“Oh, now you decide to warn me?” Rose scoffed.
He laughed. “It is nothing to concern yourself with. But my aunt, she is…” He clicked his tongue. “Unique.”
“Unique?” Rose cocked an eyebrow at him.
“Her personality,” he confirmed. “She is her own person, and she does not hide it about herself. So, if she seems peculiar or odd, just know that it is for a good reason.”
“And what reason is that?”
“It’s who she is,” he said simply.
Rose eyed Christopher curiously, finding the warning strange. From the little she knew of Christopher, Lady Honora had a considerable hand in raising him and was likely a significant influence on his life. That she was so vibrant and unique, and that he was so stiff and formal, suggested there to be more here than what Christoper was telling her.
Then again, when it comes to Christopher, what else is new?
As promised, Lady Honora Kingswell was indeed a unique specimen if there ever was one. And Rose noticed this the very second that she laid eyes on her.
“Christopher!” Lady Honora exclaimed merrily as he and Rose walked into the foyer. “Look who it is! I thought you dead!” She was dressed colorfully, vibrant pinks and purples and oranges adorning her gown. Her make-up was loud, her eyes were big and bright green, while her teeth were the sort that looked too big for her mouth; teeth that she showed off in a constant smile of sheer delight.
“Aunt Honora.” Christopher released Rose’s hand as he stepped forward to greet her. He reached for her hand, likely thinking to kiss it. “It is good to see you again.”
She slapped the hand away. “Is that how you treat your favorite aunt? Come here!” She pulled Christopher into a tight hug, and Rose saw immediately how stiff it made him. “And who is this?” She released Christopher, pushing him aside before descending on Rose.
“It is lovely to meet you, Lady Honora…” Rose offered a slight curtsey. “My name is –”
“I know who you are.” She pulled Rose into a hug and kissed her wetly on the cheek. “And if you do not mind, I am going to dispense with all thisYour Gracenonsense. We are family, are we not? You may call me Honora, and I will call you Rosalind.”
“Rose,” Christopher said from behind her.
“What was that?”
“She prefers Rose…” He was shaking his head at his aunt’s antics.
“And I prefer not to be treated as a corpse.” She swung on Christopher. “Save for when you need something, at which point you cannot help but reach out to me.”
Christopher looked at her flatly. “It has not been that long, Honora.”
“Try living alone and then tell me how long it has been.” She scoffed and then waved him down. “But enough of that. Enough of that. Where I would love to make you feel guilty for how you have ignored me…” She touched her chest as if in pain. “Life is too short! And we have so much to catch up on. Come!” She took Rose by the hand. “Let us feast, drink, and then enjoy the pleasure of one another’s company.” She laughed loudly. “Although if this one –” An indication with her head toward Christopher. “—is the same grump I remember from his childhood, then enjoy is not the word I would use.”
Rose did her best to withhold her laughter. “Oh, he is not nearly as bad as he was, I promise.”
“Truly?”
“I’m training him, that's why,” Rose said with a wink.
“Wonderful,” Honora crooned. “You must tell me how. I spent his entire life trying to do the same, and this is the result.” She scoffed and shook her head. “Too much of his father in him, sadly. And nowhere near enough of his aunt!”
As Christopher had warned Rose, Honora was certainly lively. An eccentric character, and Rose could tell right away that she was going to like her.
The only curiosity that persisted was that niggling sensation that something wasn’t quite right here. How could someone like this have been so closely involved in Christopher’s life and not have influenced his personality? It was a question that Rose hoped would be answered over supper.
“So, tell me of the wedding,” Honora began once they were seated in the dining room and waiting for their food to be served. “How was it? I am sure it was beautiful, even if I was not there.”
“Honora,” Christopher sighed. “I told you why I did not invite you. And you assured me that you were fine with it.”
“I was at the time,” Honora agreed. “But I have since changed my mind. Silly me, wanting to see my nephew wed such a beautiful creature as this. Shame on me.”
Rose chuckled. “Oh, you didn’t miss too much. It was a rather standard affair.”
