple, rubbing his hands with a
satisfied smile. “Ah, my favourite part of an assignment…the happy
couple embracing in marital bliss. In an hour or two you’ll be
arguing over some trivial misunderstanding and wondering why you
married, but in this moment…it’s perfect. You hold your wife tight
in your arms, and the smell of her makes you gloriously tight. Your
heart tick-tock’s like a well oiled clock and you count down the
eternal hours you’re forced to spend entertaining your weeping
mother-in-law. The less said about mother-in-laws the better. Mine
still blames me for my wife’s early death. As if I wanted to die
young and break my wife’s heart. The inventor of the traditional
wedding feast was an impotent villain or a mother-in-law. Who else
would insist the bride and groom sit side by side at a table and
expect them to consume a mountain of food? Who gets married to eat
cake? All I wanted was to pick up my bride and run for the nearest
bedchamber with a door I could bolt. Speaking of beds, I nearly
forgot, make sure you sleep in Isabel Désirée’s room. The bed in
your room is haunted by some royal bore still waiting for a
mistress who jilted him for an Irish singer. He won’t share the
bed. You’ll both end up on the floor. Are you listening? No?
Brilliant! I’m talking to myself again. Another grateful Smirke…”
Agent 1680 shook his head in exasperation and faded from view.

# # #

Discover other
titles by Cari Hislop at smashwords.com

http://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/carihislop

Connect with
Cari Hislop online

http://www.regencyromancenovels.com/