CHAPTER FOURTEEN

The floor of Elizabeth's bedchamber was a sea of silks, bonnets, stockings, laces, and petticoats. It wasn't all Elizabeth's fault, Felicity had helped in making the mess.

Elizabeth's wedding was in two days time, and since Felicity was maid of honor, she was staying at the Cole's for the week to assist her friend in the preparations. It had been nearly three months since she had seen Andy. He now avoided the Merriman store like the black plague, but she wasn't working there anyway. Since loosing Andy she stopped going to all dances and parties. She wanted nothing more to do with courting, even if it meant running away to a convent. She now spent her days practicing guitar, helping Elizabeth with the wedding, and giving Polly riding lessons.

Today was going to be an exhausting day. This afternoon, Elizabeth was hosting an elegant tea for all of her lady friends, and later that evening the Cole's were having party. Elizabeth stood in the mirror still fussing over her light blue filmy gown.

"Do you think it is too much?" She asked Felicity.

Felicity was sitting up in her undergarments, with unlaced stays, on Elizabeth's bed, learning a guitar etude. Elizabeth's wedding dress was a work of art, even the milliner had said it was her absolute masterpiece, and not even the Governor's wife owned such a fabulous dress. At first Elizabeth was just going to have a new stomacher, and some new lace for her ice blue silk Sunday dress, but then with the heat, she decided perhaps she should wear a lighter weight gown. Her only lightweight gown was pink, and Elizabeth wanted to wear blue to her wedding, so Felicity convinced her to have a new light blue summer dress made. This dress went from being a simple, lacy, summer, day, frock into one of the most elaborate dresses in Virginia.

Personally, Felicity thought it was a little too much for a day wedding, but it was a gown to die for. And she would have loved to of tried it on. The gown was full enough just with two layers of fine blue silk. But there were three more layers of light blue lace, gathered in cascading bustles. The dress had a pale yellow silk sash to tie around the waist, and the back of the dress had a long row of the tiniest pearl buttons, it would take her an hour to get into that dress.

"Tis absolutely gorgeous," Felicity told her.

"I am not going to wear any jewelry," Elizabeth announced. "I think it is too much with this dress."

"You could wear your pearl choker," Felicity suggested.

Their peace was interrupted when the door flew open. Annabelle stood in the doorway.

"You two ninnies aren't dressed yet?" She shrieked. "Why guests could be here in half an hour, Mother has been stuck observing everything while you are off playing dress up!"

"Tis my wedding gown," Elizabeth whined.

"Tis a silly waste Bitsy," muttered Annabelle. "You will never wear it again!"

"You got a beautiful new gown," Elizabeth shot back. "Yours had all that silly embroidery on it."

"My gown was tasteful," Annabelle snickered. "Yours looks like a blueberry pie filling nightmare with all those globs of frills! The whole garden and house looks like a blue nightmare!"

"You got to have your wedding," shouted Elizabeth. "I get to have my mine."

'I don't think that Elizabeth's dress looks like blueberry pie filling," Felicity said as she got off of the bed, and walked across the room.

"I don't think Bitsy's dress looks like blueberry pie filling," Annabelle mimicked. "Good heavens Felicity!" She snapped. "Quit parading around in your undergarments, don't they teach any modesty over here in the colonies?"

Felicity took a handful of grapes that had been sitting in a bowl over on the bureau. She popped one into her mouth.

""I've got nothing to hide," she said smugly.

"I am trying to convince Lissie to wear my blue silk Sunday gown to the ceremony," Elizabeth said. "Then we can match,"

"Elizabeth, you are the bride," said Felicity. "You should be the only one in blue. I have my gold gown."

"I really don't mind matching," Elizabeth answered. "I think the gown would look lovely on you."

"Oh honestly Bitsy," Annabelle snorted. "Your shopkeeper friend is not going to fit in your silly old gown. Not with her bust."

"We can tighten up her corset," Elzabeth replied.

"Bitsy you are as flat as fencepost. Mr. Fitchett has more breasts than you do! Now hurry up, put some clothes on, and get downstairs!"

"Wow," Felicity gasped. ""Marriage hasn't changed her a bit."

