Photo on the side is how I imagine Evangeline to look :)
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Chapter Nine
Kitty scoffed in disbelief. “Naïve?” she asked as her eyebrows rose. Had she not just informed him that she would be praying for him? How could that have been naïve?
Captain Aubrey sighed and shook his head. “Do not fret about it, Lady Kitty, just forget I said anything. I must take my leave now anyway. I’m due for a meeting with my men.” With that he departed the churchyard muttering something to himself.
Kitty was fuming. He hadn’t explained himself. How could he call her such things without explaining his meaning? Kitty was immediately intercepted by Evangeline who had been sitting in church with her family. Evangeline immediately wrapped her arms around Kitty tightly. “Oh, darling, I heard what happened to you. Mama was talking to Lady Henrietta whose housemaid is the sister of Lady Russel’s ladies maid.” Evangeline pulled away and cupped Kitty’s face.
Kitty knew it was only a matter of time before the rumours travelled around London. “What did you hear?” she asked Evangeline.
Her hazel eyes softened. “That Sir Walter ...” she looked both sides before whispering “Soiled you.”
Kitty’s eyes narrowed. “Lies,” she hissed to her friend in a hushed tone. “He tried but failed.”
Evangeline furrowed her brows. “You fought him? He is twice your width, Kitty!” she exclaimed.
Kitty subconsciously looked after Captain Aubrey but he had already disappeared down the street toward the harbour. “Captain Aubrey came to my rescue,” she informed her absently. As displeased as she was in him calling her naiver, she would not deny the fact that he had saved her.
“Your rescue!” Evangeline beamed. “Oh, how positively marvellous. Darling, you must tell me all about it. Do you expect a proposal?” she asked excitedly.
Kitty rolled her eyes. “Really, Eva, must we speak of men as if they are good for only one thing?” she asked, disgruntled.
Evangeline looked slightly hurt at her friend’s sudden outburst. “Forgive me, Kitty, I meant no offense. I just wanted to see if you were alright. I also wanted to inform you that the baronet, Charles Ford, who has been residing with us, at my father’s insistence, has just asked to court me.” Evangeline looked a little embarrassed at her announcement.
Kitty felt horrid. Evangeline had been her closest friend for years. She knew every thought that passed through her head and they trusted each other immensely. “No, you must forgive me, Eva. I’m sorry for my ugly behaviour. Now, about this baronet – is he handsome?” she asked, trying to change the subject.
Evangeline pointed over to where her family was standing, conversing with a handsome young man whom Kitty presumed to be the baronet. His hair was a light red colour and his clothes spoke of money. He appeared to be quite well mannered as his posture was perfect and he was impeccably groomed.
“He told me that I was a vision,” she whispered.
Kitty could agree that Evangeline certainly was very beautiful. “Then he is a wise man,” she smiled at her friend. “I congratulate you, Eva, and I look forward to attending your nuptials. I trust they will be before the season is up? There is nothing I love more than a summer wedding. You will be the envy of every young debutante.”
“I hope you are right,” Evangeline sighed.
Kitty noticed her family entering their carriages. “I must go, I will see you soon,” she told her friend.
“Will you be attending the naval ball on Thursday? My father tells me it is a ‘farewell’ of sorts,” Evangeline asked.
Kitty pursed her lips as she went to walk away. “I’m not sure, my father wants to restrict our time at the summer festivities. After last night he is quite reserved about me being out in society. I was only worried about the rumours ... it seems that several ladies are already speaking about me already.”
Evangeline shook her head. “You know me, darling, and therefore you know how fast I can spread word. I will have this righted in no time, I promise you.”
“Thank you, Eva,” Kitty said sincerely. She didn’t want incorrect whispers spreading around London that painted her as promiscuous. She then walked swiftly over to her family who were waiting for her beside their carriages.
“Where is the Captain?” her mother asked her, looking around.
Kitty shrugged her shoulders. “He’s gone to prepare for his voyage, it seems to be the only thing he cares about,” she mumbled under her breath. She climbed into the smaller carriage so that she was with her sister and Sabine and not her parents who would no doubt ask questions.
