That evening….
Antoinette, Rayanna, and I were all in the sitting room, stitching and crocheting. Rayanna and Antoinette were both making presents to send back home to their families for Christmas, and I was back to working on the baby blanket. Cutler walked in, and was about to sit down, when he looked around the room and noticed that he was the only man in a room full of ladies. Blushing, he scurried out the door without a word. Us three ladies laughed.
"Heather, you've certainly found a skittish one!" Rayanna said, laughing.
I grinned. "If you think he's skittish now, then you should have been holding his hands when we got married. His hands were shaking so badly when he put the ring on my finger that one might think that he was playing the maracas!"
Antoinette simply shook her head, and grinned. "At least he's understanding and sweet, unlike James," she said. I glared at her. "Antoinette," I said, with a hint of annoyance in my voice, "you haven't seen James in years. If Cutler can go through that much change in a few years, why can't James? You could at least give him a chance. I think you two would be a lovely couple."
Antoinette raised an eyebrow. "And when is my 'future husband' to arrive here, of matchmaker?" As she said that, I heard James and Felicity come in. "Right now," I said, getting up and going to greet my siblings, Rayanna and Antoinette following.
The second that we entered the room where James and Felicity were, Antoinette stopped in her tracks, staring directly at James. There seemed to be a hint of love in the way she was looking at him. When James was done greeting Rayanna and Cutler, he was about to greet Antoinette when her gaze caught his. He returned her look of love as he looked over her beautiful figure with a look of lust in his eye.
Neither of them said anything, so I took it as my que to break the ice between them. "James, you remember my friend Antoinette. Antoinette, I KNOW you remember James."
"Yes," Antoinette whispered, slowly breaking free of her reverie, and curtsying to James.
James didn't take his eyes off her for a second. "I remember Miss Antoinette," he said, taking her hand and kissing it. I felt proud, and knew that my part of bringing the two together had been played, and that only God could make sure the rest went along smoothly.
The maid called us into a dinner of glazed ham and various French side dishes. As Rayanna, Antoinette, James, and Felicity all left, Cutler and I stood alone in the front room. Cutler looked down at me, half smiling. "You are more of a matchmaker than I thought of you, Lady Heather Beckett. And I am you husband."
I pretended to be shocked by what he said. "Me?" I said playfully. "How ever did you come to that conclusion, Lord Cutler Beckett?"
"If you do not call what you just did between Antoinette and James matchmaking, I have no clue what so ever what you do!"
I was about to reply when the maid came back in. "Are you two coming in?" She asked. Cutler and I playfully glared at each other. He offered me his arm, which I gladly took, and led me into the dining room where our guests were waiting.
He pulled out a chair for me, and as I sat down, I noticed that James and Antoinette were sitting so close; Antoinette was practically sitting on his lap .And, from the look in her eyes, was exactly what she planned to do. I couldn't help but smirk, remembering when Cutler and I were like that.
After a lovely dinner of roast duck, wine, grape juice for me, stuffing, and glazed ham, James turned to Antoinette, and said, "May I speak to you for a moment?" She nodded, and he led her outside to the balcony overlooking the sea.