"Kate!" Lady Mary Sharma gasped when she had entered Bridgerton House, finally saw her stepdaughter and embraced her tightly.
"Oh, mother..." Kate sighed and held her equally firmly. She had not seen either Mary or Edwina for over a year, since both of them had been residing in Prussia. Ever since Lady Danbury's passing Mary had spent more and more time abroad with Edwina. They had never spoken of it, but Kate suspected that something more than just friendship had grown between her stepmother and Lady Agatha Danbury, because Mary had been completely devastated after her passing, she had never found herself a new husband and had been staying at the Danbury House since their arrival in London in 1814.
"Didi!" Edwina exclaimed, wrapping her arms around Kate and the hug that had not yet completely ended between her and Lady Mary. "I have missed you so much..."
"And I have missed you, bon." Kate smiled back at her and tried to hold back the tears.
"Oh, and Anthony too...!" Lady Mary exhaled and rushed up to meet him, once she realised he was standing in the entry hall as well. He got an equally firm hug as Kate, who smirked at her husband because he looked exactly like Miles when he got a little bit too much affection.
"Lady Mary..." Anthony smiled somewhat strainedly, but hugged her back nevertheless and patted her on the back. Then he opened his other arm for Edwina as well, who gave out an excited little squeal and wanted to join in on the hug.
"Oh, Anthony! You have not changed at all...!" She shrieked. Anthony had been busy and had not been able to meet Edwina and Mary the last time they were in London, so it was almost three years since they had last seen each other.
"Surely he has got a few new wrinkles." Kate teased and caressed Anthony's cheek after her sister and stepmother had let go of him. He gave out an irritated 'humph' and whisked away her hand. "But, they are just a sign of a well lived life full of laughter." She added with a smile and gave him a soft kiss.
"Look at the two of you, still as much in love as five and twenty years ago!" Lady Mary sighed happily.
"Still, but not for long, if you keep joking about my wrinkles." Anthony huffed at Kate, but gave her a kiss on the forehead anyway. "I shall leave you ladies to it." He said with a polite bow and left towards the staircase, while Kate led her two honourable guests to the drawing room, where some tea and crumpets had been laid out.
"So... What brings you to London, on such a short notice?" Kate wondered once the three of them were sitting alone with their tea cups in front of the fireplace. Edwina immediately burst into tears and Kate reached for her hand. "Oh, do not cry, darling...! What is it...?"
"I... I finally left him... I have had enough, of all of it..." Edwina sobbed loudly.
"Left him...? But how...?" Kate asked, obviously realising who the 'he' was.
"Well, we are of course not legally divorced, we are royalty after all and have to keep up appearances, but... We have decided to lead our own lives, separately... He in Prussia and me in London..." She sniffed hopelessly.
"Alright, well... Maybe that is for the best...?" Kate suggested, trying to hide her cheer. She had been hoping for her sister to get rid of Prince Friedrich for over twenty years.
"It is. Him keeping his mistress openly at court was the last drop." Lady Mary chimed in sourly. "Or was there already two of them, I am not sure..."
"Narak..." Kate cursed. "What about the children?" She asked and Edwina began to cry so loudly that she was almost screaming. Kate held her hand even tighter in hers, thinking about the two boys she had met only a few times, even though they were already as old as her own sons.
"He insists on keeping Walter and Klaus in Prussia." Mary explained in a sad voice and Edwina's crying somehow managed to grow even louder. Kate could not help but wonder how Charlotte's and Lily's curiosity had not yet gotten the best of them and made them come down and look at what was going on. They had been eager to see their aunt and grandmother, but as their arrival grew later and later in the evening the girls had already withdrawn to their bedrooms for the night. Miles seemed to be still out with Geoffrey and from her oldest son Kate had not heard a word all day.
"Bloody hell..." Kate blurted out and quickly gave Edwina's hand a firm squeeze. "Do not worry, bon. We will come up with some plan to get your sons to London."
