Chapter Two
Jane woke the next morning with Little J lying on top of her, fast asleep. Jane gently shook Little J to wake her up. “Come on, time to wake up, breakfast time,” she smiled.
Little J yawned and nodded. She climbed off Jane and jumped off the bed. She straightened her white nightgown and smiled at Jane. “Thank you for making me feel better last night, Aunt Jane, you’re my favourite aunt,” she said sweetly.
Jane resisted reminding her that she was her only aunt. “Thank you, Little J, you’re one of my favourite nieces,” she said keeping Little J happy and not discriminating against her other two nieces who she loved equally.
“I’m hungry,” she mumbled as she rubbed her eyes free of sleep. “I’m going to dress so I can go down to breakfast. Mrs Norris likes to make scones for Kitty and me because they’re our favourites.” Little J skipped from Jane’s room happily and closed the door behind her.
Jane’s trunks had been brought up to her bedchamber and had been unpacked by maids. She searched through the closet and selected a plain, light blue gown that her mother had made her a few years prior for the summer. It was made of thin material that allowed the cool breeze to get through. Jane was an unorthodox female when it came to dressing. The only underclothes that she wore was a chemise. She hated corsets and completely refused to wear them, much to Catherine’s annoyance.
She hated the feeling of her stomach being completely flattened by the corset, as well as the fact that she did enjoy breathing once in awhile.
Once she was dressed she combed her hair out and wrapped her curls around her fingers to give them more shape. She looked at herself in the mirror and frowned. If she could handle wearing a corset then she would. She was a very small woman; she hadn’t grown very tall when the other girls in her town were growing. With the territory of being small it meant she had very narrow hips and virtually no bust. She had almond shaped blue eyes and a small nose. Her lips were quite pink and her cheeks were naturally rosy.
She wished she was as pretty as Emilia but how she looked was how she was always going to be. When she was satisfied with her appearance she decided it was time to go down to breakfast.
When she arrived downstairs the whole family was sitting at the table casually conversing. She remembered Emilia telling her before she and Sebastian got married that married women ate breakfast in bed but she was sure, by the look on her face, that Emilia enjoyed eating with her family.
The footman pulled her chair out for her next to Sebastian at the head of the table. Emilia sat opposite her and Kitty sat beside her. The footman poured her tea and Emilia pulled a fresh scone off the plate in the centre of the table.
“I hear you had a visitor last night,” Emilia winked as she spread jam on her scone.
“What?” Sebastian snapped angrily.
“Not that kind of visitor,” Emilia groaned her eyes. “Little J.”
Sebastian frowned at his daughter who was sitting next to Kitty. “Little J, why were you bothering Aunt Jane when you were meant to be sleeping?”
Little J’s innocent hazel eyes watered.
“She wasn’t bothering me, Sebastian, she had a nightmare and she came and slept in with me,” Jane groaned at her brother’s insolence.
Emilia frowned, looking a little hurt. “Little J, why didn’t you come and wake me up?”
“Because I know you don’t want Henry to wake up at night so I didn’t want to go you,” Little J said quietly.
“I don’t have nightmares, I’m not afraid of anything,” James said proudly as he tucked into his scone.
Sebastian scoffed. “Tell me that next time you find a spider, will you?”
“Regardless, Little J, if you’re scared there’s no reason you can’t come and see me, I don’t mind what time it is or if Henry’s sleeping.” Emilia shot her daughter a reassuring smile and continued eating her breakfast.
“Alright, mama,” Little J smiled back at her mother.
Jane wanted to change the subject. “So what’s happening with the children when we go to Lord Latham’s soirée tonight?”
“They will be looked after by Miss Church and put to bed at the appropriate times. They will not misbehave and they will go to sleep when asked. They will not rise out of bed just to be naughty and they will not steal away to the kitchens to make a mess of Mrs Norris’ supplies or steal any of her treats.” To Jane it sounded like Sebastian had given the speech many times before.
James shot a mischievous at his twin. “He ruins all the fun,” he whispered.
“Yes, I am talking to you two,” Sebastian eyes James and Kitty warningly.
Jane giggled as she looked at the twins. They truly were naughty children.
The rest of the breakfast sitting went smoothly. Jane simply loved being around her family and hearing their comical bickering. She was completely wrong about Emilia and Sebastian being perfect. Their family took a lot of organisation, and they definitely didn’t agree on everything.
