Mary went down to breakfast that morning to find that her father was missing. "Where's Papa?" she asked Sybil.
"Apparently he had breakfast earlier this morning so he would be ready when Matthew arrived."
Mary rolled her eyes as she sat down. Of course Matthew was coming. Why wouldn't he? Cousin Matthew would probably spend most of the rest of his life at Downton. It was then that Mary realized it would be much harder to avoid him than she had thought. She tried to shake the thought from her head. She had agreed to try and be more civil to Cousin Matthew. After all, it wasn't his fault. He couldn't do anything about the entail.
"Is something wrong?" Sybil asked, bringing Mary out of her thoughts. Immediately, she put on the fake smile she wore so often.
"No. Nothing is the matter."
That afternoon, Mary hunted down her father in the library. It was no surprise that he was with Matthew. Perfect Matthew.
"Papa?" she said, announcing her presence.
"Yes, darling?" he asked, looking up from his desk.
"I've had a letter from Lord Edward Clarke," she said.
"Lord Edward Clarke?" he asked, a tone of surprise in his voice.
"Yes, he lives on an estate south of London. His mother died during childbirth, and his father died recently, and now he has inherited the family estate. He says he is going to be traveling this way, and he wishes to stop by for a day or two."
Robert hardly thought for a minute before giving her his approval. He was as anxious as anyone to find a husband for Mary, and a young British lord was almost as good as it could get. Of course, he would still rather Mary had shown some feelings towards Matthew. He wanted to give her Downton more than anything.
"He also says that he will be traveling with his friend, a Kemal Pamuk. He's a Turkish diplomat."
"I see no reason why he shouldn't be welcome as well. When will they be arriving?"
"Tomorrow afternoon."
"Excellent. Be sure to notify Carson so the servants can have a room prepared for them both, and we will have enough seats for them at dinner."
The next afternoon, Mary was walking back from the stables. She had gone hunting that morning, and it had gone longer than expected. Her family would be expecting her for tea in less than an hour, and she was covered in mud from the waist down. She hoped Anna would be able to clean her up before their guests arrived.
After she had dropped her horse, Diamond, at the stables and left him with the servants, she began walking back up to the house. To her surprise, a car drove right past her. She arrived at the front door just in time to see Edward steeping out of the vehicle.
"Mr. Clarke?" she asked in surprised. He looked up at her, his expression twisting when he saw what state she was in. But he quickly corrected it to appear as polite as possible, but not quick enough that Mary didn't notice. "I am sorry I have to be meeting you now. I just returned form hunting this morning. We weren't expecting you for a few more hours now."
"I am sorry, Lady Mary. Our train arrived earlier than we had expected," he explained.
"It's perfectly fine," she assured him. "Carson should already have the rooms ready for you."
Mary froze as she saw the second man step out from the car. He was one of the most handsome men Mary had ever seen. What about Matthew? she asked herself. Yes, he was even more handsome than Matthew. Sure, Edward had dark hair, but it didn't suit him the way Mr. Pamuk's did. His features were so sharp and chiseled, and his lips were perfect. Mary snapped herself from her trance, and mentally kicked herself for her thoughts.
"You must be Mr. Pamuk," she said, gliding past Edward to greet him.
"Lady Mary," he said in greeting. He grabbed her hand to kiss it, his eyes never leaving hers. Mary couldn't help but blush at his forwardness. Neither of them noticed Edward rolling his eyes behind Mary.
"I'll have Carson show you to your rooms," she said, leading them inside to find Carson. "I will see you both at dinner." Before she left them, Mary made sure to sneak a flirtatious smile to Pamuk.
She went upstairs to clean up for tea. The rest of the afternoon went by too slowly. Mary was terribly anxious to change for dinner, where she would once again see the charming Mr. Pamuk. When it came time to change, Mary, with Anna's assistance, dressed up more than was necessary. She chose a dark blue gown she hadn't worn for some time, and spent more time than usual on her hair and makeup. By the time she went down to the dining room, she was exceptionally confident with her appearance.
Mary seated herself next to Kemal Pamuk, and Matthew sat on her other side. She didn't even notice when Edward Clarke almost sulked to a spot across from her. All through dinner, Edward attempted to grasp Mary's attention, but she always turned back to Mr. Pamuk.
"Do you visit England often?" she asked.
"Quite often, actually," he said. "I spend much time here in the summer. English summers are much cooler than those in Turkey."
"I actually met Mr. Pamuk on a hunting trip two summers ago," Edward chimed.
"You hunt?" Mary asked Pamuk. "You should have arrived earlier today. You could have hunted with us."
"That would have been nice," Edward said.
"I'm sure we could hunt together sometime," Kemal almost whispered to Mary.
After dinner, they all proceeded to the drawing room, where both Matthew and Edward tried to win over Mary's attention. They were both relieved when Pamuk left them to start conversation with other members of the family. Not long after, however, Mary too left them. She slipped into the next room, assuring herself that no one was watching. She entered to find Pamuk, who had beckoned her to join him. She had no sooner opened her mouth to speak before he was on her. He kissed her urgently, and she kissed him back. He pushed her against the wall, and it was then that she pushed him away.
"Mr. Pamuk!" she gasped.
"Let me come to you tonight," he pleaded. She was almost horrified at the thought.
"I don't know what I have done to give you that impression," she said aghast, "but I am hardly that kind of person." And with that, she left him to join the others.
Mary sat up in her bed, reading the novel she had taken from her father's library the other day. Her thoughts kept wandering back to her encounter with Kemal Pamuk earlier that evening. She had hardly talked to him. Sure, she had flirted with him, but she couldn't ever remember giving him the impression he seemed to receive. He head snapped up as she heard her door open, and the man she had just been thinking about appeared in the doorframe.
Mary should have been astounded by his visit. She wasn't as surprised as she should have been. All she was wondering at the moment was how he had managed to find her room. She stood up and covered herself with her sheets. He simply smiled at her.
"I thought I told you not to visit me tonight," she snapped.
"You might have, but I just couldn't stay away," he told her, stepping toward her once more.
"If you don't leave now, I'll… I'll-"
"You'll what?"
"I'll scream." It was the only threat she could think of.
"What would they say if they found me in here? What a scandal that would be, Lady Mary." He stepped even closer to her, pushed her down on her bed. She tried to push him off, but he resisted.
"But won't it hurt?" she asked wide-eyed.
He laughed. "Don't worry. You will still be a virgin for your husband."
A/N Sorry for not updating for a while! Anyway, I changed Evelyn Napier to Edward Clarke, my own original character, because he will play a part in Mary's impending kidnapping. I also apologize that Matthew wasn't in this chapter, but I really wanted to get Pamuk out of the way. Please favorite, follow, and review! It really encourages me!