Author's note: Hello faithful readers. Thanks for your patience in the last three weeks or so--I think it has been that long since I have updated. I had a death in my family and a planned family vacation in the last couple of weeks, so again, thanks for waiting patiently.
This chapter ran long so I had to make a decision where to cut it. Be assured that the the officers' after dinner conversation will be printed and shared with you all (would I leave all of you out of our favorite dragoon's dealings??) in the next chapter.
I proofread this chapter very quickly, so I hope you will excuse any lingering errors. I will try to check it again tonight and correct it on this site. I am also working on chapter 52 as this is posted.
JScorpio
Chapter 51 Questions Abound
The morning after Melanie and William Tavington's engagement was a busy one with messengers being sent forth from the Prescott estate with announcements of the betrothal and invitations to the wedding. It was estimated that it would take the couriers the rest of the day and well into the evening to hand deliver what they could; the rest would go post. Strategic British officers were invited, ones that might help further the General's military career in the future especially. Also, all of the plantation's clientele were invited so that they might witness the 'Redcoat officer's mistress' being married and therefore becoming an 'honest woman'.
Now it was late morning and Paul, a young stable boy and groom from the estate, had been pulled from his usual services and pressed into messenger duty. The young teen boy hitched his horse in front of the Devington Village Pub and made his way in. Looking around the tables, he spotted Major Wilkins and Mr. Carlyle dining together, just as Mrs. Wilkins advised they would be.
Once at the table, he handed the folded message to Jim Wilkins. "Sir, I went to your home first. Mrs. Wilkins advised me that you were here. After she read the message she asked me to bring it to you here, that you would want to see it right away!"
As Jim opened the paper, the young lad turned to the distinguished, middle aged man dining with Major Wilkins. "Mr. Carlyle, you have the same message. It has been left at your home already this morning."
"Thank you, boy," the man said. The young groom tipped his three cornered hat and hurried out of the tavern, having more notes to deliver yet.
"What does it say, Jim?"
After having quickly perused the message, Wilkins shook his head as he passed the note to his business associate to read. "I understand why Bridget wanted me to see this immediately," he said to himself in a low voice as his friend read the note.
Mr. Carlyle folded the note up and handed it back to Jim, who quickly slipped it into his jacket pocket. "Speak of the devil," croaked Carlyle, "we are speaking of her and low and behold this important message shows itself!"
The older man went on. "So a British officer's mistress is marrying another Redcoat officer? A general nonetheless?"
"It seems so," Wilkins answered. "General Tavington was my commander before he was injured months ago. He comes from a very wealth English family. His father built up a flour mill business. When the business fell on hard times, William came home from university to step in and run the mills and completely turned the business around to where it became profitable again. He has a great head for business, I'm told."
"Oh," Carlyle answered. "Does he have the integrity that Hayden Prescott had?"
"Oh….yes," Jim lied, not knowing or having experienced commerce with Tavington before, but wanting to help his friend, Melanie, out. Wilkins had just spent the last hour trying to assuage Mr. Carlyle's reservations about doing business with "that fallen Prescott woman". He had tried to "whitewash" as many of the "facts" as he could, telling Carlyle that war makes people do things they wouldn't usually do, and that perhaps Miss Prescott felt under pressure to go with the officer and had to in order to stay alive.
Major Wilkins wasn't sure he had convinced the mutual business associate over lunch that Melanie was still a nice, sweet girl when this message arrived, further muddying the waters. Now Jim had to try to explain her sudden marriage to a notorious British general with a reputation as bad as hers. The officer decided to excuse himself and go visit Miss Prescott himself to find out exactly what was going on before making any further explanations to Mr. Carlyle.
He said goodbye to his friend, promising to meet him again soon and continue their conversation about business on another day. Wilkins rode home to his plantation as fast as he could where he found Bridget there waiting for him, as puzzled and surprised about the news as he was. Both thought it a good idea to pay a visit to Miss Prescott—and General Tavington—to find out exactly why the curious couple had decided to marry.
