Chapter Twelve: Family and Friends
As usual when Alexander awoke, he thought of Charlotte, and yes, in his private thoughts, she was Charlotte. He longed for her and to hold her body close to his. She was so beautiful, and very desirable. If he had not ruined things between them, he might be able to really hold her when he woke in the mornings instead of just dreaming about it.
He reminded himself that he had been given a second chance to win her heart, and this was not the time to look backwards, but forward instead.
He had a letter from his brother Samuel a few days ago. In response, he had written Samuel an invitation to come to Heyrick Park, and he invited him the weekend of the Autumn Ball. Alexander wanted his brother to meet Miss Heywood, and to get to know Augusta and Leo better. If something ever happened to him, then Samuel would be the girls' guardian.
He thought about all the changes in his life. He had been a recluse for so long, and now he attended social gatherings on a regular basis. He was growing more comfortable with being out in society again, and he felt glad of it. Augusta and Leo needed to be around people besides his staff.
He thought of the people he was coming to know better because of Miss Heywood: the Parkers, Miss Lambe, Miss Hankins and Reverend Hankins. He had enjoyed meeting all of Charlotte's family in Willingden and his time with them was a fond memory. He especially liked Declan Fraser, Miss Heywood's brother-in-law.
The Parker's home was open to friends and family on a daily basis. He wanted to be able to repay the hospitality that he had been shown at their home. He had an idea, and there was a part of him that was petrified, but another part of him that was excited.
Alexander told Mrs. Wheatley that he wanted to have a dinner at the house the night before the Autumn Ball. Mrs. Wheatley had said, "Wonder of wonders, Xander! I cannot ever remember a dinner party being given in this house."
He had made a list of who to invite: Tom and Mary Parker, Arthur Parker, Miss Lambe, Reverend Hankins and Miss Hankins, and Miss Heywood. Samuel and Augusta would also attend. That would be ten people for dinner including himself.
Augusta had volunteered to write out the invitations and was excited about helping with the dinner.
James Stringer had returned to Sanditon yesterday, and Alexander tried not to think of Miss Heywood spending time with him. He knew she was very busy, so he had arranged for pink roses to be sent to Trafalgar House today with a note that he was thinking of her. He had promised to give her the time she needed to decide her path forward. It just wished it weren't so hard. He missed her to the point he ached for her.
He had seen her at church on Sunday, and she seemed surprised to see him. He had neglected the girls' religious education for too long, but from on, they would attend church regularly on Sundays.
Miss Hankins told Charlotte after church that she had been a good influence over Mr. Colbourne. It was long past time for those dear girls to be in church. Charlotte told her she gave her too much credit, but Miss Hankins was not having it. She had seen on more than one occasion how Mr. Colbourne looked at Charlotte.
Alexander and Charlotte had spoken for a few minutes before the girls joined them. He longed for a moment alone with her, but he would take what he could get.
At Trafalgar House that afternoon, Charlotte was sitting at her desk reading a letter from Lady Susan. She had told her that she would be in town for the ball, and they simply must have a conversation.
Charlotte was grateful Lady Susan was a dear friend and so wise. Charlotte wanted to talk over the situation she found herself in with Mr. Colbourne with her. The ball was less than two weeks away, and Lady Susan was coming on the Friday morning before the ball on Saturday evening.
James Stringer had spent time with Miss Heywood yesterday after arriving in Sanditon because Tom wanted her to take notes of all they spoke of concerning the expenses of the build. The budget had to be strictly adhered to, so no detail could be missed.
The Parkers had invited Mr. Stringer for dinner, and he had gladly accepted.
When Charlotte had come down the staircase for dinner, he had just arrived. Mr. Stringer watched her descend, and he thought she was a vision of loveliness. She wore a mint green dress that showed off her figure to perfection, and he thought her more beautiful than ever.
Charlotte had greeted him warmly, and he was very glad he was back in town. After he left Sanditon last time to return to London, he had missed her.
Miss Lambe missed nothing of their exchange, and thought to herself that Mr. Colbourne had a rival for Charlotte's heart. She was delighted by it because the enigmatic Mr. Colbourne was a man with a dark past. She was not yet convinced he was the right man for her best friend.
The evening passed very pleasantly, and everyone had a wonderful time.
Mary asked Charlotte to see James out, so she walked him to the door.
"Miss Heywood, I cannot tell you how happy I am to be back in Sanditon."
"Well, that is a good thing, Mr. Stringer. It was your home for such a long time. I hope that also means that you are able to think of your father now without so much pain."
"Yes, it does, Miss Heywood. I am looking to the future."
She smiled at him, and they said goodnight.
Georgiana could not wait to get Charlotte upstairs to talk. She practically dragged her up the stairs and into her room.
