Just a quick little bit for my buddy Happyheart2 :) Prompted by Elsie's new hairdo ;)
Elsie sat at the small oak vanity in her room. Her dear Anna behind her, slowly twisting her soft brown locks into a elegant and stylish updo. Elsie fidgeted and realized she was letting her nerves get the best if her. She only wanted to look pretty for him. Her hair to be something different than the usual twisted mess she herself did each day. The annual Garden party was this afternoon, and Elsie decided today would also be the day she told Charles Carson she loved him. That she couldn't, no wouldn't, go on any longer living her life a lie. To be honest, she did not know how he would respond. She hoped he would take her in his arms and reciprocate her feelings. Yet, she honestly did not know what to expect.
She watched as Anna patted the smooth twists framing her face. "There now, Mrs. Hughes. You look quite lovely if I do say so. Lets put a little color on those cheeks, maybe some lipstick?" Anna asked smiling at her in the mirror.
"Whatever you think appropriate Anna. I do still want to look like me. Only perhaps a little better." She said laughing, feeling a bit insecure.
"Mrs. Hughes, you look beautiful." Anna leaned down closer to her and spoke softly laying her hand on the older woman's shoulder. "And I know at least one man who looks at you as if you were the most gorgeous creation this earth has seen."
"Oh you! The cheek!" Elsie said a bit shocked."I don't know whatever you are talking about." She patted Anna's hand on her shoulder, adding, "thank you Anna. You do know how much I appreciate this? How much I care for you dear, sweet girl."
"I do Mrs. Hughes. As I do you." Anna replied warmly embracing the woman she had come to love as a Mother. Now if there was only something to be done about her Father figure. She cared for Mr. Carson, but he was a bit dim when it came to matters of the heart. She knew he had a sweet, kind soul. But he was not one to wear his heart on his sleeve. She thought sadly, if only these two could get away alone together, they would find each other.
Elsie was finally ready for the party. She took one last look at herself in the mirror, smoothing her hand down the side of her new dress checking her teeth for lipstick. She rarely wore the stuff, but today she could use any bolster of confidence she could get. She licked her lips, willing herself to not tug the bottom gently into her mouth and bite down on the painted flesh. Horrid habit, she thought to herself. Hooking her keys to her waist, she headed downstairs and out the servants entrance, giving orders to her maids as she passed. "Alright ladies, up and at em'! Let's get going now! The tables are not going to set themselves."
Elsie walked out to check everything was in order. The garden party was always the main event of the summer, and she managed to pull it off beautifully each time. She knew today would be no exception, even with her "distraction". She made her way through the tents, checked that the tables were being set properly, the linens all pristine, the flower arrangements to her liking. As she left the main tent and headed back into the house, she saw Charles sitting out on the bench. She thought it was quite unlike him to be resting with all the excitement going on around them. Concern causing a slight lump to rise in her throat, she walked out until she was just behind him.
"Mr. Carson, are you alright?" She asked, worry in her voice.
"Yes, Mrs. Hughes. I was just sitting here thinking." He replied, not turning around. "Why don't you join me for a moment. It's going to be a long day for the both of us, you especially."
Elsie rounded the bench and sat down next to him, a tad too close to be respectable. She watched as Charles lifted his gaze to her, a half smile spreading across his handsome face. He stared a bit longer than usual, and Elsie felt herself blush as she looked down at her hands folded in her lap. "I've been meaning to talk to you about something, Mr. Carson."
"Yes. Is there anything I can help you with?" Charles responded calmly, though his insides were twisted in knots. Since she had walked around the bench and sat down so close to him, he had felt this tense tightening sensation in his chest. She looked so beautiful today. Her smooth chestnut hair pinned in a way he had never seen before. The sunlight caught the grays that danced throughout the shimmering coif. When had she gotten those he wondered to himself? They only added to the loveliness of the woman before him. Her cheeks were tinged pink, and if he was right, she had the faintest tint of pink across her soft, full lips. He wondered what they would taste like, what her hair would feel like in his hands, spread out across his bare chest. He scolded himself "now is not the time, old fool. You will get your chance, God willing". He had decided already that today would be the day he confessed to her. The day he would lay everything out on the table and tell Elsie he loved her. That he had loved her since the moment he saw her, and that he would love her until his dying breath.
"Now may not be the time, Mr. Carson. Yet, I'm not sure there will ever be an appropriate time for what I have to say. But I must let you know." Her voice was small and nervous, but sincere.
"You're not leaving?" Charles said, as panic rushed over him.
"Perhaps I am, Mr. Carson. I am not quite sure yet. I feel I have to tell you something, something I have been keeping to myself for many years."
Oh Lord! What is it, he thought? Was there someone else? Did she have a life outside the one they shared? He felt the tightening again.
"Mr. Carson I... Charles, I think you should know that-"
"No! Mrs. Hughes! Do not tell me! I cannot bare it if you say you are leaving me. I will not let you go!" Charles spit the words out, his deep commanding voice full of fear and emotion. His posture softened and he took her hands from her lap, holding them gently as he looked into her deep blue eyes. "I cannot let you go, Elsie. I love you."
Elsie's eyes filled with tears, a smile lighting up her face. "If you would have let me finish, you daft man, I would have told you the same." Elsie leaned closer to Charles, and just before their lips touched for the first time, she whispered, "I love you too, Charles Carson."