Masque

by Lexi Post

  Synn waited for them to exit, then pulled the candlestick vertical again and the hidden door closed without a sound. “As I said yesterday, the name Ashton Abbey is a misnomer. This was always intended to be a Pleasure Palace for the prince. At one point, over a hundred of his closest friends lived here with him.”

  Valerie sniffed. “Well, so far, I’ve only seen one ghost and that’s not a very big haunting if you ask me.”

  Synn turned his gaze upon Rena. Her body temperature rose at the knowledge in his eyes, but he addressed Valerie. “You will not remain disappointed for long. Rena has already—”

  The sound of a dish shattering interrupted him. Rena looked at him and Valerie. “Ghosts?”

  He sighed. “That would be Mrs. McMurray. She is frustrated with her inability to help you after waiting so long to have guests. My guess is she tried to move something even though she should wait at least a couple more days. I’ll go look in on her.”

  Rena watched Synn’s ass as he strode through the doorway leading to the kitchen. She barely contained her sigh, but Valerie wasn’t fooled.

  “Ree, are you seriously thinking of pursuing that man?”

  She shook her head. “I know, I know. I need to stop falling for upper-class men.”

  Valerie grabbed her arm. “You listen to me, girl. I don’t know what Bryce told you, but you have twice as much class as he does. But this guy here? There is something he isn’t telling us. I can feel it in my bones. Can you wait until we figure out what it is before you rebound into another relationship?”

  “Hey, who said anything about a relationship? I think I need a good year before trying another one of those. I was thinking more along the lines of a little rebound sex. I mean, come on, you have to admit, the man is hot.”

  Valerie narrowed her eyes.

  “Okay, okay.” She threw her hands up. Valerie was right. She needed to get control of her sexual interest and focus on her main objective. No sex until the Abbey was complete. She nodded with assurance as she made the pact with herself.

  Valerie gathered up her pad and pen. “Let’s take a look across the hall. The downstairs will need to be done first, and I want to see what I’m up against.”

  “Oh shoot, I almost forgot.” Heat suffused her cheeks at the memory of her nighttime visit. “I think the rooms down here are bedrooms too. You are never going to believe what I saw last night.”

  They strode from the dining room and into the entryway. Valerie shook her head. “What the hell were you doing up last night? I slept like the dead after that drive.”

  “A ghost woke me.”

  Valerie halted at the doorway to the Blue Room. “A ghost? Really?”

  Rena grinned. “No, not really, but when I came downstairs, there were plenty right in this room.”

  They both entered the room at the same time. Rena stopped a few steps in as Valerie continued through it.

  “Where’s the bed?”

  Her friend turned from opening a curtain on the front wall. “What bed?”

  Rena stared at the empty space in the middle of the room. “There was a round bed with blue satin sheets on it in here.”

  “Can a bed be ghostly too?”

  She shook her head. It appeared too real while the ghosts were not solid. She strode to the middle of the room and scanned the myriad settees and fainting couches.

  Valerie sat on a settee. “Wow, this is comfortable. This looks like a parlor to me. The walls in this room have been plastered and left white. When did you say this place was abandoned?”

  She shook her head, still confused by the missing furniture. “I think around 1861 or so.”

  “Well, then this is a parlor. You know, for the ladies to chat after dinner.”

  “Okay.” Could she have imagined the whole episode? Did Synn see what she did or did he find her in an empty room sitting on a couch? Maybe she had no reason to be embarrassed. Her excitement at their exploration resurfaced. “You should see how this room is lit at night.”

  Valerie examined the area as only the daughter of the owner of the largest construction business in Maryland could. “It looks to be lit by braziers behind these blue stained glass windows. Quite ingenious because it gives color to the walls, like it is now with the sunlight coming through the outside window. But at night, it would need two light sources because a fire is not as bright as the sun.”

  “Wow, you are good.”

  “No, I’m the best. If you want, we can keep a similar atmosphere by eliminating the need for the fire and placing frosted spotlights to shine on the glass from the brazier sides. This would give you a steady blue glow and free up space in the corridors for the employees.”

