Sorry about the typo in the last chapter (I meant to say Aubrey and not Miles) and about the long wait. I drew a blank for a while, and I think I didn't update right away because I was afraid of my story ending so soon. It has been great fun having you all read this, and I hope that you are as happy as I am that there will be another chapter coming along after this.
The rain continued to pour throughout the day. A large pond formed at the front of the Wayland's property, spilling across the road to create an inconvenient muddy soup. It clung to the carriage's wheels as the group from Lakewood was making its way back home. There was a mighty splash as they sped through the water, but just as it was about to clear it the carriage became stuck.
"Just our luck!" cried Kitty. "We're to be stuck the rest of the day in damp clothes!"
"Don't be silly, Miss Kitty," Aubrey said. "If we must, we will just walk back home. No one can be wetter than us in the entire county." Kitty stared at him dispiritedly and leaned her head back upon Mary's shoulder to mope. Mary did her best to hide a smile.
Miles was not in a good spirits either, and he sighed as he checked his pocket watch. He cracked the door open to check upon the progress of the driver and his son who had accompanied him to town. "They seem to be getting nowhere," Miles told the rest of the party as he shut the door and wiped his streaming face with a handkerchief.
"Perhaps Edmund and his son need our help, Miles," Aubrey said. "Four hands are better than two." Miles groaned, eliciting laughs from the girls. Both of them withdrew from the carriage and into the wet world outside.
"I am glad I am no man," Olivia said, "for they are always getting dirty."
"Aubrey is always clean," Mary observed to herself. The carriage was filled with sudden laughter, and Mary realized she had not been so quiet after all.
"He may be an exception but only slightly. Once he came home from visiting friends, and he was covered from head to toe in mud. When asked for an explanation, he replied that he had been thrown from his horse. Fortunately for him, being muddied up was the only fatality he suffered that day—unless you can count Mother's tongue-lashing of him," Olivia said. The time passed in mostly a quiet manner as the men worked at freeing them from their imprisonment to the mud for the next quarter of an hour.
Mary could hear faint arguing outside with her ear pressed against the door. She moved back when the handle jerked it open. A rather dirty Aubrey presented his face to them. "It is done, ladies. Now don't be alarmed when you feel a slight shove as we attempt to get out." He was gone as soon as he had come. Almost immediately the girls were nearly thrown to the other side of the carriage as Miles, Aubrey and Edmund threw themselves at the carriage. Edmund's son sat out front and managed the horses. After two more tries they were free, and once more they set off for Lakewood.
Mrs. Wayland saw them arrive in the courtyard, and she went to greet them at the door with towels to prevent any serious puddles on the carpeting inside of the house. "We thought you'd never get back," she said.
"Sorry to have worried you, Mother," Olivia said. "We planned on leaving not long after we arrived, but you should have seen the trees in town—they nearly broke in half in that wind."
"That's not the only reason," Aubrey added. "The girls decided to have a spontaneous cup of tea at Miss Menshon's Tea Parlor. They gossiped and drank until the day fairly flew by."
"If talking about tea and books is gossiping, then I've been missing out—and I am glad of it," said Kitty. She wrung out the last heavy drops of water from her hair, and then she skipped up to her room. Mary, Georgiana and Olivia followed shortly.
Aubrey helped to gather the towels from the floor and handed them to the maid. He went up to his room to change. When he came back down he found that his mother was in the parlor. He went in, and then he walked the length of the room three and half times before his mother interrupted with a touch on his arm. "Is something bothering you, Son?" she asked.
"I wouldn't say bothering," he replied, sitting beside her on the settee and stretching his arms out behind his head. He looked tired.
"What is it then?" she asked. He had never been so cryptic before, and it was worrying.
Startling his mother, Aubrey went to grasp her hands and gave them a squeeze. "You like Miss Bennet, don't you?" he asked.
Mrs. Wayland's eyebrows rose in surprise. "Mary? Of course. She's a sweet girl, but sometimes I can hardly hear what she says—she's so quiet sometimes."
