The King’s Mistress.

Chapter 2: The Unaccepted proposal

Katerina started her day just like any other, washing up quickly and hoping to go for her morning ride before everyone woke up. She would have no such luck today. There was a loud knock at her door.

“Katerina, come downstairs at once!” PaPa shouted through the door. “Yes, PaPa.” She called.

Kat knew that she would have to dress accordingly for her father as not to upset him. She pulled a simple yet elegant dark green floor-length dress out of her wardrobe. PaPa’s favorite and she hoped wearing it would lessen his hostility towards her though she doubted it.

She called for Marie, her maid, to help her with her coset.

“Good morning Miss Katerina,” she said with a smile as she came in, closing the door behind her.” “Good morning Marie,” said Kat.

After handing Marie her corset and turning to grab ahold of the bedpost as Marie began tightening it, she said

“Please make it as tight as possible, Marie. I want to do everything I can to please PaPa. He seems to be especially disappointed in me as of late.”

“Yes, Miss,” replied Marie.

After Marie fastened her corset, she helped Kat into her dress and put her matching green slippers on her feet. She then brushed Kat’s shoulder-length dark brown hair, braided it, and wound it into an intricate bun at the back of her head.

“You made me look almost pretty,” Kat said in surprise.

“You’re beautiful, Miss, you always have been,” Marie said, as she gave Kat a once over admiring the work she’d done on her hair.

Kat smiled meekly before walking out of her room and heading downstairs to the sitting room where her family awaited her. Her mother, sister, and brother smiled at her upon her entry. Her father, though, glared at her with contempt in his eyes.

“I tried and failed to marry you off today.” He said to her, but Henry Marxon said you weren’t good enough for his boy John. That you were far too plain a girl, he did, however, express interest in Georgiana.”

He said, looking back at Gee with a smile.

Kat smiled too. The Marxon’s were a very well-known family in town, and though John was ten years Gee’s senior, he was a very handsome, kind man who would take great care of her sister. Gee smiled widely, reaching to her big blue eyes. Georgiana has had a crush on John Marxon since she was little. Only Kat knew of it.

“Papa!?” Gee squealed, clapping her hands with delight. It was her first proposal,

“Yes, My Dear,” replied PaPa. “But I turned it down.” At hearing those words, Gee’s face fell before glancing at the floor without a comment.

Kat’s heart ached for her sister. She couldn’t understand why her father would do such a thing. As if reading her thoughts, their mother began shouting at their father.

“Why on earth would you turn Henry down? “John is an excellent match for Gee!” Her mother said.

“I told them it was Katerina or nothing!” “That John wasn’t good enough for my Gee.” He said, stalking toward Kat with malice in his eyes.

Kat began to back up slowly as her father came forward. He grabbed her roughly by the arm and pulled her close to him.

“You are by far my biggest disappointment Katerina.” He said through gritted teeth low enough so only she could hear. “At best, you will never be more than a spinster, or worse; you’ll marry below your class and shame us all.” He grumbled.

Katerina was filled with anger. She didn’t know who exactly she was angry with, though. Was it herself for shaming her family or her father for insulting her constantly pointing out all of her flaws?

She could stand this no longer. She could feel the tears welling up inside her but would not give her father the satisfaction of seeing them fall. She ripped her arm from his grasp and forced him back slightly, and began berating him.

“Did you ever think that perhaps I am not the problem here, father?” She shouted. “All the young women in town have been betrothed since they were very young.” “Why is it you weren’t able to find me a match when I was young before my existence offended you so?” She asked, “Maybe it’s not me, but you and your too high standards that have made marrying me off so impossible for you!” She screamed. “From the looks of things, Gee may suffer the same fate.”

For a moment, the room was quiet. Not a sound could be heard. Kat could see the rest of her family sitting on the sofa. Her brother and sister with astonished looks on their faces while Josephine, her mother, looked on with a fearful expression. Both she and Kat knew this wasn’t going to end well. No one spoke out against Richard Lovelace.

Richard pulled back and slapped Kat in the face so hard it knocked her to the ground. Kat looked up at him cupping her cheek that was warm to the touch and badly stung. He took a step forward, purposely crushing her other hand with his foot.

Looking down at her, he said, “if you ever speak to me that way again, girl, I will turn you out! You hear me?” He shouted.

“Yes, Father,” Kat answered.

He nodded once before turning to the rest of his family. “You hear that?” He asked, “if this wretched girl does not learn how to act, I will turn her out, and should that happen, none of you will be permitted to speak to her ever again.” He proclaimed. They all nodded in unison. Kat could see by the look on her mother’s face that she wanted to say something but dared not speak against her husband’s ruling. With that, Richard marched up the stairs to his chambers and slammed the door.

Kat curled up into a ball on the floor at hearing the door slam and began to sob. Her mother and sister rushed to her side while George went to grab a cool cloth and some ointment for Kat’s face to put a stop to the bruise he could see forming there. Josephine knelt beside her daughter. Kat rested her head in her mother’s lap while she cried. Her mother gently stroked her hair.

“Katerina, you know better than to speak to your father that way.” She said she wiped away Kat’s tears with a handkerchief Gee brought over before applying the cool cloth to her cheek.

Kat flinched at the pain she felt while her mother tried her best to bring down the swelling on her cheek. “I know, MaMa,” she said between sobs. “I am trying to be the kind of woman you and PaPa want me to be, but he’s impossible to please at times.”

“I know Darling,” Josephine replied. She smiled down at her. “Why don’t you take Lily out for a ride?” With a small smile, Kat asked, “May I?”

“Yes, Dear,” Josephine said, smiling back at her. “But I must ask that you ride side-saddle today to keep your father from becoming even angrier. She nodded in response before hurrying out to the barn.

Once ready, she and Lily galloped off toward the woods. She wanted to put as much distance between herself and her father as she could right now.