A/N: thanks again for your support! It's interesting to see that some of you find Lavinia really irritating, whilst others feel sorry for her. Let's see what you think of her after this chapter!
…
"Argh!" Matthew cried with pain as his foot got shut in Lavinia's doorway. He'd had to practically chase her home from the restaurant- she was quite a power-walker, it transpired.
"I told you, I don't want to speak to you!" Lavinia shouted through her tears as she tried to kick Matthew's foot away and force her door shut.
"You haven't heard me out yet, please just listen to me. I promise you, that wasn't what you think it was." Matthew pleaded, still struggling to push against the door. After a moment, he felt less resistance from the other side. Cautiously peeking through the crack, he saw that Lavinia had stepped away to let him in.
"You can explain yourself, but you're not allowed to touch me." She was still quietly sobbing.
"Thank you." Matthew said gently as he closed the door behind him. He flexed his right foot, making sure nothing was broken. "While I was outside speaking to Tom, Mary called me, asking where I was. She hung up before I could explain that I was at dinner with you, or anything, so I presumed it was something important. It turns out she wanted to let me know that she'd gotten the job, with that client who called me a couple of days ago!" Matthew said in a 'isn't that good news' tone, hoping Lavinia would agree with him.
"Why did she go straight to you?" Lavinia clearly didn't agree with him.
"Because she wanted to thank me for my help in getting her the job."
"So you told her? I thought you didn't want her to think she was getting jobs because of her contacts."
Matthew sighed. What happened to the old Lavinia who accepted things unquestioningly? "She got a call this morning saying that she had a phone interview with Mr Cole, my client. When she spoke to him, he explained that the interview was a mere formality because she'd gotten the job anyway, and he told her about his conversation with me. I forgot to tell him to keep it confidential." Lavinia remained quiet. "She was so happy that she wanted to thank me in person. There's nothing wrong with that, is there?" He reasoned.
Lavinia was still unconvinced. "Couldn't she have thanked you during one of your sleepovers?" She asked, looking closely at Matthew to read his face.
"W-What?" Matthew was bemused. "What are you talking about?"
"Sybil told me you agreed to stay with Mary overnight at the Crawleys' house. She presumed I'd have known about it. Why didn't I know about it, Matthew?" Sweet Lavinia Swire sounded almost menacing.
Matthew gulped. Shit, he thought. He couldn't tell Lavinia about what happened that night. He'd lose her forever. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you." He began, before stopping to count how many apologies he'd been involved in recently.
Lavinia interrupted him. "Did Mary tell you not to tell me?"
"What? No! Basically, Robert and Cora wanted a chaperone for her because they didn't want to leave her alone- there'd been some burglaries in the neighbourhood and they were worried. I didn't really know how to refuse Robert when he'd been so kind to me, so I agreed to stay in one of the guest rooms, I took some work with me and worked on their sofa." And then I held her hands to show her how to grate cheese and chop onions, asked her to dance with me, tasted her mouth with my tongue and tried to grope her, his mind irritatingly finished the story for him. "I knew you'd think it was strange, and I didn't want to concern you unnecessarily. I can see why you would take these little incidents as bad signs, but please don't make them into an issue. I want to be with you." He told her firmly, staring into her eyes to make her believe him. He had chosen to be with her. They made sense together. Everybody thought so.
Lavinia had stopped crying. She was in deep thought for a few minutes. Eventually she looked up into Matthew's eyes searchingly, as if trying to find something that told her she could trust him. "OK" she said.
…
Mary fought her way through the doors of Selfridges, out into the bustling, humid street. Why did you think Oxford Street on a Saturday afternoon was a good idea? She scolded herself. You should have bought Mum and Dad's present weeks ago! Her parents were celebrating their thirtieth wedding anniversary in two weeks with a lavish party. Having had nothing to do with her time, Mary had agreed to help organise it. But since then she'd been offered employment - her job properly started in a fortnight, but first she had two weeks of training in Liverpool, so she needed to get as much of the preparations done this weekend as she possibly could. She found a spot on the pavement to stop and scroll through the shopping list on her phone. Vases. John Lewis would do for that, she decided, putting her sunglasses on.