  Last night the flickering color had been mesmerizing. Perhaps that had been what gave her the sexual vision she had. After all, she’d come here after her sex dream, so it made sense. “I think that would be perfect.”

  “Great, and a lot less work. Besides, after the first year, you can always make changes based on what you like and don’t. Let’s check out the next room. I want to have a basic idea of what I’ll need before we head into town.”

  Rena nodded, and they moved through the next archway into another room. This one had purple stained glass, but it contained a stage at one end with upholstered chairs of various designs set in rows before it, like a theater.

  She ran to the front row and faced Valerie. “Oh, can’t you see an old-fashioned big band up there with a 1940s-style singer. I could add cocktail tables and rearrange these chairs, and offer regular entertainment.”

  Valerie raised her hand in front of her. “Whoa, whoa, let’s not get too grand on the first go-through or I’m going to have a hard time prioritizing. Are you saying you want the stage to have theatrical lighting?”

  She grasped her sweatshirt bottom in her hand as she contemplated. “I see what you mean. I definitely want the purple lighting like the blue, but I’ll leave the stage to your discretion and our budget. That’s not a high priority.”

  Valerie scribbled on her pad. “Right, got it. Moving on.”

  They stepped through another archway and found the library complete with green stained glass. Rena glanced at the many bookshelves before walking to the large desk in the corner. “This desk would be great for an office. I guess I’ll have to choose a room for that so I can pay bills, order food and hire employees.”

  Valerie wrote more notes on her pad. “This feels like a room for old men and student types.”

  Rena wandered over to a nearby bookshelf. “I wonder what topics they read about in the nineteenth century.” Studying the leather-bound volumes, she picked one at random and opened it to a middle page. A very good sketch artist had drawn a man and two women having sex.

  She gulped and glanced at Valerie who inspected the fireplace at the other end of the room. She returned her attention to the drawing. The man knelt with one woman’s legs wrapped around his waist. She imagined the thrust he would have in such a position and her body flushed, her sweatshirt suddenly too warm. The woman lying on her back had another woman sitting on her face and the artist, to be fair, had drawn an enlarged cutaway of what happened there. Rena’s pussy warmed at the tongue pictured delving into the vaginal opening. The woman sitting pulled at the other woman’s nipples in ecstasy.

  “Anything interesting?” Valerie strolled toward her.

  She slammed the book closed and stuck it on the shelf. “Uh, not really.”

  “All right, then let’s keep going.”

  Rena let her friend go ahead and whipped off her sweatshirt. As she followed, she glanced back to note where the book had come from then pulled her attention away. No, she wouldn’t even look.

  * * * * *

  Synn sat at the kitchen table across from Mrs. McMurray. Sadie, the cook, was also in the room, but she refused to sit, floating back and forth in front of the ovens.

  “I know you are all anxious to help. Our new guests are pleased you wish to assist them, but you must wait. If it
makes it easier for you, I suggest you stay hidden for two more days.”

  Both ladies shook their heads.

  Synn sighed. “Very well. If you want to interact with the ladies, then you must keep your actions to showing them where items are kept. Agreed?”

  Both women bowed their heads in agreement, but Mrs. McMurray pointed to him and then to the doorway.

  “You want to know if I think we can break the curse with one of the ladies?”

  She nodded solemnly. Sadie stopped to focus on his answer.

  He wished to tell them he could, but he wouldn’t give them false hope. He rubbed the back of his neck before he met their gazes. “I don’t know. There are indications from Rena that I may be able to complete the Pleasure Rooms with her, but it is delicate. If I move too quickly, she may back away or even leave.”

  The women gasped in unison, though they made no real sound. He understood their fear. To have waited this long and have a chance slip by would be more heartbreaking than to be trapped in the first place. “Hope” was indeed a Pandora’s box.

