Page 13 of A Wallflower's Wassail Punch
CHAPTER6
21 December 1820
She was in a tree, sitting on the highest branch.Her father was calling her to come down, but she was too frightened to try.So, Papa sent three of her suitors up after her.Each one settled on a branch below her, then they all called for her to jump.
“The one who catches you will be your husband,” called Papa.
“And what if no one catches me?”she asked in a trembling voice.
“Then I will, dearest,” he replied.
Obeying her father, she counted to three and jumped.The first suitor reached out but never touched her.She brushed against a limb, then fell toward the second suitor.He snatched at her spencer, but it ripped from his hands.Her hair caught on some twigs as she continued her free fall.The third suitor grabbed her arm but couldn’t maintain his grip.She screamed as she plummeted to the ground, only to be caught in strong arms.She clutched her father’s chest, but when she opened her eyes, it was Lord Weston, not Papa.
“I’ve got you, Nettie,” he said and leaned down to kiss her.
A knock on the door snapped her from the twilight of the dream.Her maid opened the door.
“Did you sleep well, milady?”Jenny carried the fresh pitcher of water to the washstand.“Do you have an idea of which day dress you’d like to wear?”
Annette pulled the counterpane over her head.“Do I have to face the day?”
“Yes, miss.Your first suitor arrives today.At least you know this one, been to one of his sermons.”Jenny pulled the cover back, grinning at her mistress.“He’ll be fine practice for the next two.”
She blew a loud breath between her lips.“Jenny, do you think it would be terrible to be a spinster?”
Jenny laughed.“Depends on what the other options are.It’s better than being with a man who beats you, or one so old he needs his food mashed up before he can eat it.”The maid pulled her lips back over her teeth and made a chewing motion.
“Very funny.”Annette swung her legs over the bed, thankful for the soft wool rug beneath her feet.“I suppose the indigo.”
“Very good, miss.You look tired.You didn’t sleep well, did you?”Jenny went to the wardrobe and pulled out the dress.“Not answering won’t erase the dark circles beneath your eyes.”
“I suppose I was restless.”She sat down and breathed in deeply while Jenny brushed her hair in long strokes to her waist.Lady Annette Page is not afraid of anything.Except ridicule.She tilted her chin up and stared into the mirror.
Jenny was right; she did look a fright.How dare these men test her confidence!She was no debutante.She was going on her twenty-fourth year.If none of these men were right for her, she would find another purpose in her life.Perhaps she’d open an orphanage and have the biggest family of all her siblings.
Well, now she felt better.“I’ve changed my mind.I’ll wear the mazarine blue.”
* * *
When she enteredthe breakfast room, Lord Weston was enjoying coffee with Papa.Both men stood, and Lord Weston pulled out a chair for her next to her father.
“You look lovely in that color, my lady,” said the viscount.
From the corner of her eye, she saw Papa grin.“Thank you, my lord.”Jenny had done a fine job covering up her puffy eyes.She poured herself a cup of tea and added a lump of sugar.
“What time will Mr.and Miss Langston arrive?”Stirring her tea, she tried to hold back a yawn.
“Early this afternoon, according to his note.”Papa tossed back the last of his coffee and rose.“I have to meet with the estate manager this morning.I shall return in time to greet the vicar.”As he passed Annette, he dropped a kiss on top of her head.
“Tell him I have a basket for his wife and not to hesitate to call on me if she has the babe early,” she called after him.
“I will,” he called back from the hall.
“You are a midwife?”asked Lord Weston, surprise in his expression.
Annette chuckled and shook her head.“Heavens, no.I have assisted, though.I’ve been declared second-best when the midwife is not available.Mrs.Jackson isn’t due until after the new year, but babies rarely listen.The midwife in the village is gone until after Christmastide to be with her own daughter.”
“There is no physician?”