It wasn't long before she took her sunglasses off again, as she spotted Matthew and Lavinia, with a child, walking in the opposite direction. She straightened her white summer dress and stepped out in front of them, smiling.
"Mary!" Matthew's eyes lit up upon seeing her, making Mary feel even warmer than she had been in the 28 degree heat. "What are you doing here?"
"Doing some research on microfinance in third world countries. Have I come to the wrong place?" Mary replied drily.
Matthew rolled his eyes. "Of course, you're forever shopping, aren't you?"
"I am, but this time it's not for me. I have a shopping list of epic proportions for my parents' anniversary."
Recognition passed over Matthew's face. "Gosh, that's in a couple of weeks, isn't it?"
Mary nodded. "You're still able to come, right?" She asked, trying to keep her hopefulness concealed.
"Yes, definitely. It should be fun!" He looked to Lavinia to confirm her attendance. She was glaring at Mary. He looked back to Mary, hoping she hadn't noticed.
Mary had noticed. She'd noticed it from the second Matthew called Mary's name. Lavinia hadn't stopped looking sour since that moment. She'd known something was wrong a few days ago; her and Matthew were hugging after she told him about her job, when they heard Lavinia sob and rush past them, down the street. Matthew had immediately sprinted after her. Mary had obviously realised that Lavinia was upset, but had no real reason to think that she was a cause of it. Until now, that is.
"We'll both be there." Matthew smiled, desperately hoping to ease the tension. "Oh, goodness, sorry- I forgot to introduce you. This is Lavinia's youngest sister, Emily. She's staying with Lavinia for the weekend so we thought we'd take her sight-seeing." Matthew gestured to the cute nine-year-old girl standing next to Lavinia.
"Hello Emily, are you having a nice time in London?" Mary asked kindly, bending down slightly so she could speak to the girl properly. Most people presumed she was the sort of person who hated children and wouldn't know what to do with them, but she'd played a large role in raising Sybil, so she was actually quite fond of children. As long as she didn't have to deal with more than one at a time. And they were well-behaved.
The girl, who had been admiring Mary's pretty dress and colourful sandals, nodded shyly. Mary smiled at her. "What have you done so far?"
"Mary." Lavinia's sharp voice interrupted the exchange. Mary quickly looked up at her. "I'd prefer it if you didn't speak to my family." Lavinia said curtly.
Emily looked up at her big sister, curious as to why she was being mean to the beautiful lady. Mary felt herself freeze in shock. She was somewhat used to girls not liking her, given that most females she met were unbelievably envious of her beauty and social status, but no girl had spoken to her like this before. Had Matthew told her about their kiss? He couldn't have- Lavinia wouldn't still be with him, surely? Whatever it was, Lavinia plainly didn't want Mary anywhere near her or her loved ones. She was beginning to feel a bit like a toxin again.
"Lavinia!" Matthew admonished, aghast at what she'd just said. He knew Lavinia had been jealous of his relationship with Mary recently, and had doubted Mary's trustworthiness, but he thought she'd overcome these issues.
"It's fine, Matthew." Mary said softly. She'd obviously done something to upset Lavinia, and didn't want to cause any more trouble between them. She pulled her sunglasses back over her eyes and walked away.
…
Mary knocked twice on the door to her father's study before entering. Robert was on the phone, probably discussing investments with someone, as always. She began rifling through a drawer; she needed to find some card to send out last-minute invitations. There was still a lot to do - she and her sisters and agreed to each do a performance of some kind at the party, at their mother's request. Mary desperately needed to practice hers! She was beginning to worry she wouldn't have time to prepare for her first day of training tomorrow.
Sighing in frustration, she knelt down on the floor and started searching the lower drawers.
"I'm not sure I still have that file. Let me put you on speaker-phone while I find it." She heard her father say as he sat down at his laptop at the other end of the room. Great, she thought. Not only do I get to continue my quest for card, but I also get to be privy to a conversation about loan facilities!