"There is nothing we can do, they are his sons and heirs...!" Edwina whimpered.
"There is nothing we can do." Lady Mary agreed in a serious tone.
"But there must be something...!" Kate exclaimed. "And where are you even going to stay?"
"The... The Queen, our gracious Victoria, has been kind enough to accommodate both me and mother at the palace..." Edwina sobbed and blew her nose on a pretty white lace handkerchief.
"Oh, well that is good...!" Kate replied with some hope in her voice. "Maybe she can help?"
"She cannot, unfortunately she has no leverage in Prussia..." Lady Mary muttered.
"She must have some leverage." Kate commented, looking doubtful. "She is the Queen of England after all...?"
"It does not matter, the boys do not even want to move to England...!" Edwina cried. "But Friedrich will not let them even visit me...!"
"They have grown up to be very German." Lady Mary explained, once again. "They do not know any Hindi like your children do, even their English is quite bad." She continued and had a sip of her tea. As on cue, the door slammed in the entry hall and soon Miles appeared in the doorway of the room.
"Susandhya!" He greeted his mother a bit half-heartedly, since she was the first one he saw through the door in the drawing room, but he quickly put on a courteous smile when he noticed his aunt and grandmother as well. "Oh, Mary and Edwina! How wonderful to see you after such a long time!" He smiled and walked up to meet them. They both immediately jolted up on their feet and closed poor Miles into a tight group hug, while Kate smirked when this time Miles looked exactly like Anthony when he got a bit too much affection.
"Did you have fun?" She smiled at Miles and stood up once the other women had let go of him, giving him a kiss on his cheek. "How was Geoffrey feeling?"
"He was alright, a bit blue though, so I took him to White's for a few pints." Miles replied, brushing some invisible dirt off his sleeve.
"How does he cope with his plastered leg?" Kate wondered. "Poor Mr Geoffrey Dorset broke his leg during a quite intense pall-mall game at Aubrey Hall, before the ball." She explained, turning towards Edwina and Mary.
"Good heavens...! That game is so dangerous, it is a small wonder no one has died during it yet...!" Edwina exclaimed, while both Kate and Miles rolled their eyes at her.
"The game is not that dangerous, Geoff is just not so used to the outdoors." Miles hurried to defend both the family's favourite game and his best friend. "And he is doing fine with the leg, he has his crutches and I helped him up the stairs." He added and cast a curious look at his aunt's swollen red eyes and smothered makeup, so she quickly dubbed her eyes with the same handkerchief she had used earlier. "Perhaps I should leave you ladies alone...?" Miles deduced and took a step towards the door.
"Yes, you will have plenty of time to talk with Edwina and Mary later, they are going to stay in London for a while now." Kate smiled and pinched his cheek. "Shubharathri, mera pyaar!"
"Shubharathri." Miles replied, wishing them all good night, made a little bow and left the room.
"So, let us come up with a plan on how to get your boys to London..." Kate began very determinedly, once she had sat down next to Lady Mary and Princess Edwina in the seating group again.
***
"So... This is it, then...?" Amelia more stated than asked sadly, standing all dressed up in her cloak in Eddie's hallway the next morning. After they had climbed down from the rooftop last night, and the seventh heaven they had visited up there, Eddie had surprised her by frying up some toasts for them all by himself down in the kitchen. According to him, his mother had not wanted her children to grow up into some idiots who could not even boil water on a stove – apparently she had been referring to her husband and sister-in-law – so, therefore Eddie seemed to know his way around in his own kitchen.