  He stood. “But you have my word I will do the best I can. Please keep the others hidden until they have their physicality back. In the meantime, I will work with the masqueraders at night. That will be all.”

  The two women curtsied as he left.

  Striding through the Abbey, he searched for his own Pandora. Picking up his pace, he breezed through the Green, Orange, White and Violet Rooms. He found her and her friend entering the Black Room. She wasn’t remotely ready for the nighttime version of this room yet.

  He leaned against the archway and enjoyed the rear view of his soon-to-be lover. She’d discarded the bulky shirt she had on earlier. The fitted sleeveless shirt she wore now drew his attention to her slender arms and the curve of her waist. The deep-blue pants hugged her rounded hips and butt as she bent over to touch the braided rug on the floor. Would her ass be tight? His cock stirred as images of having sex with her in this room crowded his mind. He shook his head to clear it. Not yet. “This is the smoking room.”

  Rena whirled around at his statement, her hand over her heart. “Oh, I wish you wouldn’t sneak up on us like that.” She took a moment and scanned the room. “So, only men were allowed in here?”

  He stepped in and sat on the arm of one of the large wingback chairs, bringing him within arm’s reach of her. “Yes. This room would be the men’s domain. However, if one invited a favorite lady in with him, that was completely acceptable.”

  Valerie dropped the lid of an old cigar box. “Isn’t that generous? Rena, what do you want to do with lighting in here? It’s very dark with all this black furniture. Makes me think of a funeral. Do you want to change these red windows?”

  Synn stood. “No!”

  Both ladies stared incredulously at him.

  Damn. He needed to control his emotions. He changed his voice to a more reasonable tone. “I believe to change the windows in here would ruin the effect of the Abbey.” He focused on Rena, searching her eyes for capitulation. “It’s up to you, of course, but I think your guests, both male and female, might enjoy this room…especially at night.”

  Her gaze revealed her confusion before his meaning dawned. The sunlight through the red window couldn’t hide the blush that rose in her cheeks. “I guess, well, I mean, yes, maybe I need to see what the ghosts might prefer.”

  Valerie made a note. “That’s fine with me. Less work and less time if we can keep most of what is here as is. What about this old grandfather clock? I bet we could find someone who could get it running.”

  Synn fisted his hands to keep from yelling again. “That’s a good idea. I know a person who is an expert with these old clocks. He’s away at the moment, but as soon as he returns, I can have him review it and let us know what needs to be done.”

  Valerie stepped away from the clock. “Sounds good.”

  He made himself relax. He hadn’t waited all these years to have someone fiddle with the clock and possibly destroy the spirits’ chances at passing over.

  Rena’s hand on his arm had him turning around. She smiled, her excitement at the Abbey hard to ignore. “This looks like it dead-ends here. Is this the last room?”

  He pulled her hand under his arm and linked them together. “Yes, it is. But dead ends don’t have meaning for ghosts.”

  She glanced up at him, her emerald eyes alive with delight. “I can’t wait to meet them all. Would you be willing to help me learn their names? How many are there?

  He smirked at her enthusiasm. “Seventy-three.”

  Seventy-three? Rena had a hard time grasping that the Abbey contained seventy-three ghosts. No wonder it never sold. She’d seen seven so far and been introduced to one. Of course, there were a few couples she might be too embarrassed to meet. Just when she had convinced herself her little experience of the night before was a dream, Synn hinted that it wasn’t.

  She glanced at his profile while he escorted her back to the dining room, which had become their base of operations. What did they do in the Black Room at night? A giant orgy? Or maybe two or three men would service one woman?

  Her hands grew clammy. Was it possible to have multiple men? The book she’d seen earlier might have a picture of what positions could work.

  Valerie’s voice broke into her thoughts. “Rena?”

  Synn raised her chin with his finger to focus her. Shoot, she’d been daydreaming. God, the man was stunning. What would those strong lips feel like around her nipple?

  Synn gulped hard, his Adam’s apple drawing her attention away from his face before he took a deep breath. Her gaze returned to his gray-blue eyes. Desire flamed in those orbs and she wanted him to kiss her. She opened her mouth to take in much-needed air.