Charlotte was out of breath and laughing when they collapsed on the bed.
Georgiana said, "I must say, Mr. Stringer is very handsome, and he cuts a very fine figure in his formal wear. Don't you think, Charlotte?"
"Yes, he is handsome, but he is a friend, Georgiana. Lady Susan warned me to tread carefully where his heart is concerned. I would not want to hurt him in any way. My heart belongs to Mr. Colbourne, and even though I cannot trust him yet, I believe we are moving forward."
"Charlotte, there is no hurry to make up your mind. You have to consider all the possibilities for your happiness. All I am saying is to give Mr. Stringer a chance."
"Georgiana, I am very attracted to Mr. Colbourne, and I feel alive in his arms in a way I have not felt since Sidney."
"My friend, there are different kinds of passion. Lady Susan is correct in that you must be careful with Mr. Stringer, but I also think you need to consider him as a potential suitor. He clearly cares for you. Besides, he is uncomplicated, unlike Sidney was and Mr. Colbourne is.
Charlotte said, "I will give it some thought, Georgiana, and I will grant you that he is a good catch."
The next several days passed quickly. Charlotte was earning her pay, and thankfully, Mary made sure Tom did compensate her. She and Mr. Stringer spent a great deal of time together, but always with Arthur and Tom.
Charlotte had a dress made for the Autumn Ball. It was stunning, made of amber and burgundy silk, and she looked forward to wearing it. She had seen Augusta at the modiste when she had gone for her fitting, and she had a cup of tea with Augusta and Mr. Colbourne at the tea room. He continued to send flowers to her, and there was always a note letting her know that he was thinking of her.
The invitation to the dinner at Heyrick Park had come five days ago, and while everyone was surprised, Mary had told Tom she wanted to go. She told him he was to be agreeable. Tom did not like Mr. Colbourne because he was against the development of Sanditon, and he refused to invest in it. Tom muttered about Colbourne being a miser, but he would not deny his Mary.
Lady Susan had sent a note to Charlotte requesting that they have dinner that same night, and Charlotte felt torn. Lady Susan was coming all the way from London for the ball, but it was a big step for Mr. Colbourne to host a dinner and she wanted to attend.
After speaking with Mary about it, it was decided that Charlotte would send a note to Mr. Colbourne telling him of her dilemma.
Right away, he wrote back to her with an invitation for Lady Susan.
He informed Augusta and Mrs. Wheatley that there would be another guest and both ladies were alarmed.
"Uncle! We cannot have an uneven number at the table. We must invite one more gentleman to the dinner."
Mrs. Wheatley nodded her head in agreement.
"Who will we invite then, Augusta?"
She suggested, "Mr. Stringer, Miss Heywood's friend would be perfect. He seems very nice, and we would have an even number of guests."
He hesitated, but he was Charlotte's friend. And it would give him a chance to see them interact. He did not want to do it, but he agreed.
"Please write out the invitation, Augusta."
He went to his office and stood at the window as he always did when he needed to think.
Mrs. Wheatley brought him a cup of tea and said, "This Mr. Stringer is a rival for Miss Heywood's affections, Xander?"
"Yes, he is. They are dear friends, and he put the emphasis on the word "dear."
Mrs. Wheatley could barely hide her smile and said, "I have a shilling on you coming out the victor in this rivalry, Xander, and I lay odds you will win her hand before the new year."
He smiled at her, and said, "I'll take that wager, Mrs. Wheatley, and I will wager that I will win her hand after the new year. I hope I lose."
Lady Susan arrived on Friday in time for lunch at the Parkers. After lunch, the ladies spent a good two hours going over all that had happened in Charlotte's life since the previous ball. It had not been that long ago, but things had certainly been eventful since then.
Lady Susan said, "Tonight Charlotte, you will be walking a very fine line with both of these men. It is my guess that Mr. Colbourne will have you seated to his right, and he will have put Mr. Stringer as far away as possible. I must commend him for including Mr. Stringer tonight. I expect I was the catalyst for that because by inviting me, he had to invite another gentleman to keep the numbers even at the table."
The ladies all agreed.
Seeing that Charlotte was pensive, and could use some time alone, Lady Susan took her leave, but promised to be back at to Trafalgar House by 6:30 to get Charlotte for the dinner tonight.
Heyrick Park had been transformed on the outside. When Lady Susan's carriage pulled into the drive to the house, there were ornate torches to light the way. The urns on either side of the front doors were filled with lovely fall flowers and foliage and illuminated by candles.
Mr. Colbourne stepped outside to help Lady Susan out of the carriage, and then Charlotte.
He bent down and whispered to her, "You look beautiful, Miss Heywood."
Charlotte smiled at him, and then they all moved into the house. Everyone else was already there, but James Stringer, and he arrived a few minutes after Charlotte and Lady Susan.