As the carriage took off, Sabine and Little J stared at her curiously. Kitty sighed and looked up at them. “What?” she snapped.
“We’re not going to ask you what you and Captain Aubrey were discussing. We don’t know that whatever it was has put you in a foul mood just as we don’t know what you’re completely besotted with him,” Little J said carefully.
Kitty rolled her eyes. “Really covert, Little J,” she scoffed.
“She’s just trying to help,” Sabine said sadly. “We both are. We know that you fancy the Captain and he too fancies you. But he’s travelling on Friday ... do you really think that it is wise to promise yourself to him when he will be gone for so long?”
“There has been no promise of anything,” Kitty clarified. “Nor has there been any talk of affections. He called me ... naïve.”
“Of the three of us, you are the least naïve,” Little J assured her. “In what context was it said?”
Kitty sighed. “He said ‘have I not proven myself?’ to me. What does that even mean?”
Sabine smiled slightly. “Perhaps you are naïve,” she said comically. “He’s trying to impress you. I suppose you are used to fancy balls and formal courtships.”
“Impress me?” Kitty repeated, taken aback. “He saved me from Sir Walter, which was being gentlemanly and kind.”
“Kitty, here’s where being cleverer than everyone else comes in handy,” Little J said leaning forward. “Captain Aubrey adores you. You reciprocate those feelings, my dear, and you both need to stop being foolish. I want you to be happy, but you can’t know whether this connection will be smart as he is going away for so long.”
Were they right? Was everything he’d done all to impress her? Did he really have such affection for her? She knew how she felt about him; he was the only man that she had ever felt had not seen her as one who they could conquer.
“I think I’m falling in love with him,” Kitty whispered. No matter what he did or said, he would always be that man who made her feel like she was more than a pretty face.
She saw both Sabine and Little J’s jaws drop in shock. The identical expressions on each of their faces were quite amusing to Kitty considering she’d just revealed something intensely personal.
“Love?” they both exclaimed.
Kitty nodded helplessly. “I don’t know how to describe it. He makes me feel safe and secure and that if I strive to be more than a silly flirt than I can be great. At the same time he frustrates me and he makes no sense when he talks to me. He uses Greek mythology analogies to make sense of regular situations and he looks and the stars and makes them seem magical and his mother was like me and ...” she ranted before her sister cut her off.
“Kitty,” Little J said quickly to get her to quieten down.
Kitty gasped slightly as she regained her breath.
“Kitty, you don’t need to prove anything to us. If you think that a courtship could start and remain strong though his voyage then who are we to stop you?” Sabine said sincerely. “We’re supporting you no matter what.”
Kitty’s stomach felt heavy as the realisation filled her. She felt incredibly vulnerable. Vulnerability was not something that she was familiar with nor was the comfortable with feeling it.
It was foreign to her as she had never had genuine romantic feelings for a man. Or rather she’d never allowed herself to have genuine romantic feelings for a man. She’d always been too preoccupied with having fun with Evangeline to actually think about marriage.
“Lord, marriage,” she gasped, without realising she’d said it out loud.
“What?” Little J furrowed her eyebrows.
“Did you say ‘marriage’?” Sabine added.
Kitty’s eyes widened. “No,” she said quickly. She silently thanked God when she felt the carriage come to a halt outside Ethridge Manor. “Oh, look,” she chirped. “We’re home!”
“This conversation isn’t over, Catherine!” Little J called after Kitty as she quickly scampered from the carriage.
She quickly made her way up the stairs and shut herself in her room, locking the door behind her. She had two things to do that day. The first was to change out of her Sunday clothes and into a nice gown that made her look conservative yet lovely ... and go down to the Royal Rose and visit Captain Aubrey. She needed to apologise for doubting him, but she also needed to ask him a very important question.
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I apologise for the length of this one, I know it's not as long as I usually do, but it's because the next chapter is going ot be quite a cruicial one -- it will also be the first chapter where I write it from Captain Aubrey's point of view :) I'm excited to write his perspective :)
Vote and comment if you like it!