  He dropped his hand from beneath her chin and stepped back.

  Embarrassed, she faced Valerie. “Sorry, I was thinking about the Abbey.”

  “Yeah right. The Abbey. I need you to start thinking about the kitchen in particular. Let’s finish the downstairs sometime before noon, okay?”

  Valerie was right. Maybe having Synn around wasn’t such a good idea. If they could make the necessary changes to the Abbey, she had a chance of opening by the end of summer. “Okay, let’s do it.” As she followed her friend, she looked back at Synn, but he had disappeared…again.

  Valerie was quick to deduce what was needed in the large kitchen. While her friend sketched preliminary drawings for electrical, gas piping and venting, Rena found the opening to the servant corridors as well as a doorway leading to the outside. She could only open the door three inches because bushes or branches had grown in front of it. “While we’re in town, let’s find the landscaper. I think there may be a lot to do on the grounds as well.”

  Valerie snapped her pad against her hand. “Right. Might as well make an afternoon of it. I think once we have the downstairs underway, you’ll be halfway there. Honestly, I expected much, much worse.”

  Rena tugged hard on the door, shutting out the cold air of early spring.

  Valerie was right. They would need to do electrical and plumbing work, but the furnishings and décor were in amazing condition. She was grateful her savings might be enough to open the bed-and-breakfast without obtaining a loan, but she needed to know why the place was so well preserved. Maybe there would be a history of Ashton Abbey in the town library. She didn’t want to do any more exploring in the Abbey’s library. Her goal was the haunted bed-and-breakfast, and that meant controlling her base sexual tendencies.

  Valerie zipped her jacket. “Are you ready?”

  She pulled her cardigan over her head and grabbed her purse. “You bet. I can’t wait to start.”

  They strode into the entryway as Synn appeared in the archway to the Blue Room.

  Rena waved. “Bye.”

  His eyes widened and panic raced across his face before he spoke. “Where are you going?”

  She stopped, concerned by his intensity. “We are going shopping. I want to start making the ne
eded changes to the Abbey as soon as possible.”

  His guarded countenance returned. “I see.”

  “And then we are going to find a new landscaper so he can start work on the outside. I think now is the perfect time to trim, before there is new growth.”

  He glanced at the doorway less than three steps away from her and frowned. “I would suggest you don’t mention me to anyone in town.” He returned his gaze to her before rubbing the back of his neck. “What I mean to say is, you should probably refrain from discussing my presence here.”

  What an unusual request, but one she would be happy to fulfill, especially since she wasn’t sure she would let him stay. “Okay, I won’t mention you.”

  The tension in his body dissipated, which caused her a certain satisfaction. He trusted her, something Bryce never did.

  Synn nodded once. “Thank you. Enjoy your shopping.”

  She stepped through the doorway to leave, but couldn’t help looking back to see if he disappeared again. To her surprise, he remained where he stood, the tension back in his body. She smiled to make him feel better then joined Valerie in her Ford Expedition.

  Her friend glanced at her before backing the vehicle to turn it around. “Everything okay?”

  She nodded absently as she put on the seat belt. “I think so.”

  Valerie set the vehicle in forward motion and they rolled across the bridge. “Come on, Ree, what is it?”

  She tugged on her jacket sleeve. Why would Synn want his presence kept secret? Then it dawned on her. “I think our resident aristocrat is homeless.”

  Chapter Four

  Synn stepped into the chapel at the back of the Abbey. The small, intimate structure he’d designed had two stained glass windows at either end with tall, clear windows lining the walls. As he sat in a random pew, he admired the rose tint on the white marble altar as the sun shone through the red glass of the robes of St. Anthony. Unable to resist, he glanced above him at the painting of the Archangel Raphael on the ceiling. That particular image bothered him, not because the face was set in disapproval, but because wherever he was in the chapel, the angel disapproved of him personally. Once again, it looked down on him.