Page 9 of A Lady's Beloved Novelist
Chapter 5
Andrea awoke the next day knowing her mother was not going to stop with the pressures she was putting onto her in regard to finding a husband. She groaned and rolled over, wondering how long she could stay in bed before her mother would send a maid to rouse her.
It turned out she could only steal an extra half hour before the gentle tap at her door was cutting through her failed attempt at going back to sleep. Andrea could see the morning light poking through her curtains, but she had been enjoying the darkness of her room.
Her eyes were still closed as she heard the door handle turning; Andrea was holding onto any moment of reprieve that she could get on her own—the scrutiny of not having picked a husband yet was just too much.
She assumed it was Charlotte and that she was standing in her room whilst trying to pluck up the courage to rouse her mistress. However, the sudden racket of the curtains being forced back with some strength cut through the quiet of the room. From behind scrunched eyelids, Andrea could still see the piercing sunlight that was now invading her room without the protection of her curtains. She winced and turned over, trying her best to block out both the gaze of her mother as well as the sun.
“I thought you would be up by now,” she remarked with a sigh.
“I wanted to sleep in today,” Andrea muttered without looking up at her mother. She hoped if she buried her face deep enough in the sheets, her mother would get the idea and leave her alone.
“Darling, you are going to have a lot of guests today, you should think about getting dressed to see them.”
“Guests?” Andrea finally looked up, her curiosity getting the better of her.
“Yes, I have invited some new suitors to the castle to see you,” her mother said as though it were obvious such an event was happening.
“I…oh.” Andrea tried to hide her disappointment, but she was finding it awfully difficult.
“I was hoping you would have remembered your courting schedule, but alas…”
Andrea did not care for how dramatic her mother was being, her mind was searching frantically for a way out of the situation.
“Well, that will not work,” Andrea announced suddenly.“I was hoping to spend some time with James today.”
Her mother blinked in confusion.
“James?”
“Uh, Lord Churchill,” Andrea quickly corrected herself.“I was going to seek him out today in the hope of having another walk with him,” she continued.
“A chaperoned walk?” Her mother was asking the question, but there was only one clear answer judging from her tone.
“Of course, I will get Charlotte to come along with us,” Andrea said, hoping the young maid would not refuse her in favour of her duties.
“Well then, perhaps I will cancel your brunch meeting.” Her mother was clearly in disbelief at what she was saying.
“Good, then I will go and find J—Lord Churchill,” Andrea said whilst having to catch herself to address him correctly. It was something that had never been an issue before, but since she had only been thinking about him as James, the thought of addressing him by his title now felt entirely silly.
*
“Well, I must say, this is a surprise,” James said as he stared at the two ladies on his doorstep.
“I thought it was such a beautiful day, but I did not like the idea of walking on my own.” Andrea shrugged whilst standing in front of him.
He was trying not to take in the full beauty of how she looked in her spring dress, it was a fresh pale blue colour that reminded him of all things spring. James swallowed thickly and tried to remember his plan, though he still had his reservations about it.
“And so you would like me to accompany you on a walk?” James smiled that was working its way across his features.
“Try not to look so pleased with yourself, Lord Churchill,” Andrea said, though she was now smiling right back at him.“I quite enjoyed our walk the other day and thought I would stop by to see if you are free for another.”
“I will only be a few minutes, let me get some boots on.”
“I will wait out here.”
As soon as his door was shut once more, James stood up to his full height and evaluate what had just happened. This was more progress than he had ever anticipated he would make with the younger lady, but he was still skeptical as to why she was suddenly interested in him.