The Wilkins' immediately sent a message to the Prescott plantation to let them know they would be calling on the newly betrothed couple soon. The whole thing left both Major and Mrs. Wilkins shaking their heads about their friend Melanie and wondering why she would marry General Tavington while still in the midst of grief over Alex Bordon.
In the afternoon of the same day, the messengers were still out delivering the news of the Tavington and Prescott betrothal around the countryside. And as they were, Melanie had been giving William a tour of the plantation on horseback. And while General Tavington had ridden around the farm a few times, it was different this time. He looked at it differently for within a matter of days, he would be the owner and new plantation master of all this land. It seemed even more awesome to him now as he looked out over it, just as pleased with the land as he was to get a beautiful wife.
The two dismounted on a low ridge where the grapes grew. The general offered his arm to his fiancée, and she took it as they walked amongst the arbors, inspecting the vines. As they moved down the row, William dropped his arm and took Melanie's hand. They walked along quietly, hand in hand to a clearing.
Miss Prescott broke the silence. "William, will you take a mistress?" Her voice was fraught with concern.
She let go of his hand but he reached out, caught it, and drew her back to him. The officer cupped her chin and made her look up at him.
"Now why do you ask that?," queried the general.
Melanie tried to pull away from him, embarrassed now that she had broached the subject. He held her firmly in place, giving her a moment to answer.
In a quiet voice filled with shame, she replied, "Because I became Alexander's mistress. That makes me think you will have one, as well." The girl suddenly looked sad.
"Not necessarily," he soothed. "If you perform your wifely duties, then I won't want to take a mistress."
His fiancée sighed and walked away from him, a little disappointed for she would have rather heard an unequivocal 'no' as the answer, or at least a promise from him not to stray.
"Does it bother you that you're not marrying a virgin?" she asked.
William shook his head, now able to tell that his future wife was having nuptial jitters. He wanted to assuage all her fears.
"Well," he began, "I would love to deflower a virgin on my wedding night. Most men want that. I would have even settled for being the one to deflower my fiancée before the wedding night, knowing and being happy that I was the first one for her."
"I'm sorry, William," she said simply.
"Don't be," her fiancé replied. "I'm happy you consented to be my wife."
Miss Prescott looked back at him and smiled. A moment of quiet passed between the two of them.
William spoke again. "Was Peter or Alex your first?"
Melanie kept her back to Will, not wanting to show how shocked she was that he had asked her to which man she had given up her virtue. Feeling awkward, she wasn't sure what to say or do.
Before she could do or say anything, Tavington apologized. "I'm sorry, Melanie. That was an inappropriate question to ask at this time."
Hearing his apology, Miss Prescott felt somewhat better. "No….No…You should know. We are going to be married in a few days. If I don't tell you now, you will want to know later."
Melanie continued. "It was Alex. Peter proposed the day he left, and I told him I would wait for him. We didn't have time to get married or engage in anything too romantic other than a few stolen kisses. He died while away on duty."
"Alex stole my virtue," she went on, "in his tent one night while in charge on one of your missions in which you displayed me around the countryside."
To William, the young woman nearly sounded bitter, but he kept quiet and let her talk, feeling like she needed him to know.
"He…..um….found out that I fancied him," she said, her voice breaking, "and he took advantage of that, thinking I wouldn't resist. I fought him."
Miss Prescott swallowed hard, then went on. "I was hoping he would court me properly. I didn't know he was married. As I've told you before, if I'd have known about his wife, I wouldn't have become his mistress, but it was too late for my feelings when I found out."
"Who was your first?" asked Melanie.
"Oh….an older, beautiful woman named Sarah," he replied with a hint of a smile on his lips. "Father took me to a brothel when I was fifteen so that I could be taught what to do when I married."
The girl said nothing and looked out over the grapes stretching into the low valley before her. Will walked over to where the girl was and slipped his arms around her waist from behind her . He rested his chin on her shoulder as he murmured in her ear. "As I have said, I don't care that you were someone's mistress or that you are not a virgin. I adore you no matter what."
She smiled as William began to kiss her neck and ear. The girl quickly turned in his embrace to face him as they continued to kiss deeply.
