Page 17 of A Maid's Fateful Courtship
Stepping out of the carriage was a delightful young lady who wore a warm smile as she held out her hand in greeting. From the other side of the carriage, Thomas had climbed out of a different door, and he now approached the group too.
“You remember Thomas, do you not?” Anthony continued with the introduction of his guests. “Lady Matilda is his sister.”
“Goodness, I almost did not recognise you, Matilda,” Ethan said as the young lady dipped a slight curtsy.
“And I you, Lord Ethan,” she replied. “Although it seems that Anthony has not changed one bit.” She smiled at the men who now surrounded her.
“Forgive me for not accompanying you into the house, but I am about to take myself for a spot of air,” Ethan explained.
“Yes, I have heard you have been unwell, Lord Ethan,” Matilda said, her eyes sparkling keenly as she conversed with him. “Should you not be resting?”
“I have had enough of bedrest to last me a month,” Ethan replied. He could not help but notice that Matilda had developed into a beautiful young woman.
He recalled how she had always been a little, shy creature. As a toddler, she had followed her big brother around everywhere he went. Thomas, on the other hand, had been the complete opposite to his sister.
He had been loud and boisterous, even to the point of overpowering his little sister on many an occasion. But how things had changed since then.
Ethan was about to say his farewells and set off on his walk when he caught sight of Josephine. His heart stirred and he raised his arm to catch her attention. He did not want to lose her now that he had her in his sights.
“Josephine!" Ethan called over to her. "Come over and meet some of your old friends. I am sure you must remember them.”
At first, he wondered if Josephine had not wanted the attention of the houseguests and worried that he had left her with no choice but to join them. He could not help himself; he loved any opportunity to be with her.
Yet, she had a slight look of embarrassment as she approached the group and it irked him that she was made to feel as if the family were now her betters.
“M’lord, my lady.” She curtsied, feeling a little uncomfortable. “Please excuse my demeanour, for I have been tasked with organising the floral displays.”
Anthony was the first to speak with her. “Josephine, you look as radiant as ever. And you are amongst friends so there's no need to be coy. Surely, you remember my old playmate, Thomas? And this is his little sister, Matilda,” he said, treating Josephine in the same manner he had before the boys had ever left.
“Indeed, I do remember them, Lord Anthony,” Josephine acknowledged with a bow of her head in Lady Matilda’s direction. “I recall tending to your injured knees as you constantly attempted to keep up with your brother, m’lady.”
“Yes, I recall it too.” Matilda smiled. “You stopped me from going up a tree that I really did not wish to climb.”
“Ah yes, and Thomas fell out of it that very same day,” Anthony laughed at the memory. “It must have addled his brain, for he has never been the same since.”
“My tree-climbing days are well behind me now, I assure you,” Thomas said, looking a little uncomfortable that they laughed at his childhood mishap. “Will you join us later, Lord Ethan?”
Ethan had noticed how Josephine’s face had flushed and regretted calling her over. It was proving difficult not to treat her as part of the group that she once belonged to. He reached over to her and took the ladened basket from her hands.
“I will indeed. But for now, I am out for some fresh air. May I see you to the kitchen before I set off for my stroll?” he asked Josephine, finding any excuse to be with her.
Whilst he could see that Josephine could not wait to get away, she also seemed to be annoyed that he had taken her basket.
“You must be careful, Lord Ethan,” she explained. “The last time you took my basket of flowers, you were stung by a bee.”
Before he could reply, Anthony called out to him.
“Ethan!” He heard his brother’s voice as the group parted ways. “Do tell Martha that I will be down to the kitchen to visit her shortly. I wish to remind her that she is the best cook in all of Europe.”
Ethan nodded, though he had no intention of entering the kitchen. He could hear his brother go on to tell a tale of how the cook would bake them special treats when they were boys. Their voices faded as Anthony took his guests up the stone steps and into the house. He smiled, pleased at Anthony’s fondness of their childhood memories of home.
“My little brother still imagines that he is a boy,” Ethan said, turning to Josephine. “I am beginning to wish that was the case, that we were all back in our childhood days. Then you could be by my side where you belong."
Chapter 14
“Lord Ethan, please hand over my basket," Josephine said nervously. "Look, you are getting soil on your jacket.”
In truth, she was confused over Ethan's feelings for her. It had taken many years for her to accept the new role in the family, that of a servant. And now, she worried that if Ethan could not accept it too, her position might be in jeopardy. From now on, she vowed that she would try to avoid him as much she could. By not seeing her, he too could begin to accept the new way of things.
