Page 156 of The Sisters of Sea View
Ignoring that, he asked, “What brought on this ... talk of theirs? Has something happened?”
“I am not sure. Emily did receive a letter today, though I am not sure who sent it. Oh, and last night she attended a ball at the assembly rooms. Evidently she encountered someone—some friend of the neighbor who disappointed her. I suppose that may have set her off.” She did not mention Emily’s flirtation with a guest and the upsetting discovery that he was already engaged.
The major’s forehead creased. “Had your sister a realistic expectation of this neighbor making her an offer of marriage?”
Viola nodded. “We all thought so.”
“Why does she blame you?”
She gestured to her mouth. “For being like this. It casts a shadow over our entire family. Impacts all of our prospects.”
“The devil it does.”
She nodded emphatically. “Consider. So many sisters and none of us married. Well, Georgiana is only fifteen, but still. One cannot deny it has had an effect.
“Sarah’s intended died. That, at least, was not my fault. Yet we all thought Emily would marry Charles. Until last year when he suddenly detached himself with barely a word of explanation.”
“Why is that your fault? As a neighbor, had this young man not known all of you a long time?”
She nodded, considering. “I suppose it was one thing to befriend us. To flirt with Emily. But marriage and the prospect of children? No.”
He shook his head, a bitter twist to his lips. “I cannot believe that your own sister... You know, you once told me your twin surpasses you in every way, but I beg to differ.”
“It’s true. She does. You saw her the day you rescued me, and again when I was injured.”
He frowned. “I barely noticed her.” He looked into her face. “Has she eyes that change color, from amber to green to the color of golden topaz, depending on her mood?”
Mouth ajar, she blinked at him. “No. Hers are brown.”
“Has she charming freckles as you do?”
“N-no.”
“And is her voice as clear and lovely as yours?”
“Well, she has not had to work on her enunciation for years as I have.” In fact, Emily spoke rather rapidly, using many, many words. Father had called her a chatterbox.
Viola hoped the major would not ask to meet Emily formally, when not distracted by some emergency. For if he spent much time in her sister’s company, he would never again look at her ashe was looking at her now. His good eye shone with intense light, difficult to meet, yet drawing her like a winged thing to a flame.
He asked, “And how did your sister react to seeing my scars? Did she shrink away, repulsed? I would not blame her.”
“Perhaps at first. But she will grow accustomed to them as she has to mine.”
He snorted. “Evidence to the contrary.”
“Please don’t think badly of her. Emily has a passionate nature and says whatever comes into her head. But I still love her and always will. Although I sometimes wonder if she loves me.”
“She seemed genuinely concerned about you the day of the accident. Are the two of you not close?”
Viola shrugged. “We might have been closer, except that I was a delicate child. Struggled to feed. Always thin. She was rumbustious, as children should be.”
“Why was that a problem?”
“My parents and nurse worried Emily would accidentally knock me over and hurt my mouth. So they kept her away a great deal, which was difficult for us both, being twins. And then there were the horrendous surgeries and painful recoveries. No one wanted to see that.” A hazy memory returned. “Though Emily did sneak into the sickroom once and held my hand and cried with me. How I miss her.” Viola lifted both hands. “Is that not stupid? We live in the same house and I still miss her.”
“Not stupid in the least.”
She sniffed and wiped her eyes. “Forgive me. What a soppy bore I’ve been.”
