Heywood Manor
Shrewsbury, England
Willoughby's Drawing Room
The next day after the conversation Georgia had with her precious Lady Aunt about possible prospects of marriage the previous afternoon was still fresh on her mind as if she had never even been to sleep at all. Anyhow, how can one sleep after finding out after four years of being married to a man who was an absolute monstrous brute, to whom was also in love with another woman, and now she must go and easily marry another? Would it really be that easy? Georgia had thought to herself.
Georgia knew she had to shake how ridiculously opposed she had felt about taking another husband, but a husband and a father for her child was ultimately what she and Luella had needed. Maybe her next husband might be a true husband. One that would love and adore her and her child unconditionally so.
She didn't feel like that idea was silly. She had hope that someday a man out there would love her so, make love to her, and kiss and yearn for her touch like she had read in her vast collection of romance novels which were intriguingly her favorite genre. She had loved the idea of love, even if it did not love the idea of her.
So, when she had awoken the next morning even though she was seemingly already awake she couldn't help but to feel a new air about her step. Soon, very soon, she and Lue's life would be changing in more ways than just making it to the altar. All she wanted was for her daughter to grow up surrounded by a mother and father that loves her so. Was that so silly? Would there ever be any man able and willing to fill those shoes?
After Georgia began her usual morning routine, she for some reason felt the urge to take extra time, care, and consideration to how she bathed herself and washed her hair, then her lady's maid, Susan helped her dress into a creme colored day dress with a lovely floral pattern sewn throughout the cotton material with severed sleeves and small pleated ruffles at the elbows. Susan braided Georgia's hair and pinned it neatly into a severe bun at the nap of her neck. Susan even insisted some rouge for Georgia's complexion, especially after nearly spending half the summer scorched by the sun with Luella in the gardens, and usually Georgia would protest by all means, but today she felt most amenable.
She stepped inside the nursery to retrieve Luella for breakfast to find her daughter already dressed in a beautiful white tulle gown with bright pink flowers and ribbon fastened at the bodice and hem with a white lace trimmed bonnet placed neatly on top of her golden-brown streaked curls. Luella was on her knees praying silently to herself with her little eyes closed. Georgia crept in the room quietly and kneeled beside her daughter.
"Mama!" Luella beamed opening her bright innocent blue eyes.
"What were you praying for my sweet girl?" Luella gave her mother a very clouded look. Georgia cupped Luella's cheek with her hand. Georgia gave her daughter a worrisome expression. "What is it, Lue?"
"Well, Mrs. St. Glain always tells me to never forget to say my prayers every morning." Luella admitted shyly.
"As she should." Georgia told her knowingly. "But, tell me this then you weren't sad, were you?"
"No mama. I was just asking God to bring us back Papa, so...so you won't have to get married..." Luella's lip trembled as she bit back small little tears.
"Oh, my sweet Lue." Georgia said wrapping her daughter tightly in her arms while kissing her golden-brown curls several times. She too, was biting back her own tears. "It is alright to feel this way. Your-"
Georgia stammered. She knew the truth. She knew Luella's father had never loved her. She had saw the look on his face when he found out she was a girl not a son, an heir. He never held, rocked or sung to her. He never even bothered with their daughter. The truth was so painful it could only be covered and patched with lies and comforting words. "Your father loved you very deeply, and I love you oh so much more than any man or person in the world. Did you know that?"
Luella paused and said "Yes."
"You deserve the world and so much more and I intend to give that you my darling girl. Do not fear."
Georgia words seemingly calmed the riled spirits of her uneasy child. They then went to have a small breakfast in the morning room, then she took Luella into the drawing room for a while, and they sat on the pianoforte practicing a few beginner pieces. Luella was a natural and played very gracefully even at the small age of five.
Georgia was seemingly pleased with her daughter. She knew she'd be very accomplished at a very young age with the instrument and that would make her daughter a more prosperous match for any marriage entails. Luella didn't know or understand it yet, but she would soon in time.
She, herself would be married off as well, but Georgia refused to let it be at the small young age of sixteen like she had been herself. She felt that, that was way too young an age for marriage. Girls at that age were way too bailable and succumbed easily to naivety. Thoughts of how Luella's father had treated her over those four years tormented her still and she'd be damned if she'd left her daughter in the hands of a man like that.
Harold stepped in the drawing room unanticipatedly. "My Lady, there is an unexpected visit today from Lady Quillon."
"Wherever are my aunt and Uncle, Harold?" Georgia asked him while seemingly busy. She regarded greeting callers. Most townspeople had already known of her scorned reputation and tainted marriage.
"My Lord and Lady are precisely not to be disturbed at the moment." Harold said embarrassingly. He looked almost flustered as if he had known way too much. Georgia blushed before changing the subject, she as well seemed well aware of her elderly Aunt and Uncle's daytime 'activities'.
"Quillon?" Georgia narrowed her eyes at the rumpled head butler. Then she thought for a moment before remembering something important. "You mean Lady Willoughby's daughter, Katherine? Oh, surely that's no coincidence, come Lue let us go greet her then?"
"Yes, mama." Luella said removing herself from the bench and taking her mother's hand. They downed the stairs and rounded a corner to the small parlor in the Heywood manor. Katherine was already settled down on the settee with both her hands on her lap clasped tightly together in anticipation. She appeared to be wearing some of the latest fashions with a Robe a la Anglaise which was a light pink fabric and very exquisitely made.
She usually visited her mother and father, Lord and Lady Willoughby every summer undoubtedly always without her husband, Lord Quillon, something about needing time to miss each other after only three and a half years of marriage Katherine admitted to Georgia a few summers ago. Although Katherine assured her that the state of her marriage was most agreeable at that time and she was lucky to have found her husband, Lord Quillon.
