Almost, Completely His

Chapter 13

I woke up late the next day, I hadn’t realized how tired I had been.

Pearl had left me tea next to the bed and set up a bath. It was lukewarm which was fine. I added a mixture of light citrus oils and soap.

I let my hair air dry and slid into a sage green dress. Father had let me know the day before he was going to go out horseback riding with the Earl and I knew Enrique and Charles were out fencing.

I looked out the window and saw Theodora sitting outside on the patio drinking tea and embroidering.

Maids walked outside in the garden chatting and afternoon gardeners laughed and whistled.

It was a calm day, everyone seemed to be resting or indulging in personal activities and I needed that too. I grabbed a small clip from the vanity and pulled my hair back.

The tea was cold already so I headed downstairs for a warm cup of milk. Maybe some biscuits as well.

I was navigating the kitchen, searching for something to eat when I heard a light knock behind me.

“They’re in the third cupboard at the top.”

Arthur was leaning against the back door smiling. He pointed in the opposite direction I was looking in. I walked over and found them trying to act as collected as I possible.

“How did you sleep?” I asked keeping my back to him.

“Not great, we got home pretty early this morning.” He replied yawning.

“Why were you all out until such hours?” I asked turning to face him. And then concern flooded me. “Is father alright?”

Arthur smiled and nodded. “The Viscount is fine. I’m sure he’s out enjoying a peaceful afternoon ride with father. He had much to drink last night.” Arthur grabbed a cup and served himself tea as well. “And I’m sure he’s a bit fatigued after using his boxing skills on Whitley yesterday.”

I almost dropped the plate of biscuits in my hands. “WHAT?!”

Arthur sipped his tea. “He’s quite good actually. This is some delicious tea what is in it exactly?”

I put the plate down and stomped my foot. “How dare you allow father to fight?!”

“I didn’t really have much say in it. He’s a big man, I don’t think I could have held him back.”

“You could have convinced him not to!”

“He was actually on the verge of dueling.” My jaw dropped. “But Charles managed to convince him otherwise and the Viscount settled for some good punches and kicks.”

I lifted my finger ready to scold him when he raised his eyebrows. “Now don’t go lecturing me Celeste. If I remember correctly you hit the man first in the head AND with a candelabra.”

“Because he was a disgraceful brute!”

“That he is... BUT you also encouraged your brother to beat him. And walked away happily. I do recall you drinking lemonade in peace after the altercation.” He smiled smugly at me when I didn’t snap back.

He was right.

Blast him.

I couldn’t lie, I wanted the man to hurt. Not only had he verbally disrespected me but he was going to hurt me physically as well. I doubted I was the first young woman to be insulted by him in either manner.

I crossed my arms and looked Arthur straight in the eyes. “I felt at peace knowing that he might not do this to any other girl from now on. Now he knows someone WILL fight back.”

Arthur continued to sip his tea but he grinned. “You put the fear of God in him Celeste. I’m proud.”

My heart swelled at his words.

“I’m surprised there isn’t a lecture about propriety and societal expectations in there somewhere.”

“To hell with that.”

My eyes bulged at his crass words.

He set his cup down and walked over to me. He lifted his hand to caress my cheek and picked a strand of my hair to twirl in his finger.

The Arthur from last night was back. He felt absolutely warm and safe. I looked into his green eyes and saw nothing but respect and amusement.

“I very much prefer how you handle things Miss Cortez. It’s quite fascinating.”

Arthur had asked me to join him for a picnic and I immediately agreed. A servant offered to ready a basket for us but we insisted on doing it ourselves.

We threw in cold meats, cheese, biscuits, lemonade and pastries.

Arthur led me to the back of the house, away from prying eyes but we could still see the house from the clearing. It thrilled me knowing that to others this would be indecent, but also because it was Arthur.

He set up the blanket for and I unpacked the food.

“It’s a lovely day,” he said looking up at the sky.

“That it is,” I replied organizing the cheeses by color.

“I have a theory as to why, would you like to hear it?”

“Amuse me.” I said smiling. I handed him a lemonade glass and he grabbed it, brushing his fingers on mine.

“I do believe the sun appears and the clouds part when you step outside.”

I laughed. “That is an absurd theory. And a quite embarrassing attempt at flattering me.”

He shrugged. “Can’t blame me for trying.”

For the next hour we talked about what our life had been in the past 10 years. We had begun to inch closer to each other, until finally we were shoulder to shoulder and our hands intertwined.

He told me about his days at Oxford, his classes, friends he had made there and even as to why he stepped away from religion.

He had realized that there was not enough proof and reason to believe. He wanted something he could see or touch that assured him that there was a higher power.

He confided in me the arguments he had with his father. The Earl didn’t know what to expect from him since so many years had been focused on Charles and they both couldn’t decide what Arthur was meant to do. The Earl loved his son but couldn’t stand Arthur’s nonchalant view on life.

Especially his long hair. Which I told him I found attractive.

He even told me that at times he envied his brother. “Charles is perfect. The perfect son, the perfect brother, Earl, friend and man. It’s exhausting to live in his shadow... but I love him. And he deserves the very best in the world.”

I told him about my classes back home. Learning to sit, eat, talk, walk and dress appropriately. That I had been spanked several times for speaking out of turn, ruining a dress, snapping back at people and refusing to cooperate.

“I understand that I was being foolish, I had to learn to behave. Especially as the daughter of a Viscount... but it went from disciplining me to hiding me.”

I shared with him my anxiety and fear about marriage. I had friends back home who were betrothed to older men, men twice and three times their age. I had heard horror stories of husbands abusing their women and the wives leading a miserable life.

I had seen free spirited and independent women crawl into a shell in order to find a husband, completely losing themselves in what society expected from them.

I didn’t want to do any of that, I didn’t want to lose who I was. But I could feel it slipping away from me, and as much as I wanted to hold onto it, I also knew that I had to find a way to survive in this world. In this world would not mold itself around me. I had to be the one to change.

Arthur listened intently. He didn’t interrupt and only asked questions when I finished. He didn’t lecture me, he didn’t try to change my mind, and didn’t force his own beliefs. When I was done, he just looked at me with sad eyes. He squeezed my hand and said, “I’m sorry.”

And the weird thing was that I believed him. I did believe that he was sorry for what was expected from me, and what I had to do in order to survive.

As we packed up I felt the need to ask him something. “Why did you hate me so much as a kid?”

“To be honest, I thought you were annoying and destructive.” He frowned. “I tried to stay away.”

I laughed. “And now?”

Arthur reached out for my hand again and I grabbed it. It was natural, I felt comfortable and at ease with him. He squeezed my hand and kissed my wrist.

“I still think you’re annoying and destructive.. the only difference is that now I can’t stay away.”