"She is that." Aubrey laughed. "And that's what I like about her so much. She's not as other girls are…she's different from them."
"And that is what captivates you so much about her?" asked his mother.
"Partially. She has some kind of air about her that draws me in and doesn't let go. She's probably not aware of it, but she can be very beautiful sometimes."
Mrs. Wayland watched her son smile foolishly to himself as he thought about the girl. "Do you love her?" she ventured.
"Yes. I feel so much for her and think on and on about her so much that sometimes I feel I'm not my own person anymore. We are so much alike, Mother, and also so very different," Aubrey said. "She's a breath of fresh air."
"And this is what made you pace the room so?"
"Yes and no, but I have not told you the whole of it. When we were making our way to town, and just before it began to rain, I asked Mary to be my wife."
"She had better have said yes, Aubrey, or I will never forgive her." She patted her son playfully on the cheek as he grinned.
"You aren't to be disappointed," he reassured her, "unless her parents don't agree with the match."
"No one would say no to such a wonderful man as you, dearest," she replied. They shared a quick hug before Mr. Wayland entered with a gaggle of young girls behind him.
"I found these ruffians loitering in our hallway, m'dear, and I brought them here for you to do with as you wish," Mr. Wayland said with gleaming eyes. The girls smothered their laughter and filed into the room to find seats for themselves.
"Are you all warmly dressed?" Mrs. Wayland asked, getting up to examine them. "I would despair if any of you were to catch a chill. I myself have recovered recently from a lengthy head cold, and I would not wish it upon anyone in the world."
"Thank you for your concern, but we were not in the rain for too long. You needn't worry on our accounts," Georgiana assuaged. She took the seat that Aubrey had vacated earlier and took up her sewing.
When they were seated, Aubrey and his father left to join Miles in the library. Everyone watched for Mary's reaction when Aubrey winked at her and smiled. They were delighted to see a fine pink haze suffuse her cheeks. She wrinkled her face in embarrassment when she saw she was watched by those surrounding her.
"I suppose you all know about it," sighed Mary. "We promised to keep it a secret until dinnertime when all of us were together."
"You two must be the worst keepers of secrets then," Kitty announced, "for I heard you two whispering at the bookstore about it. Besides, words were not needed to see you had eyes only for each other by the time you bothered even catching up with us."
Mrs. Wayland voiced her opinion. "I am happy that you chose him, Mary. You will both do well for each other."
"You know, Mary, the first thing I remember about meeting you was your sunburned nose," began Olivia. "And then you played that enchanting little piece of music. Aubrey couldn't keep his eyes off of you, and I now I see why."
Mary didn't know what to say, so instead, her eyes filled with tears. "Thank you, Olivia."
"You shall have to call me sister from now on," Olivia said. They smiled. A sudden bell from the hall sounded. It was time to eat.
Dinner that night was pleasant and filled with congratulations for Aubrey and Mary. A toast was given by Mr. Wayland, and the tinkle of the wine glasses as they touched each other rang in Mary's head the next morning. She was in the garden out back cutting some flowers for her room. Olivia and Georgiana played badminton over a net tied between two blossoming trees. Unfortunately for Kitty, she had taken cold after the other day's rain and was laid up in her bed with chamomile tea and warm soup. Aubrey and his father were visiting tenants. Miles…well, he was…
…watching Mary as she made her way deeper into the garden. When he saw that no one was in sight he went to meet her. "Good afternoon, Miss Bennet," he said in greeting. Mary was startled at the sudden presence of Aubrey's cousin, and she dropped her basket to the ground. Her sunflowers spilled out, and Miles's heel caught a few petals and squashed them.
"Ooh!" Mary cried. She hurried to pick them up. Miles was eager to help Mary in any way, so he bent to help her. Instead, their heads banged into each other. After the ringing in her head was gone Mary found herself able to accept Miles's apology.
"Did you want something, Mr. Aldridge?" she asked.
