Read Maid to Be Mine: A Regency Cinderella Story for Free Online Page A

Cynthia, need to leave. Do as your stepmother says and hide yourself away until the earl has left.”
    Cynthia threw the feather duster on an end table and stormed out of the room with Robert, who held the door for her as she exited. When she and Robert were alone in the hallway, she let out a roar of frustration. “I hate them!” she screamed.
    “ Shh...” Robert held a finger to his lips, encouraging her to keep her voice down. “These walls are not soundproof, you know. You should keep your voice down, lest your stepmother decide to make things more difficult for you.”
    “ Will you tell me about him?” Cynthia requested.
    “ About who? Lord Charmington?”
    “ Yes!” Cynthia's eyes lit up. “I want to know about him too!”
    Robert rolled his eyes at her request. “Well, I can tell you one thing about him. He has the most ridiculous name I've ever heard. Charmington? Honestly?! He might as well call himself Lord Magnificent.”
    “ So you'll tell me about him?”
    Robert crossed his arms. “And what, pray tell, do you want to know about Lord Magnificent?”
    “ Everything!” Cynthia exclaimed. “If he's kind, if he's pleasant, if he's--”
    “ With a name like Charming ton, I'm sure he's all those things and more,” Robert chuckled. “Now, I better retrieve him from the foyer before he loses some of his brilliance. Earls don't like to be kept waiting.”

    * * *

    “ Lord Charmington,” Robert announced, then stepped aside to let the earl make his entrance. As soon as Georgiana laid eyes on him, he took her breath away. He was so tall, he had to stoop to enter the room. His light brown hair was slightly wavy, and seemed to catch the light. He was dressed to the nines, in a black superfine greatcoat and well-fitting breeches. His eyes were intense and probably blue, though she could not be sure. The wide breadth of his shoulders, his muscular legs, his chiseled jaw—he was so handsome, Georgiana thought he would ruin her perception of what a man should look like. Now that she had seen him, no one else could possibly measure up to him.
    As the butler excused himself, James Albray, Lord Charmington, stepped forward and said, “Thank you for the invitation, Lord Montforth. As you are my closest neighbor, I am happy to make your acquaintance.”
    “ Likewise,” Rolly half-heartedly agreed. He rose from his chair and toddled over to Lord Charmington. His lips sagged into a prominent pout, if only because he knew he had been rendered lackluster in the presence of the sinfully handsome man. “Though I believe we've met before.”
    “ We have?!” Lord Charmington was taken aback.
    “ Yeeees. We have. Yuk yuk,” Rolly responded. “But it was very brief, and I did not have a title then. I did not expect you to remember me.”
    “ My apologies, my lord. I am afraid my memory leaves something to be desired.” The earl turned his attention to Jemima, who was beaming at him like a fanciful schoolgirl. “And you must be the Lady Montforth?”
    “ I am,” Jemima confirmed. “Until last week, my husband was Lord Montforth. I don't know if Roland told you in his letter, but I am recently widowed.”
    “ So I heard. You have my condolences,” Lord Charmington said, then his gaze flickered to the younger women in the room. “And these must be your lovely daughters?”
    “ Indeed.” Jemima stood behind her daughters as she introduced them. As she tapped Georgiana's shoulder, she said, “This is Georgiana, my youngest.”
    Lord Charmington moved toward the settee, closer to the women. Georgiana nearly swooned as his eyes blazed down on her. They were definitely blue, but a darker blue, the color of midnight. Georgiana extended her hand, hoping he would grab it and kiss it, which he did. “A pleasure to meet you, Lady Georgiana,” he said.
    “ The pleasure it all mine, my lord,” Georgiana simpered at him as she spoke. “We are fortunate to have such an esteemed neighbor!”
    “ I don't know if I