Total pages in book: 82
Estimated words: 73963 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 370(@200wpm)___ 296(@250wpm)___ 247(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 73963 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 370(@200wpm)___ 296(@250wpm)___ 247(@300wpm)
She scrunched her nose playfully. “Most people use the word pretty as a feminine description but the definition is not necessarily the case. Handsome is a harder more rugged description while you have such perfect features women find themselves swooning over your appearance alone. It is rather shallow.”
My laughter wasn’t forced or part of an act. It was real and it seemed that only in the presence of Miriam Bathurst did I feel any positive emotions at all. She reminded me of happiness and light. She made me want to be a different man. One that I was sure I could never be. Not even for her. However, in the moments I was with her, I wanted to forget that and just soak in the feeling of all that was Miriam.
Miriam, however, did not smile. It was almost as if she knew of my desire to see her smile at me again and was punishing me. I regretted the fact one day soon she would want nothing more than to forget me. I had no doubt she would accomplish just that. However, I knew forgetting her would be an impossible task. Miriam Bathurst may just haunt me for eternity.
Chapter Sixteen
Miriam Bathurst
“I have the grandest of news, honey! Your sister is to come for a visit! Isn’t that the most spectacular thing? I have been sending requests to your mother as has your uncle since the beginning of the season and we finally got a response. She is a rather difficult lady, isn’t she?” Aunt Harriet came barreling into the drawing room, not only speaking so loudly in her excitement that it could be considered shouting, but she was also in her bare feet with a piece of chocolate in one hand and another shoved in the side of her mouth so she could speak while she read the letter in her other hand.
Unfortunately, she didn’t take a moment to look up from the letter she was reading as she continued to speak rather loudly in her American accent whilst eating the chocolate in her mouth. “She says right here that Whitney will require proper attire if we wish to take her out into the city but request that if we do not plan on buying her new gowns to keep her indoors unseen. Can you believe she’d say that? I mean of course we will provide the darling with gowns but that we should-” She stopped mid-sentence as she finally lifted her gaze from the letter in front of her to find I wasn’t alone.
Her eyes went so wide as her mouth dropped open in surprise. There was a moment of silence and I knew the small facts of her bare feet and chocolate stuffed mouth were all beginning to dawn on her. As I saw the light in her eyes, I began to giggle. I couldn’t help myself. Aunt Harriet was rather comfortable in her home and held no stock in formality. My gaze swung over to see how Nicholas Compton was taking this and I found that it was taking much for him to keep from joining me in laughter. I hadn’t felt like smiling much less laughing since his arrival but leave it to Aunt Harriet to change that.
It was in that moment laughter did join mine, but it wasn’t Mr. Compton’s. It was Aunt Harriet’s. She let out one of her loud belly laughs and finished eating the chocolate she’d had stuffed in the side of her cheek while speaking. This only fed my laughter more but then there was the reason she had come in here so rashly and in a hurry to tell me the news that also had me suddenly feeling buoyant and full of joy.
I stood then and walked over to her. She stopped laughing and smiled at me as I stood in front of her. “Tis true. Whitney is coming?” I asked.
She nodded her head vigorously. “And we will buy her the most beautiful gowns. She will feel like a princess,” my aunt promised.
My laughter soon turned on me and tears of joy filled my eyes. I threw my arms around Aunt Harriet, hugging her tightly. “Oh, thank you. Thank you so much. She will love London.”
I missed Whitney more and more every day. Just having her here with me would make this all so much easier.
“Of course, honey. I would have gotten her here sooner had your momma not been so difficult,” Aunt Harriet assured me. She didn’t need to explain that. I knew all about my mother and how she could be.
Aunt Harriet patted my back and then said, “It appears you’ve come to call and found us in a less than formal state, Mr. Compton. I do hope you can forgive us,” Aunt Harriet said over my shoulder in a tone that was light-hearted and not at all worried what he may think of all the emotion he had witnessed.