"I hope I did not hurt your head too much, Miss Bennet!" he cried. He did not seem to hear what she had asked at all. She gave up and turned from him to continue down the path with her basket slung over her arm. Just as she was clipping another flower Miles stopped short beside her, startling her once more. The shears in her hand went for the center of the flower instead of for the stem.
"Oh dear, forgive me, Miss Bennet," Miles said. He realized he was being a nuisance, and before he left he needed to tell her something.
"It is fine. Perhaps you ought to go join your cousin in a game of badminton."
"No, no, I came to ask you something." There was a deafening pause, and Mary was beginning to get cross. Not only was Miles prolonging her stay in the garden where the sun shone most steadily, but he was getting in her way whichever way she turned. Brushing back a few tired wisps of hair from her forehead, Mary turned to look at the suddenly trembling young man before her.
"Are you alright?" she asked him.
"Yes!" he laughed shakily. He stepped forward twice until he was a scant few inches from Mary's face. She frowned and stepped back as she recalled a certain dream she had had one
night not long ago. Before Miles could catch her, she fell into the puddle that awaited her on the ground below. Mary watched as horror etched itself into Miles's eyes. She looked on as he turned tail and ran off in alarm. She was so surprised at what had occurred that she was not aware she was on the ground until water began to seep through her skirt and petticoats.
Mary got changed into another dress not soon after. She did not wish to go back outside in case she might encounter Miles once more, but she had left her basket in the garden. The room she was staying in wanted a touch of spring. Though she was to leave that evening with Kitty and Georgiana, she wanted to make the rest of her stay at Lakewood a good one.
Mary hurried down the hall and the stairs to the back door. She searched for her basket and avoided the puddle nearby as she retrieved the flowers. Before she could turn away Miles was in front her again—and this time he had some flowers bunched up in his hand.
"I saw that you were picking flowers, and I wanted to get you some of the pretty ones I saw earlier this morning on my ride out in the park," he said. He leaned over to hand her the flowers—the gorgeous flowers. Mary sighed in amazement at the purple blooms with streaks of white in them.
"Thank you, Mr. Aldridge."
"It was no trouble of mine. I find nature most pleasurable in the mornings, don't you think?"
"Of course," replied Mary. "It is always nice." She started to make her way back to the house. She looked over the clusters of flowers for signs of the girls and their badminton game—they were not to be found. Sounds from the kitchen window foretold of a gathering around cool lemonade, and Mary suddenly thirsted for some.
Before any thought of the consequences that might follow, Miles took Mary's hand and placed his lips upon it. She gasped and withdrew her hand. "Miles!" He did not stop there, unfortunately. As a furious blush was working its way high up on Mary's cheeks he took hold of her by the arms and gave her a sound kiss on the mouth.
Mary did not react at first, but when she did she was finally able to hear the normal sounds of the day return to her ears. The furious roar died down and the beat of her heart did not seem so abnormal anymore. With the return of her hearing came the sound of someone behind her. She spun around to the sight of Aubrey's retreating back.
"Aubrey," she said to herself. He was on his horse and riding away before she could even think to go after him. "Aubrey." Tears welled up her eyes. Surely he would not think she had enjoyed that? She wiped her eyes quickly before turning back to Miles who, for once, did not flee in the face of trouble.
"I…I..." he stuttered.
"How. Could. You?" Mary asked him quietly—threateningly.
His face grew beet-red. "Forgive me, Miss Bennet, but I was not thinking. I did not know that Aubrey was around."
"Yes. You were not thinking." Mary could find no more words to fill the thickened air between them. Her eyes teared up once more and spilled down her face. Her loathing for Miles was complete. But what of Aubrey's love? Mary asked herself. It was her turn to run from Miles. She flew past an astonished Georgiana at the bottom of the stairs, and she shut ger door behind her. It was then that she noticed the purple violets in her hand were still there. Angry at the world and what it had let happen to her, Mary pulled her window open and threw the flowers into the air. They thudded to the grass outside in a mess of leaves and petals. Mary lay on her bed and wept.