My meager and a bit late to the show contribution to the Andith Holiday Exchange. It is being written for Kymby 67 , who gave me three fun prompts with which to work. In fact, they were so terrific, I couldn't decide which one to use so it took awhile for the story to form in my mind. This is a work in progress, so it may take a few days but there is a conclusion, I promise.
Meanwhile, Everyone is doing such a terrific job with their stories!
Edith Crawley usually dreaded her parents' holiday parties but this year, she was hoping things would be a bit more fun, for her at least. With her younger sister married and in Dublin for the holidays and her older sister happily settled with her long-time love, Matthew, Edith found herself feeling less of a wall flower than in years past. Of even more interest was that he would be attending.
As a teen, Edith had a raging crush on Anthony Strallan and the gentle baronet had been very kind in his dealings with her, carefully ensuring her feelings had not been hurt as she continued to make a fool of herself fawning over the man. At least, looking back, that's the way she saw it. She had only the vaguest memory of Lady Strallan, who died just as Edith was beginning to decide that perhaps boys weren't so bad after all. But Sir Anthony had been far too immersed in his grief to even notice her, at first.
Her mother, Cora, had taken pity o the dear gentleman and after an appropriate interval began inviting him to small dinners at Downtown, the Crawley ancestral home which bordered with Sir Anthony's property. It was then that Edith began to act so foolishly around the tall, handsome man.
At first, he had been polite but distant. But over a period of several months they discovered they had many interests in common. He loved reading as much as Edith did, especially the classics. While Mary and Matthew would inherit Downton and the responsibility that went with it, Edith was the Crawley child most interested in how to actually manage such an estate, especially with regards to farming. And farming was one of Anthony Strallan's pet subjects. Their interests in music and art were similar too. And it had all felt rather wonderful to Edith.
But then, he had been called away from his home to help with a government managed agricultural project in conjunction with the government of South Africa and other than an occasional letter, the connection was essentially broken over his year long absence. Edith's crush faded, although never quite went away. And just as he was returning to Yorkshire, Edith was leaving for Cambridge.
After Cambridge came her first real job as a columnist for a weekly, The Sketch. As well received as her postings were, it soon became apparent the editor was more interested in her than her writing and she entered into a torrid affair with him. It hadn't been intentional, at least not on her part. She'd even tried to hold him at arm's length for a while. But in the end, he'd been very persuasive. Of course, it would end badly leaving Edith looking 'the bad guy' for getting involved with a married man, unemployed, and pregnant.
Her return to Downton had been awkward at best. Even in modern society, the notion of an Earl's daughter preggers by a married man was unsettling. They were supposed to be so very prim and proper, no matter what. Her grandmother, the Dowager Countess, had fumed and protested and then insisted that the baby must be got rid of. Thankfully Edith's father, the Earl, had over ridden his mother's objections and promised Edith the family's support in whatever decision she made about the baby. Consequently, her daughter Marigold was safely established upstairs in the nursery, along with her cousin George, Mary's son. But the entire episode had left Edith adrift and without prospects.
Since returning to Yorkshire, Edith had seen Anthony Strallan around the village and in Rippon. He was always cordial and if he was bothered by the rumors that must have reached his ears, he gave no indication. And the warmth that shone in his blue eyes when he looked at her had given her hope for a happier future. She found with each meeting that the old spark that had begun as a crush so many years ago was blossoming into something else. She hoped that she would have an opportunity to understand better the older man's feelings for her at the party. If only she could get him to reveal those feelings to her!
Edith ventured into York to shop for an outfit for the party. While the occasion wouldn't call for the formality that was the standard in the Dowager's day, it was still an event one dressed for and Edith wanted to stand out, at least in the eyes of one of the party goers. So, she browsed several shops before hitting on what she believed was the perfect look for her goal.
ASECASECASEC
Anthony Strallan wasn't entirely certain why he'd accepted the invitation to the Crawley annual Christmas extravaganza. Of course, that isn't what the party was called by anyone except him, and then only to himself. But with the opulence on display even as he stepped through the front door, the word fit most properly. Still, The Earl and Countess were much higher ranking than he was and had an obligation to show some of the old order extravagance and tradition, at least once or twice a year. Thankfully, as a lowly Baronet he was spared the burden and glad of it. But as he stepped into the main hall, he was immediately reminded of his reason for accepting the invitation.
Standing in the middle of the room engrossed politely, although obviously bored, in conversation with Lady Hewlett, was Edith Crawley, who was in Anthony's estimation the brightest most valuable jewel in the Grantham collection. Her long black dress formed flawlessly along her perfect curves and yet left something to one's imagination. Ruffled sleeves in a holiday colored fabric came out from her shoulders giving her the appearance of being broad shouldered, which he knew she was not. But it was when she turned slightly that he got the full effect of the dress, the neckline dipping in a wide vee almost to her navel, he surmised. However, it was the daring and all too enticing width of the vee that revealed just enough breast to be risqué but not so much to be profane that had his lower jaw nearly touching the floor. God, how easy it would be to slip my hand…. His mind was quickly conjuring scenarios where he might just test the invitation the neckline of that dress seemed to be offering. A dance, a quiet conversation in a dark corner, a quick word in the library away from other guests…..
Closing his mouth and willing his eyes back into his head, Anthony slid his twitching fingers into his trouser pockets, which was a mistake in itself as he became aware of his body's embarrassing reaction to Edith's display of flesh. He searched the room for a corner in which to hide until he regained his composure but before he could find a safe haven, he was accosted by the Earl. "Anthony, so glad you could make it," Robert said rather loudly. Anthony saw Edith look up from her conversation, look around until she located him, and then she gave him a bright, if a little unsure, sort of smile.
The conversation with Robert was winding down when he felt her presence at his side, her gaze upon him. "Sir Anthony," she cooed, her voice reflecting her happiness.