"Georgia, my how good it is to see you!" Lady Willoughby's daughter, Katherine beamed. She and Luella somewhat favored each other with the similar color hair and eyes, but mostly beauty. Lady Quillon was exceptionally beautiful and well married off, and it showed. She beamed happily a Luella, "And my, my look at you, my darling. How you've grown within the year. Georgia she's truly exceptional."
"What do you say Lue?" Georgia looked down to her daughter.
"Thank you, Cousin Kathy. You look very pretty." Luella told Lady Quillon.
"And smart too." Katherine gleamed she was always the type to talk way more than others. She loved going on and on until her subtle politeness turned into a mere spectacle to some degree of meddlesome infringement. She couldn't help it, of course and Georgia always knew Katherine had meant well.
"Thank you, Katherine you look well." Georgia stated proudly with a smile.
"Come dear cousin, you must tell me what you've been up to. I know..." Katherine said with a newfound brightness. "We shall all take a walk in the gardens, yes?" She blinked a few times before a clever smile stole her thin line of perfectly pink lips.
"Mama almost always takes me to the gardens at this time. Right mama?" Luella said looking up to her mother with the look of an innocent. Georgia found herself never ever saying no to those beloved beady blue eyes.
"Of course. Shall we call for Mrs. St. Glain?" Georgia smiled.
Ten minutes later Mrs. St. Glain, Luella's nursemaid joined them, and they all took an ominous stroll in the gardens of Heywood manor. They gardens were quite lovely and happened to be the one of the most exquisite features the entire property had to offer, perhaps that's why Georgia and her daughter loved them so very much and nearly spent hours upon hours in them every day. Mrs. St. Glain ran after Luella as the vibrant young girl spotted a patch of violets from afar and began picking them.
"So, I've been told a certain someone is in need a husband." Lady Quillon announced suspiciously amused. Georgia had already known it was coming.
"Your mother told you I assume." Georgia said with quickness holding her chin up.
"Oh, she just wants you to be happy Georgia." Katherine said in good faith.
"And you? What do you want Katherine? It is always almost something." Georgia rolled her eyes without meaning to.
"I want to help you." Katherine told her. Georgia stopped walking and then turned to her abruptly.
"Help me? How?" Georgia raised a perfectly arched brow. "Katherine I am perfectly capable of finding a husband without your help."
"Ugh, Georgia you weren't always this stubborn." Katherine said before thinking a moment. "Matter of fact you absolutely were! Remember last summer when it hadn't rained nearly the entire summer and we were invited to Mrs. Cashwell's tea party? Oh, you do remember, don't you? I insisted you bring your parasol, and you swore to me that it would not rain that day. You were so adamant until after we left, and you were cursing your entire way to the carriage when the weather had apparently become flenched." Katherine grinned.
"Of course, however can one forget if you won't ever cease to remind them." Georgia said bitingly. "What does that have to do with anything?"
"I'm afraid if you do not accept my help this time it could be more fatal than a mere sun shower, don't you see? I'd never forgive myself if..."
"If what Katherine?" Georgia laughed shaking her head at the ridiculousness of it all.
"If no man wants to marry you because you're..." Katherine said all too quickly.
"Because I am what Katherine?" Georgia snapped hastily.
"Damaged goods." Katherine said immediately placing a hand to cover her small mouth as if to possibly stop any further verbal slander from spewing out.
Everything around Georgia felt almost cold, crushed, and damned ruined. After three years of living peaceably on the countryside she had knew people still whispered about what had happened to her and how her husband had tragically scorned their family name leaving a dark trail of disdain in his demise. Most people whom Georgia had met always gave her pitiful charitable looks of repulsion. It was a painful reminder of everything she had already been through.
"I know what you all think of me Katherine, I'm no fool. Why must you come here? To rub it in? Really, please spare me if you will." Georgia sighed in frustration after she spotted Luella rolling around in the grass with her skirts while Mrs. St. Glain was seem ably scolding her.
"Georgia I will not. My sources also tell me the Duke of Richmond has finally taken up residence next door in Granville."
"Well, yes, but what about him?" Georgia said eyeing her curiously. The man really hadn't crossed her mind, but she was indeed curious for some unexplainable reason.
"Well, he is very rich, I suppose." Katherine quipped back at her. That made Georgia frown. She didn't know why she had thought Katherine would have revealed something more sinister. Katherine observed her for a moments before Georgia straightened her face to a tight closed mouth smile then shrugged.
"Your mother has asked His Grace to dinner this evening. Although he has yet to answer the request so to speak."
"Wonderful then! I guess you'll be needing my help after all." Katherine gleamed before Georgia could protest Katherine already had her arm wrapped around Georgia's. "Come along now, we shall have lunch yes, then perhaps afterwards we'll start with that hair of yours, and oh! I know! I'm sure you have something in your wardrobe far more fashionable than what you're wearing now."
"This?" Georgia looked down at the creme colored summer dress. "I love this dress whatever is the matter with it?" She asked knitting her perfectly arched brows.
"It is high fashion, but totally inappropriate for a dinner party. A robe a la Anglaise will undoubtedly impress a handsome duke, dear cousin."
"Katherine, he hasn't even answered to the invite, for all I know I'd just be wasting all my time readying for mere hours." Georgia hated the idea of ladies getting dressed for more than an hour just to have a seat at the dinner table and she had multiple fashions of the Robe a la Anglaise, but she hardly wanted to admit that to Katherine.
"I know His Grace will come, men are curious creatures Georgia, and if he doesn't, I promise we'll make him sorry for it." Katherine chirped undoubtedly.
Georgia almost started to say something, but she knew the fight she was putting up with her cousin was already a lost battle. Katherine would have her way or practically no way at all. Georgia wondered what had happened to the amenable spirit she had earlier as Katherine promenaded her away diligently.