Page 24 of A Lady's Beloved Novelist
“She is a lot to handle, no? That is the impression I get from her letter anyway,” Cecil continued as though James had not just tried to explain how the letter was not for him.“She seems to have ambition beyond being a wife, is that really something that you are looking for? The last time I spoke to you, I thought you were holding off on finding a wife for as long as possible.”
“Times have changed considerably since then,” James said in a flat tone.“Can I just have the letter back?”
“Here you go.” Cecil sighed as his fun came to an end.“I was just interested in you like good friends should be. You have seemed very unlike yourself today.”
“You do not know me anymore, how could you come to that conclusion?”
“You are right,” Cecil said whilst holding up his hands in defense.“I was just making the assumption that you were brooding more than you usually do. Is it because you want to be back out there travelling and making memories in a far-off land? Instead, you are stuck here courting a woman with dreams of travelling herself. Perhaps the two of you could—”
“Cecil, I havereally had a long day. Perhaps we will continue this conversation another time,” James cut him off as he folded up the letter. He had no intention of ever revisiting the topic with Cecil, but he was at least hoping it would work for the time being.
“All right, I suppose,” Cecil was grumbling now.“This is what you get for trying to take an interest in your friend’s life.”
“Do not be like that.”James sighed.“You know you should not have read the letter in the first place.”
“Would you have told me about her if I had not?”
“Of course not, at least not until we had blessings and were officially courting,” James said, trying to lessen the blow. Cecil was in his house for the next two weeks and there was nothing he could do about that, but in his eyes, that did not mean that James should have to talk to him about his life.“Actually, two can play this game. You have failed to reveal anything about your own life.”
Cecil was mockingly appearing shocked by James’ statement, placing a hand to his heart to finish off the look.
“Well, if you would like to take a seat, I can definitely fill you in on how the past few years have treated me,” Cecil spoke languidly, a sly smile stretching across his lips.
“You shall have to indulge me another time, I am afraid,” James said whilst shrugging his shoulders.“I am unfortunately very much ready for my bed.”
“Of course.” Cecil bowed his head.“Until next time, then.”
James passed his old friend and quickly climbed the stairs up to the first floor, making sure the letter was securely in his grip. He was not sure how he felt about Cecil reading through Andrea’s confessions. It made him wonder what else he may have seen.
James thought of all his own failed attempts of writing back to her and stopped on the stairs, but he was far too tired to care if Cecil read through those. It was not as though he admitted anything particularly groundbreaking, he was simply trying to respect her opinion whilst also expressing his own feelings about her.
He made it to his bed and sighed heavily at the thought of calling on Andrea in the morning. It was the only answer to his problems, otherwise he would waste another day mulling over what to do and not give her the response she deserved. It would have to be in person, and she would simply have to understand that any mistake only came from a place of nerves; it was not that he did not like her as much as she liked him. The decision was made, and as James closed his eyes, he could not help but wonder if it was the right decision.
*
“Where are you off to?”
James was only moments from leaving the house, but he was being stopped by his new boarder, one he had not asked for. His body stiffened for a moment, but he knew he should not be so rude towards Cecil if he wanted to keep a good relationship between them.
“You are calling at Andrea’s, are you not?” Cecil asked, his eyes lighting up as the words left his lips.
“It is none of your business, Cecil. I thought we agreed in the terms of you being here that you would not disturb me like this.”
“I could come with you, though?” Cecil offered.
He was indeed ready to leave the house as James was. This caused him to hesitate as he wondered if there was some kind of scheme at play. But James quickly shook off the notion, not expecting someone like Cecil to be smart enough for that.
“Well, I was going to call on…it is Lady Andrea to you,” James responded with slightly narrowed eyes.“But yes, if you would like to come along, her cousin will be there as a chaperone for her. She could perhaps keep you company.”
James made a note in his mind to tell Andrea to apologize to her cousin on his behalf for what she was going to be subjected to. Whilst Cecil was an old friend, the thought of having to put him onto someone else was not a nice thought.
“Lovely.”Cecil’s smile was slightly too wide as he followed James out the door.“You will have to give me a tour of the grounds at some point, otherwise I am almost bound to get lost.”
“I quite like the idea of you getting lost and not being able to stay with me anymore.” James smiled as he spoke. His tone cleverly masked whether or not he was joking. James himself was of two minds about whether he meant it.
“Ah, you always were one for jokes.”Cecil’s smile soured slightly.
“Well, it would perhaps stop you from reading any more of my post,” James said whilst continuing to plaster a smile onto his face. It was a friendly warning to the man not to do it again, but James was more than willing to become harsher with his words of warning to Cecil. He was beginning to believe that such a thing would be inevitable.