Amelia had sat there on a worktop, looking at him happily prattling on about something while working with his frying pan, thinking that he must be one of the best human beings in the entire world. No matter how short their time together was, she should be grateful that she had met him at all and cherish these two days in her memories for the rest of her life. He had even made some popped corn for them, a delicacy from the Americas that Amelia had not tried before but immediately loved, which they had snacked on once they were huddled up together in his bed again. Eddie had read aloud to her from their mutual favourite book, Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, while she had curled up underneath his arm with the bowl of corn. He had even made different voices for the different characters and Amelia could not help but think what a wonderful father he would be to his children one day, hoping that his wife would appreciate him as much as she did. Not because he was wealthy, but because he was the sweetest man in all of England.
"This is it, yes... This is goodbye." Eddie replied, sounding immensely sad as well, but tried to put on some sort of melancholy smile. Amelia rushed up to give him a tight, long hug. Eddie buried his face into her hair, like he always did when she hugged him, and held her equally tightly. "Take care of yourself, Amelia..." He spoke softly into her hazel curls.
"You too, Eddie..." She whispered back, ferociously fighting back the tears.
"Are you sure you want me to send you my thesis, once we get them from the printer?" He wondered as he let go of her and she took a step away from him.
"Yes, I absolutely want to read it. Just don't put any information about the sender on the package and it will be alright." She said in a voice that was meant to be cheery, but was not.
"Of course." Eddie agreed with a lopsided smirk and looked like he wanted to kiss her. She definitely wanted to kiss him too, but she knew it would be easier to leave if they did not.
"Bye, then..." Amelia wheezed out and walked towards the front door with legs made of lead.
"Amelia...!" Eddie yelped after her, but stood still in the middle of the hall even after she had turned around to look at him from the door. "Just... Just do not forget about me, alright?"
"How could I ever..." Amelia replied with trembling lips and allowed herself to look at him one more time before closing the door behind her. She pulled the hood tightly around her head and hurried down to the waiting carriage before anyone could see her. Once she was safely inside the carriage, she could finally allow herself to burst into hopeless tears that had been simmering inside of her all morning. As the carriage started rolling towards the other side of town her chest felt hollow and empty, like she had literally left her heart with him.
***
The first four days went relatively well. Amelia was able to think about her time with Eddie with some sort of bittersweet melancholy happiness, but for every day that passed, the bitterness, pain and longing grew stronger than the happy memories. Both her mother and Geoffrey had accepted the excuse that she had been with their cousins, so everything was well on that front, but Amelia could not find any joy in her successful lie either. She stayed carefully away from balls and other social gatherings, where she might run into Eddie and his sad brown eyes. Fortunately, her engagement to a man with a broken leg provided a good explanation as to why she was not seen at any dancefloor. On the fifth day she no longer wanted to leave her room and on the sixth the anxiety she felt was so overwhelming that she had to simply lay on her bed and concentrate on her breathing, otherwise she was afraid she would go insane.
"Amie, a package came for you!" Her mother suddenly yelled, knocking on the door and Amelia jolted up from her bed. "There is no sender written on it, but perhaps it's from –"
"It's from Geoffrey!" Amelia declared briskly, once she had opened the door and snatched the package away from her mother's hands. "I mentioned that I wanted to read a book that just came out, he must surely have bought it and sent it to me."
"Oh, how thoughtful of him!" Siena smiled. She had met both Geoffrey and his mother with Amelia a couple of days ago and they had seemed to get along surprisingly well. "Maybe that book will cheer you up, you have been so blue lately. Is it because of your father, or...?"
"Yes." Amelia replied bluntly and shut the door in front of her mother. She opened up the curtains and sat down on her bed, studying the package in her hand. It was definitely a book, although a rather thin one, neatly wrapped up in thick white paper with a single blooming lilac stuck underneath the ribbon that held the package together. She immediately knew what the package would contain, so she put the lilac on her nightstand before quickly ripping up the paper and revealing a black leather-covered book with golden letters on the front. "Beware; for I am fearless, and therefore powerful" – Societal critique in Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, by Lord Edmund Bridgerton the second. Amelia opened up the book to see if he had written any dedication to her in it – and of course he had. On the title page he had scribbled down in his beautiful handwriting another quote from the book his thesis concerned.