After a moment, she turned back away from him, loving the feeling of him standing close behind her with his arms about her. As he kissed her neck again, he slid one of his hands up over her shoulder and inched his fingers down into the front of her loose bodice. Melanie cooed as she felt his fingers caressing her nipple beneath the material of her dress.
The girl turned herself to face him after a minute of this. She craned her head up to kiss him hard, her tongue moving slowly within his mouth. The girl felt William's hands move up to her bodice, where his fingers began to unbutton the already loose dress top.
Melanie came to her senses, wanting not to end up in his bed until their wedding night. Her hands moved up and gently stopped his.
He continued kissing the girl's neck as she spoke. "William don't!"
"Let me," he coaxed, whispering into her ear and kissing it as well.
"No,Will," she begged, "I want us to wait until our wedding evening."
She pulled out of his grasp and began to walk away from him. He reached out for the girl to pull her back, but she dodged him. "No William!"
He smiled and gave chase after her. The officer playfully grabbed the back of her skirt, then gave her rear a smack. Melanie turned back to face her teasing fiancé, acting as though she was mad, and gesturing for him to stop.
The couple teased each other with kisses and playful touches all the way back to their horses. Then they mounted their steeds and turned them in the direction of the main house.
Two days after the announcement of William and Melanie's upcoming nuptials were sent around, the Wilkins' were to join the newly engaged couple for dinner. Jim and Bridget Wilkins were both anxious to talk with Miss Prescott and find out more details.
The Wilkins' carriage pulled up to the grand veranda on the Prescott estate, to be greeted at first by the future plantation master, General Tavington, much as if he was already in possession of the estate. Melanie appeared shortly after and went with Will to meet their friends at the coach.
After the social talk and pleasantries of dinner, the four split up: Melanie and Bridget preferring to take a walk, and William and Jim taking after dinner brandies on the porch.
As Miss Prescott and Mrs. Wilkins made their way away from the house, the two were finally able to dispense with proper and polite dinner conversation, and talk freely.
"How are you doing, Melanie? I've worried so much about you since Major Bordon died."
"I'm fine, really," Miss Prescott answered bravely. Silence passed between the two women as they made their way toward a bench beneath a tree.
"I know that you miss him," Bridget spoke up.
"I do. Every single day," Melanie admitted. "I still dream about him so much. Some nights I wake up screaming if I've dreamt of his death again."
Miss Prescott sighed sadly, then went on. "I still ache for him so. I think I'll never get over his death."
"You will. It just takes time," Bridget assured. "I'm sure that starting life anew with the General will help with things."
"Yes," Tavington's fiancé said, forcing a smile.
Crossing the lane, the two ladies walked along the row of outbuildings, where the slaves and servants were putting things away for the evening, not taking notice of the two women as they worked. Melanie was eager to change the subject, afraid that she might burst into tears if she spoke of Alexander any further.
"So, how is married life," she asked as of Bridget, playfully.
"Blissful! I love Jim so much," Mrs. Wilkins exclaimed. "He admonishes me, though, for trying to do the servants' jobs."
"Well, you aren't a servant anymore," Melanie pointed out. "You're a wealthy plantation master's wife."
"Yes. But you and Jim forget that I've been a servant most all of my life; since I was very young. Not having to work takes some getting used to."
The two girls laughed at the comment, then went on with their conversation. "You two were married so quickly," Melanie commented.
"Yes," agreed Bridget. "Actually, when Major Bordon died so suddenly, it scared Jim so. He decided soon afterward that he wanted us to marry as soon as possible. So, we married at the first of February. He was given a leave of a few days to bring me home to the farm and help me settle in."
"Aye, it is a different life than that of the fort," Melanie remarked.
"Being out here, I don't get to see Jim as much as I would if I lived at the fort," Wilkins' wife lamented. "I preferred to remain there, but he wanted me at the plantation. I miss him."
Miss Prescott shook her head in agreement, sympathizing with her newlywed friend. "You two seem so happy," Melanie stated. "I'm glad."
"We are! But things are even happier now for us," Bridget announced. The two stopped walking as the former Irish servant turned to face her friend. "I'm with child!"
