Page 9 of A Dreamy Match Made in Heaven
It would be difficult to interact with her, not knowing much of how her life had progressed in the past year. For a while, he had made every effort to glean knowledge about her life. He had been hurt when he learned that she and the Earl had officially entered into a courtship, and he had been angry when it seemed that the Earl was stalling.
Thomas knew that if he had been able to formally court Lady Sophia, a proposal would have followed immediately. He would never have risked losing her and allowing her to wait for a year before, at the very least, becoming engaged.
By now, he was sure that the two had been married. He had stopped asking about her, embarrassed that he still cared so much. But it didn’t mean he was not curious. He strongly desired to know how she was and what had happened in the days since his own departure.
Their past had been a long one, made up of childhood games and togetherness.
Lord and Lady Silsby had been good friends of his own mother and father, who were quite wealthy thanks to the family trade. Oftentimes they would all be together, either just the two families, or surrounded by others.
Just being in her presence had always been such a gift to him that he never imagined a day might come when the two of them were not good friends or a great deal more. But when he had finished that first tour and learned that she was being pursued by the Earl, everything had shifted. He no longer felt he could trust anyone.
He thought back to how much he had loved her, and how it had felt when she had forgotten him in order to be pursued by the Earl. He would never forget the days of time he had spent with Lady Sophia. She had been his first and only love.
During his time in battle, it had been her face that came to mind whenever he knew that his life was at stake. It had been her smile that he thought of when trials came his way.
He remembered those days of looking into her enormous eyes, which were framed by such exquisite lashes. He remembered how, even as a young man, he had longed for her rosebud mouth. And he thought about how her dark hair shone red in the sunlight.
But all of that had ended. He had misjudged her character. Thinking her to love him in return, he had never expected a moment in which she would choose the Earl over him.
But that was the very thing that she had done. She had proven herself to be false.
The day that he had let her go had been the most difficult day of his life. He had seen how the Earl of Bastion had been pursuing her and knew that Lady Sophia was tempted by such an offer.
Initially he had thought she might refuse, expressing to him that she was already in love with another. But as the Earl’s affections grew more passionate, Sophia had seemed to allow his attention to overwhelm her.
Thomas had realised that for the sake of her family, this was the best decision. Not only for their sake, but for hers. It was the wisdom of young women to choose a man who would better their lives and bring them stability. It was the most reasonable decision they could make.
Thomas could never do such a thing. He was a mere soldier at the time. Soldiers were not the sort who ever managed to make the sort of profit or status that would be acceptable for a family of nobility such as hers. While they were considered fairly equal, it was not the same as what she might receive through a union with an Earl.
Lady Sophia had simply been searching for a man who would bring her greater wealth and status than he.
It had been a greater disappointment than he thought he had ever felt before. Lady Sophia had broken his heart and he had pulled away as a result of it. There was nothing now that he could ever understand or come to grasp about the way of a woman. Not when he had been so easily fooled by one he thought he knew.
But if he had learned anything, it was that he had to be vigilant with his own heart. He would never trust another woman again.
Chapter 5
“Is something the matter?” Officer Kingsley asked, looking at Thomas with concern.
Thomas glanced at him, surprised and pulled from his thoughts.
“Why do you ask?” he inquired.
“You seem tense. I think it is best if we stop for a rest. It would be good if we had a break, I think. We’ve been riding for four hours and if we take a short break, we can always move on for another two before we settle in for the night,” he suggested.
Thomas considered this and thought it was probably the best idea after all. It would give them some time to have peace and relief from the road. Out there, he could not easily ignore his own thoughts. It was quiet and the two men were both focused on things other than simply relaxing.
“It sounds perfect to me. I could do with a drink,” he said.
With that, the two men found a grove of trees where they were able to dismount from their horses and tie them loosely. From there, they each found a trunk to lean against and give their backs a break from the constant motion of riding.
“Would you care to tell me what’s on your mind? Something certainly seems to be bothering you,” Officer Kingsley addressed.
“Well, when one is returning home, there are a great number of things that might bother him. Have you considered what it will be like? Seeing the people you have not seen in some time?” Thomas asked.
“I suppose. But I am not as fond of home as you are. In many ways, I believe the military is the best place for a man like me,” he replied.
“Well, I guess I’m just not the same as that,” Thomas said.