Her fumbling hands stilled, though, as she heard the voice on the other end of the line. It was Matthew.
"Ah, yes. Here it is. I'd saved it in the wrong folder. Jolly good, well I'll give that a read-through tonight, then." Robert said.
"That sounds fine." Mary quivered slightly at the sound of Matthew's voice. Hearing it now in the quiet of the study, she had the opportunity to focus on how sumptuous it was. She felt like she wanted to wrap herself up in it. "Give me a ring if there's anything you don't understand."
"Thanks, Matthew. Before I forget, are you coming to the anniversary party? Cora's invited so many people, I can't keep track!"
Matthew laughed, and Mary felt her insides melt. "I am coming. I'm very much looking forward to it." Mary had stopped rummaging, but remained kneeling, her head slightly tilted towards her father's phone.
"Brilliant. And we're looking forward to meeting Lavinia again. I'm afraid I didn't get a chance to speak to her properly at Mary's birthday." Mary's heart sank at the mention of Lavinia. Matthew had sent her a text yesterday afternoon, shortly after she'd bumped into them on Oxford Street, saying 'So sorry, I don't know what the matter is with her. Please don't take it personally. I'll speak to you soon'. It was sweet of him to apologise on Lavinia's behalf, but Mary suspected Lavinia would have ordered him to see less of her from now on. Mary was in no doubt that Lavinia thought she was trying to entice Matthew away from her; it was the only explanation for her uncharacteristic behaviour.
"Er…" Matthew's voice faltered. Mary turned her head more fully in the direction of the phone to hear better. "Actually…it'll just be me." Of course, Mary thought. Lavinia would have refused to attend a party at her house, knowing she'd be there.
"Oh? That's a shame. You must bring her over here one day for dinner. How about some time this week? Mary won't be here to regale you with tales of her new job, but I'm sure we'll find something to talk about." Robert chuckled, leaning in his chair to wink at his daughter. Mary had to stop herself from scowling back at him. Her father was unknowingly putting Matthew in a very awkward position.
Matthew cleared his throat uncomfortably. "I don't think that will be possible. We're…we're not exactly together at the moment."
Many a time had Matthew's words made Mary's insides do a little somersault. But this was something else entirely- this was a giant tidal wave. A tsunami, and his words were the earthquake that triggered it.
"Oh Matthew, I'm so sorry to hear that. You'd been together for a while, hadn't you?" Robert said sensitively.
"Yes, a little while. I don't know if it's over for good, or not," the tsunami in Mary's stomach subsided with disappointment. "We haven't said 'never again' as such, but…it's unlikely, I suppose, given the…er, given the circumstances." Matthew explained, without wishing to divulge too much information.
"I see. Well, it's always best to take your time and consider these things, rather than make rash decisions. And I'm sure that's what you did." Robert said kindly. He'd always treated Matthew as a part of the family, which was something Matthew truly appreciated.
"Thanks, Robert." Matthew said sincerely.
"Well, I'll let you get back to the rest of your weekend. See you at the party."
"See you then. Good luck with all the preparations." Matthew joked, knowing how tiresome Robert found flower arrangements and table-laying.
Robert chuckled lightly as he ended the call. He turned to his daughter, who was sitting very still on the rug.
"That's rather sad news, isn't it? Did you know that they were having problems?"
"No." Mary breathed. For obvious reasons, she couldn't tell her father that she did in fact have a very good idea of what had happened in Matthew and Lavinia's relationship. Wanting to avoid further questions, she turned back to the drawers.
Was it because of Lavinia's jealousy? Was it because Lavinia knew about the kiss? Was it because Matthew realised he wanted to be with Mary?
Whatever the reason, the result is the same, Mary thought, chills running through her body. Matthew is single.
…
A/N: soooo. What was up with Lavinia's weird bout of malice? What exactly happened between Matthew and Lavinia after Mary left? Does this mean Matthew and Mary will finally be able to get it on? ALL WILL BE REVEALED.