Please give all my love to my beautiful sisters and Andrew. I miss you all, but I promise I will visit sooner rather than later.
With love,
Your Ophelia
Ophelia sealed the letter before skipping down the stairs to send it for posting through a maid. She had the afternoon to herself since Amy was taking a nap with Mrs Bailey, and Ophelia was free to spend her time however she wished. After an entire week, she had been able to find some time for herself, and she wanted to use it well.
She handed the letter to a maid and quickly made her way towards the kitchen, having developed a good friendship with the cook. He was a middle-aged man who was kind and courteous and was always insistent on feeding Ophelia, calling her too slim for her own good. He kept telling her how someoneas beautiful as her must be a little fuller to complement that beauty.
Had everyone known she was a member of the ton, they would have never been able to develop such frankness towards her, and Ophelia would have felt singled out and alone. To survive here, she needed to have friends, and she had been able to find several of them amongst the help.
“Ophelia!” the cook greeted her as she entered, and she smiled at him. “Where is Miss Amy?”
“Asleep with Mrs Bailey; hence, I have the afternoon to myself,” she replied, sitting on a chair that had already been pulled out.
“And how are you planning to spend it?”
“I was wondering if I could go out and stretch my legs a little. Do we have a market nearby?” she asked the cook, who nodded.
“Of course we do! You will have to go to the village, and if you are going to the village, would you be kind enough to bring me eggs and bread?”
“Absolutely.”
She was rather excited to be able to go out. She was missing the village.
***
Ophelia made her way across the gardens, walking back towards the mansion after her trip to the village. She had got the eggs and bread, which the cook had asked her to bring and definitely had an extremely enjoyable time making her way across the market. Even though she had been alone, her time had been extremely enjoyable. Despite that, she missed Amy and found herself wondering what Amy might be doing at several intervals of the day.
It was almost as if they were attached.
She continued to walk ahead when her gaze fell on a tall man, brushing down the most beautiful chestnut stallion. She switched her gaze away from the horse, only to realize that the man had been staring at her all along, his eyes narrowed.
Is something stuck to my face? Why is he staring?
She did not know what it was about him, but she flustered under his gaze, suddenly feeling more self-conscious than she had ever felt in her entire life. It was true he was rather good-looking, but Ophelia had never thought to be attracted to a stable boy or groom. He must certainly be either of those.Despite that, she could not understand why he continued to stare at her.
“Hello?” Ophelia greeted him from afar, quickly making her way towards him. His eyes widened at her greeting, clearly not having expected her to approach, but Ophelia had never been one to back away.
“Hello.”
“Is something stuck to my face or am I doing something wrong?” she questioned, still feeling self-conscious. He was much taller than her, his dark hair standing out in perfect contrast against his white skin. Ophelia could not deny his handsome looks, feeling a pull towards him.
Who is he?
“Why would you ask such a thing?” he asked, a small smile dancing on his lips as he stared at her.
“You have been staring.”
“Oh.” He nodded his head as if trying to think of a way to justify it. “I apologize for my rudeness. I did not mean to stare at you. It must have happened while I was not paying attention.”
It almost felt as if he had slapped Ophelia, but she maintained her composure.
“Of course.” She nodded. “Thank you for your apology.”
“It is no problem at all.”
“I am Ophelia by the way,” she introduced herself, immediately regretting her decision as his expression turned from confused to bored to stern. Ophelia did not understand how he was able to elicit such reactions in her, but she had no control over them. It was almost as if he was turning her into a different person.