Introductions were made, and Charlotte was pleased to meet Samuel Colbourne. He was handsome and easy to converse with. She thought he and Georgiana might be a good match.
He was charming, but in a sincere manner.
Augusta greeted them all, and took Charlotte aside. "Miss Heywood, you look stunning. Your gown is beautiful."
Charlotte said, "Thank you, Augusta, and you look beautiful, too."
Lady Susan had met Miss Markham in London, and was glad to see her again.
Glasses of wine were served, and the conversation flowed freely. Tom even began to have a good time. Arthur had everyone laughing with his anecdotes, and it was soon time to go into dinner. Alexander had asked Samuel to escort Augusta in, and he held his arm for Charlotte to take.
Just as Lady Susan predicted, Charlotte was seated to Colbourne's right, and she was seated on his left.
There were twelve for dinner, and in Susan's mind, that was the best number for a small dinner party. The seating arrangements were nicely done, with Augusta as the opposite end of the table from Alexander. Both James Stringer and Samuel were at that end of the table. The Hankins and the Parkers were in the center along with Arthur and Georgiana.
Lady Susan found Mr. Colbourne endearing. He was attentive to both Charlotte and her, and his manners were impeccable.
He stood and raised a glass to make a toast. "To friends and family!" Everyone raised their glasses as well. Before he sat down, she heard him say to Charlotte, "and to you, Miss Heywood."
Yes, this man was deeply in love with Charlotte.
Lady Susan noticed that the wine glasses were kept filled, but he never touched his. She remembered his father as a miserable drunk, and she thought it wise of him to choose a very different path from his father.
Charlotte blushed easily around Mr. Colbourne, and when Charlotte spoke, he leaned down to hear her.
She did notice that Charlotte was wisely guarded.
The dinner was divine, and Lady Susan could not say when she had eaten a finer meal. Dessert was a large fruit tray due to the sugar boycott, and in the center was a beautiful pineapple. Of course, Georgiana had to tell the story of how Arthur had offended Lady Denham at her party by cutting the pineapple only to find it rotten to the core. Everyone was laughing, and Arthur said that he would never cut into a pineapple again.
After dinner, the men went to the study for port and cigars, while Augusta led the ladies to the drawing room.
The talk turned to the ball tomorrow night, and everyone was excited about it. The ladies talked about their dresses and how wonderful it was that there were so many more occasions for balls and gatherings in Sanditon these days.
The men joined them about an hour later, and for Alexander, it had been the longest hour he could remember enduring. He wanted to be with Charlotte, but he was the host, and with that came duties.
He found James Stringer to be a nice man, and it was easy to see why Charlotte considered him a friend. He was easy-going, laughed easily, and was very intelligent. Samuel and James found many topics of interest to discuss as they both resided in London. Tom and Arthur talked about the Sanditon Royal Theater of course. It is from their talk that he learned that Stringer was at Trafalgar House every day, and Charlotte was present at all of the meetings.
Alexander was dismayed that Charlotte had spent time every day in Stringer's company. They had spoken tonight, and they were clearly at ease in each other's company.
About an hour later, Lady Susan said that she was ready to seek her bed after a long day of travel and a delightful evening.
The carriages were brought around, and in just a manner of a few minutes, the guests had all left.
It had been a successful evening, and Alexander was pleased.
Augusta told the men goodnight, and made her way to bed.
Alexander said, "I will be up in a bit to check in on both you and Leo, Augusta. Thank you for making tonight a success."
She beamed at him, and said, "It was the loveliest night that I can remember in a very long time, Uncle."
Alexander and Samuel sat down in front of the fire.
Samuel said, "Why haven't you asked for Miss Heywood's hand yet, Alexander?"
Alexander said, "I wanted to, but the ghosts of my past were not yet laid to rest, and the timing was all wrong. I hurt her by not asking for her hand, and I pushed her away three months ago. It is a long story for another time, but she has given me a chance to win her trust back, and I am doing all I can to earn it."
Samuel said, "She is beautiful and fun to be around. If I met her at a ball, I would want to get to know her better myself."
Alexander said, "I already have competition for her affections in James Stringer, Samuel."
"I would never get in your way, but my point is, don't wait too long, my brother. She is extraordinary."
Alexander said, "That she is."
"I am going to check on the girls and get to bed, Samuel. I will see you in the morning."
"See you in the morning, Xander."
When Alexander got to his room, he undressed and washed for bed. The fire was lit, and he laid down to rest. His thoughts drifted to Charlotte.
Tonight, she had been warm, but guarded.
He reminded himself to be patient. He could not press her, and risk turning her away. She had told him that she was in no hurry to change her life.
His heart was hers. If she wanted it.