"Oh, Bridget!," exclaimed the young Prescott woman as she threw her arms around her old friend. "When are you due?"
"Well, I've missed three monthlies now, and am having sickness," said, thinking aloud. "I think he will be here the first of November. I'm sure he was conceived on our wedding night." Bridget's hand dropped to her belly, rubbing it.
"You seem sure that it's a boy."
"I hope so, especially for Jim," Mrs. Wilkins answered. "He wants the first child to be a boy, with more boys after that. We'd like a large family."
"Doesn't he want a girl," asked Melanie.
"Yes—eventually. But he would like mostly boys."
"Oh, I see. One girl only so that me may spoil her like a queen," cajoled the future Mrs. Tavington.
"Exactly," confirmed Bridget.
The two women laughed heartily, then began to walk again. A silence fell over them as they strolled.
"Melanie, I must admit that we were both stunned to hear of your betrothal to the General."
"Yes, I can imagine that everyone in the area shares your feelings. It was quite sudden."
The pair stopped again. Bridget took Melanie's arm and turned her to face her. "This is not like you," she pointed out with concern. "You always told me that you wanted a long, romantic, and loving courtship and engagement."
The newly engaged woman sighed, then turned away from her friend. She looked out over the horizon as she replied. "Yes, but I cannot afford that now," she answered forlornly. "The farm's business is in trouble, and it will help things if I am married. I'm sure Jim has told you how William turned his family's mill business in England around when it was failing, has he not?"
"Yes, he did," she answered. "I'm sure it will be of great help to you to have your husband running the business."
There was more silence as Melanie shuddered at her friend's comment. She hoped silently that William truly had the best interests of her late father's plantation at heart.
The two strolled on again. "Do you love him?" asked Bridget.
"No," confided Melanie, "but I am attracted to him and I have developed some affection for him. I think he has more feelings for than I him."
"He is very handsome," Melanie went on.
"That he is," Mrs. Wilkins admitted.
"My hope is that we grow to love each other," Melanie stated simply.
Bridget laughed as a memory of their times at Fort Carolina flashed across her mind. It was from a few months after they'd met, when Miss Prescott was out of death's way and on the mend. "Do you remember that day at the fort when we confessed to each other which officers we liked?"
"Yes," Melanie chuckled. "We laughed and carried on like young school girls that day. I recall that you answered 'Jim'. And now you are married to him and carrying his child!"
The women laughed again. "And you said that you liked both Major Bordon and Colonel Tavington," Bridget pointed out.
"Yes," Melanie answered as she sighed. She suddenly became thoughtful and paused. "I became Alex's mistress, and now I am marrying William Tavington."
"Funny. It's as if we chose our futures," Mrs. Wilkins alluded.
"Yes," Miss Prescott agreed. "I recollect you telling me then that Alex and William were the two most handsome, yet ill tempered officers in the fort."
Bridget frowned. "Yes…..I did. Henceforth why I was so distressed to see you fall in love with the Major. He sometimes didn't treat you in the best way."
"Yes, you're right," conceded Melanie with a defeated sigh.
Mrs. Wilkins took her friend's hands. "Which is why I'm concerned now. I fear for how General Tavington may treat you."
"I understand. But Bridget, there has been a change in him. Since he was injured and nearly died, and I believe as well, being present when Alex died, has humbled him. Indeed, I have seen a new humility in him."
"If you say so, then I believe you," Mrs. Wilkins answered. "I do hope the two of you find love." Bridget hugged Melanie, holding her tightly for a moment.
The two women sighed as they left each other's embrace. "We'd better get back to the men," Melanie urged.
"Yes," Bridget concurred. "Who knows what they have been speaking of or gossiping about."
The girls laughed. "Or conspiring," added Melanie.
The two friends turned back toward the house and began to walk along slowly, both anxious to rejoin their men. It was well known that General Tavington and Major Wilkins sometimes butted heads in the recently past months when both were in the same dragoon brigade. Each woman secretly hoped that the men had maintained the same gentlemanly demeanors during their time alone that they each displayed over dinner earlier in the evening.