When it came time to leave for the ball at Lord Latham’s Jane felt thoroughly made up. Emilia had lent her one of her lovely white ball gowns and had had her new ladies maid Genevieve fix her hair into a fancy up – do. Jane didn’t like Genevieve as much as she liked Kassandra but she couldn’t do anything about that. Kassandra had started a life as a mother, wife and dressmaker.
As she descended the stairs where Emilia and Sebastian were waiting for her she stumbled but righted herself before any damage happened to her or the dress. She knew it was a bad idea to have a season, she wasn’t a lady.
When she reached the bottom of the stairs her whole family gasped.
“You look like a princess,” Annie gasped. Jane smiled slightly, hearing Annie speak was a privilege. But she didn’t feel like a princess, far from it.
“I look ridiculous,” Jane said to Emilia and Sebastian.
“Nonsense, everyone will love you, and I’m sure they’ve all forgotten about your little wardrobe mishap,” Sebastian winked, teasing her. “Alright, you four, behave for Miss Church, if you don’t there will be punishments – upstairs,” he clapped his hands and the four little Alcott children scampered up the stairs. “Now come along, mama has tasked us with finding you a husband, and far be it from us to disobey her.” Sebastian offered his arm to both Emilia and Jane as he led them to the awaiting carriage.
“Sebastian Alcott, Earl of Ethridge, and Lady Emilia Alcott, Countess of Ethridge,” the announcer declared to the ballroom as Sebastian and Emilia descended the stairs into the ballroom. The announced then looked to Jane expectantly. “Your name, ma’am?” he asked.
“Miss Jane Alcott,” she whispered to him.
“Miss Jane Alcott,” the announcer called out.
Jane walked down the stairs carefully, surveying the room as she went. Several faces turned to see the girl sharing the Earl’s name. Jane tried not to make eye contact with any of them. The more indifferent she acted the more she would seem unattractive to any potential suitors.
She met with Sebastian and Emilia at the bottom of the stairs. They were talking with an older, regal looking couple who didn’t acknowledge Jane joining the party.
“How is Charlotte this evening?” Emilia asked kindly. “Is she nervous?”
Jane figured that they must be Lord and Lady Latham.
“Charlotte is perfectly fine. She is an amiable young lady with a very agreeable dowry, why should she be nervous?” Lady Latham replied pompously. Jane thought that Lady Latham reminded her a lot of Bessie, the sow, back at the farm. Her nose was quite upturned and her eyes were quite circular.
“All I know is that my first season was very frightening for me,” Emilia said quietly, clearly hurt by Lady Latham’s sharp comment.
“How could it have been frightening for you, Lady Ethridge, did you not marry?” Lord Latham said casually.
Anger sparked inside Jane, but Sebastian beat her to a retort. “We thank you for the invitation, Lord and Lady Latham.” He nodded his head and pulled Emilia away from them, beckoning Jane to follow.
“Emilia, are you alright?” Jane asked her. She could tell that Emilia was holding her breath and fighting tears that were threatening her eyes.
Emilia pursed her lips and nodded. She fanned her face as Sebastian protected her from view. “Lord and Lady Latham had planned for their elder daughter Frances to make an intimate acquaintance with me. But then I married Emilia and they’ve had a bee in their bonnet ever since. But you did not deserve that jab, darling, are you alright?” he put a finger up Emilia’s chin to lift it up.
She managed a small smile. “Yes, it’s just a sensitive subject for me.”
Jane could not imagine what Emilia went through. She put on such a brave face and hid it well. But underneath her beautiful gowns were scars from years of abuse in her first marriage. She was happy with Sebastian though, Jane could tell, and their five children could not have better parents.
Emilia took a deep breath and plastered a big smile on her face. “Alright Janey, let us introduce you to some eligible young men.”
Emilia took Jane’s arm and led her around the room, surveying all the men. Sebastian disappeared into the crowd, no doubt to converse with the other married men who were looking forward to the end of the night.
“Oh, lord,” Emilia hissed under her breath.
“What?” Jane asked.
“He’s here,” she whispered and subtly gestured to the man she was talking about. Jane looked over to a man who was standing on the edge of the room, watching the dancing couples. He was quite handsome, that was obvious, but what made him unappealing was his scowl on his face. From what she could see the man was in his thirties. He was quite tall and lean and had a very strong jaw. His hair was lovely and thick with dark brown hair. From a distance she thought he had brown eyes but she couldn’t be sure.
