Whistling softly to himself, Garrett used the key the butler had given him and entered the cold, dry wine cellar. He lit a small candle so that he might better see. He stared up at the long rows of bottles. The reds were on one side, the whites on the other. He turned toward the rows of reds. Port, elder wine, madeira. He had to find the perfect thing. He’d stop and get two glasses on his way back through the kitchens. The servants might wonder who he was entertaining, but they wouldn’t find out. He grinned.

He pulled out a bottle of madeira. A fine year. Still whistling to himself, he began to turn back toward the door … and the entire world went black.

*   *   *

Fifteen minutes later, Jane was still standing in front of the looking glass, hating herself. Tears pooled in the back of her eyes and she glared at her reflection.

“Fatty, fatty.” The voices of the children from her days in the schoolyard taunted her.

Finally, she tugged her eyes from her body and met her own gaze in the mirror. That was in the past. This was now. She was no longer that plump little girl she’d been years ago. She might not be willowy or thin, but she wasn’t plump any longer either.

She threw her dressing gown over her shoulders. She might be nearly twenty minutes late, but she was going to do this, take the risk, change her life. She would experience making love for the first time with Garrett. Because he wanted her. Because she wanted him. Because he was Garrett.

She hurried to the door of her bedchamber, pushing her arms through the sleeves of her dressing gown. She wrapped it around her waist and cinched the belt around her middle.

Garrett had given her directions to his room on the opposite end of the manor, but Jane was familiar enough with the house to know there was a much more private corridor that led to that end of the property. Perfect for a midnight assignation, she thought with a wry smile. She opened the door to her bedchamber, and peeked both ways to ensure the corridor was empty. Then she slowly tiptoed out.

Even favoring her ankle and keeping to the shadows, it didn’t take her long to make it through the corridor and to Garrett’s room. Her hand trembled as she placed it on the door handle. What if he’d changed his mind? What if he was angry with her for taking so long? Or hurt? Perhaps he’d assumed she wasn’t coming and had fallen asleep.