"I'm afraid it has made her worse," said Elizabeth. ""She thinks she knows everything about being a wife, and that she is a much better wife than I will ever be."

"No Elizabeth," Felicity sighed as she grabbed the bedpost for Elizabeth to lace up her corset "All I can say is poor, poor, it."

""I feel sorry for it too," Elizabeth agreed.

Annabelle's daughter was a hairy, shriveled, wormy, and ugly, baby with squinty pig eyes, sulky overwhelmingly big lips, and a neck as thick around as her whole body.

"Why it looks like a rat baby," Felicity had observed when they first met the baby. "I feel bad referring to her as it. What is her name?"

"Edwina Henrietta Chadwick," Elizabeth answered.

"Oh dear," sighed Felicity.

"She is better off being called It," Elizabeth laughed, and from that time on the two secretly referred to Annabelle's first born daughter as It.

"I no longer care if I make her mad anymore," Elizabeth said as she laced. "I no longer have to deal with her."

"That's my girl," Felicity squeaked and drew in a breath.

"You have the bottle hidden right?" Elizabeth asked.

"Aye," replied Felicity. "Tis stashed away with my nightshift."

Elizabeth had always been envious that Felicity had gotten to try brandy at the Merriweather ball. One thing she wanted to do before becoming a married woman was try some herself.

"It is overrated, and you will feel awful the next morning" Felicity warned her.

"I don't care. I want to try it. We can drink in my bedchamber, nobody will know," Elizabeth pressed. "Please. Can't you get some from your Father's store?"

"I can't walk into Father's store and buy a bottle of brandy from him," answered Felicity. "But I know who can."

So she had concocted a story to Theo Prutt. He had backed off, since Felicity brief encounter Andy, and the fact that she wasn't going to dances anymore, but if she had a favor to ask of him he would fulfill it in a heartbeat. Elizabeth gave her money to give to him, he bought the bottle, and Felicity smuggled it in with her things. They were planning on breaking into the bottle tonight after the party.

"Ben Davidson," Andy muttered out loud to himself. He should have known when he had described her lively, rides horses! He threw a small glass vial at the room, shattering it. "She never made me a pudding cake!" He slumped down into this chair. Why did it matter that Ben Davidson was back? Since that day she had visited him, begging him to ask her Father permission to court, he hadn't seen her. He couldn't court her, she was a respectful lady, so they had nothing more to say to each other. Ben could court her and make her happy, he loved her, so shouldn't she be happy?

Even if all hope of being able to marry Felicity was gone, as long as she didn't belong to anyone else in Andy's mind she was still his. He was still inside her mind, there was still a connection. Andy knew how Felicity talked, and how giddy she got when she spoke about Ben. Ben would be able to break the connection and he would replace Andy in her mind, and in her heart. Andy threw another vial against the wall. He knew it was shameful to be wasting good medical supplies, especially when the war was going on. Ben Davidson didn't throw things around in a fit of rage. Ben Davidson was a well-behaved gentleman, who participated in the fight for independence, came from a wealthy reputable family, was studying to make an ethical living, and could court a woman properly.

Andy had enjoyed him. He seemed like a fun, easygoing, fellow. He had been hoping that Ben wouldn't be fun, adventurous, and handsome. How silly, Felicity wouldn't be attracted to anything else. He had been brave enough to fight in the war. Andy didn't join the army. He didn't even use his medical expertise to help the wounded. With Ben's wealthy family he would be able to set up a pretty comfortable life for himself and Felicity, at least he had a family, which was more than Andy could say. Andy might have more wealth, but Ben didn't run an illegal gaming house. Instead of being lanky, awkward, and ordinary, Ben was tall, well built, with a docile, pleasant face, and big puppy brown eyes.

This time instead of throwing a vial he threw his stool. It crashed against the wall, breaking off a few of the rungs.. He supposed if he didn't stop the wench downstairs would come call on him. It just wasn't fair. He was going to get wickedly drunk tonight. That would make everything better, or as better as it could be. Drunk. He was nothing, he never was anybody. He had nobody. He never did have anybody, and never would. As long as she remained unloved by any other man, he was always hers. Felicity could live on in his mind, but no she was gone forever.