My Lady's Choosing: An Interactive Romance Novel(13)

“My dear, there really are other options for you,” Lady Evangeline says kindly. “You can start a new life with me as my companion when I go to Egypt.”

Henrietta answers with only a fresh gale of sobs. Evangeline, still kind, looks as though she is beginning to doubt the wisdom of this plan.

“Or…um…perhaps I could help you find a position more to your choosing elsewhere?”

“B-but I don’t want a position elsewhere! I-I just want—” Henrietta stops suddenly, her eyes wide with fright.

“What Henrietta means is that she wishes only to be with her true love, a humble farmer named Sam,” you explain. Henrietta gasps.

“Oh, no, please don’t say anything! You don’t understand! My brother says he will kill my darling Sam if our love is ever made public! That is why I have remained silent on this matter all along!”

You square your shoulders.

“This is one situation where Cad is not going to win. Evangeline, you say you have connections. We will need to call upon them soon—for Henrietta and Sam!”

Evangeline nods.

“You can trust me, my dear. No matter what happens, you are still my family and I will do anything to help you.”

Henrietta gazes at the two of you, her eyes filled with gratitude and hope.

“She’s right,” you say. “Henrietta, if I cannot be happy, then I think at least you should be.”





Off you go to this page!





Governesses come and go. You came, and now you’re going.

If you had sullied your reputation with anyone other than a mad lord who spends his time pacing the grounds of his castle in the moonlight, you could kiss all your chances at anything other than impoverished spinsterhood goodbye.

But because you chose your nights of passion and indentured childcare wisely, you get another chance at love—and romance.





But where?

Do you fancy a bit of posh and wish to zip back to London for another go-round at the crème de la crème of society? If so, turn to this page.

Or do you feel not up to traveling quite so much and would rather take that handsome local postman and yourself to the mailbox? (By mailbox, we mean orgasm.) If so, turn to this page.





You, Mac, and Ollie exchange looks. All this time, the traitorous Constantina was hidden in plain sight.

“We must go.” Mac lays a gentle and comforting hand on Ollie’s shoulder. Ollie looks up, his animosity having melted away into warm gratitude.

“Yes. Yes, you are right.” Though his voice remains calm, it sounds strangely hollow. Despite everything, you cannot help but empathize. “We should leave now, in case she slips from our clutches for good!”

“Timmy,” Mac says gently, “how good is Dodger as a sniffer dog?”

Timmy gulps. “Oh, he is the very best of the best!” He nods so vehemently you fear his head may fall off.

“Go to your bed now,” says Mac. “Wake your friends and barricade the doors to the Great Hall. It is rough work we have to do tonight, lad, and we need you to hold the fort.” Timmy responds with a shaky salute and then rushes off to raise the other orphans from their slumber.

With Dodger and a lantern, you and the men venture onto the moonlit Highlands to look for Constantina. Dodger seems instinctively to understand the gravity of the situation and practically pulls Mac’s arm out of its socket as you race at full speed toward a long-deserved reckoning. You only hope you are not too late.

As you approach the loch, eerie in darkness, you find Constantina waiting for you. She has removed her false nose, heavy maquillage, and strawberry-blonde wig, revealing a mass of dark curls and a strangely foxlike beauty. You gasp. Truly a master of disguise, she looks like an entirely different person.

She also has a pistol aimed at your group.

“Constantina!” Ollie’s voice is laced with pain. She raises one eyebrow.

“Ollie. How nice of you to come, and to bring your friends.”

“I don’t understand!” Ollie’s voice cracks. “Why did you do it, Connie? How could you do it? After all the sacrifices you made! For your country…” He can barely choke out the last part: “For us?”

“Oh, my darling.” Her tone remains eerily calm. “Don’t you see? I had to. I had to pretend so that I would be trusted with information I could then pass on to the great Emperor Napoleon!”

“No!” Ollie cries. “You are not—you couldn’t!”

“Oh, I could, and I did. But my feelings for you…well, they were not false. Not at all. You must believe that.”

Incapable of speech, Ollie simply shakes his head. You realize you need to take over, to stall for time and distract her if you can.

“So you are a Bonapartist?” you ask. Constantina turns to you with a mocking smile.

“Of course, you foolish chit!” she spits. “I am dedicated and loyal, even to this day. Even when the great man is dead and my cause is lost!”

You lean closer to Mac, and he puts a protective arm around you. Constantina barely notices.

“Do you understand how hard it has been? After betraying Britain, faking my death with the help of dear Captain MacTaggart, and then the fall of Napoleon in France? There was nowhere safe for me to go.”