“Who is he?” Jane whispered to Emilia.
“Daniel Winchester,” she replied. “He frequents London parties in the summer and preys on young debutantes. He’s very much a rake. He draws them in with his brooding handsomeness and the disregards them. He’s the Earl of Southerby, it’s this lavish estate in Nottingham I’m told but he never goes there. He just travels all year without settling. I think he’s only invited to these events because of his wealth. He’s richer than all of us put together.” Emilia turned to Jane and looked at her with her sharp brown eyes. “Don’t you go anywhere near him. He will ruin you. Trust me; he tried to bed me when I was still married to Vincent.”
“A true rake,” Jane gasped. “But why does he have that scowl on his face, he does appear rather melancholy.”
At that exact moment Daniel’s dark eyes flashed to Jane. His frown deepened and his scowl worsened as he looked at her. He looked angry.
“I don’t know, he always looks like that. I think he was married once,” she commented as she pulled Jane away. “Nobody really knows much about him other than the fact that if he disappears from a room he is no doubt ruining a debutante.”
Jane stole one last look at Daniel over her shoulder. He was subtly talking to a young blonde girl. Jane hoped her mother grabbed her before she was ruined for life.
“Come along, let’s stand near the dancers so we may be asked for the next one,” she encouraged and dragged her to the outer circle. Jane watched as the fine ladies twirled in the quadrille.
“Why doesn’t Sebastian ask you to dance?” Jane wondered aloud.
“He will. I just like seeing the jealous side of him, it makes me feel loved, and exceptionally desired,” she whispered the last part in Jane’s ear.
“You’re a tease,” Jane scolded.
Right on cue Sebastian appeared and asked his wife to dance. They joined the quadrille animatedly and Jane stood outside the circle watching them. She was so glad they were happy. If anyone deserved it, it was them.
“I have not seen you in London before, Miss Alcott,” a deep voice sounded behind Jane which caused her to jump.
Jane turned to see Daniel Winchester standing behind her. He was a lot taller than she thought, he towered over her. But now that he was up close she could see that his eyes were a deep chocolate brown.
“How do you know my name?” she demanded, almost rudely.
“It may surprise you, but I learned your name through the power of listening,” he mocked her. Jane realised that he must’ve heard her name when she entered the room thanks to the announcer.
“Right,” Jane blushed. “If you’re going to ask me to dance then you’ve come to the wrong person, I don’t want to.”
Daniel raised his eyebrows, a little surprised. “I don’t dance, Miss Alcott. I merely came over to introduce myself – Lord Southerby, Miss Alcott.” He looked at Jane with his smouldering eyes, and she now knew how he’d ruined so many young women. He held out his hand for Jane’s. Jane placed her hand in his and he kissed it lightly. “Might you take a turn about the grounds with me, Miss Alcott?” he asked seductively. His scowl said differently but his eyes were speaking different words. Jane knew exactly what he wanted.
Jane snatched her hand back and glared at him. “I am not going to ruin myself by being in your presence, Lord Southerby. Good day ... evening,” she snapped and turned on her heel. She made her way quickly over to the refreshments table. “Blast,” she cursed herself. She believed she might’ve been the first woman ever to reject his advances but it didn’t mean that she hadn’t been made a fool of. “Lord Southerby,” Jane whispered under her breath. “You are too handsome for your own good.”
Jane took a chance at a quick look over her shoulder. Daniel had returned to his original position in the room, but instead of chatting up another unfortunate girl he looked rather bewildered.
She couldn’t help but wonder what was hiding behind those seductive eyes. Surely he couldn’t have always travelled without settling as Emilia had said. He had to have liked being home at one time. Maybe whatever happened to him that drove him out of his home was also the event that caused his scowl.
She shook off the thoughts; she should not be worrying about that rake. All she should be concentrating on was spending her summer with her family. She wouldn’t give that scandalous Lord Southerby another thought.
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I don't believe her, I reckon she'll give that Lord Southerby another thought ;) Who has any idea what his secret is? I doubt anyone will guess it :P
By the way, photo on the side is Daniel - Hugh Jackman, you are delicious my friend. One of the things I am very proud Australia has produced :)
Vote and comment if you like it!!
Next chapter will be up tomorrow most likely :)