"If I see but one smile on your lips when we meet, occasioned by this or any other exertion of mine,
I shall need no other happiness."
Your friend, Edmund Bridgerton II
Amelia held the book pressed against her chest for a moment before she could start reading it, fighting back the tears that were once again forcing their way up into her eyes. She read the entire one hundred pages long thesis that afternoon, completely swept away by how well Eddie had structured his own opinions and compared them with others', while skillfully referring to both the novel itself, as well as to both Mary Shelley's and her mother Mary Woollstonecraft's life and statements to validate his own remarks. Amelia agreed completely with his every single word, claiming that Mary Shelley's work criticised modern society's judgemental attitude towards those who are different and pictured the devastating effects that loneliness and desolation from other human beings can result in. She had just finished the last page and was staring into the wall with a blank look on her face when there was a knock on the door again. Hastily, she hid the book underneath her mattress.
"Yes, what is it?" Amelia hooted towards the door.
"Come on, we have to get moving towards Gen's place. She'll probably be done with her customers by now, so we can start fitting your wedding dress!" Her mother replied through the door. Amelia took a deep sigh and stood up from the bed. The last thing she needed right now was to try out the dress she would get married to Geoffrey in, but there was no avoiding it either, so before she knew it they had walked through the streets in silence with her mother and arrived at Genevieve's modiste shop on the poshest shopping street of London. The doorbell chimed once they entered, but the modiste herself was nowhere to be seen.
"I'll be with you dans un moment, I am with a customer!" Her phoney French accent echoed from the fitting room in the back. Amelia brushed her fingers admiringly over the soft expensive silks rolled up in the shelves. She loved her godmother's little shop and the independent lifestyle it provided.
"No rush, it's just us!" Siena hooted back to her and leaned against the cash register.
"Oh, Si and Amie! Come on in here!" Genevieve yelled excitedly.
"But what about your cust–" Siena began and walked into the other room. " Oh, Kate...! I mean, Lady Bridgerton..."
"Siena!" Kate exclaimed and jolted up from the elegant sofa where she had been sitting. The two women did not seem to know whether to hug each other or not, while both of their daughters studied their mothers curiously. Amelia had entered the room soon after Siena and Charlotte was standing on a podium with her arms spread out while Genevieve worked on her dress. "It is so good to see you again, after all these years." Kate smiled and settled with picking up Siena's hands in hers instead of hugging her. "I am so sorry about your husband..." She continued in a hushed voice and squeezed Siena's hands slightly.
"Thank you, Viscountess Bridgerton." Siena replied with a sad smirk and gave her hands a squeeze back, before letting go of them. "It is good to see you too. But I'm so sorry, Amelia and I didn't mean to disturb you, we expected Genevieve to be free by now..." She said in an apologetic tone and the modiste cast her friend a quick suffering look clearly indicating that she too had expected to be done with her demanding customers by now.
"Oh no, it is no disturbance at all! Charlotte and I will be out of your hair shortly." Kate smiled. "Lady Siena Fife, this is my eldest daughter, Miss Charlotte Bridgerton."
"Pleasure to meet you, Miss Bridgerton." Siena curtsied politely.
"You too, Lady Fife." Charlotte replied with a smile and had to settle with a nod, because otherwise Genevieve would probably have pricked her with her needle. The girl looked at Siena with great interest in her big brown eyes. The papers had not been wrong, she was surely the most dashing debutante in London, even though Siena had not seen the others, but she did not need to. Charlotte Bridgerton was a vision, somehow managing to resemble both of her parents and judging by the intrigued way she studied Siena she must have been aware of her history with the viscount. "And how nice to see you again, Miss Amelia." Charlotte smirked at her new friend, who had been lurking behind her mother.
"Nice to see you too, Miss Charlotte. I hope you have enjoyed your season so far." She smiled back at her, a bit abashedly, suddenly fearful that both the viscountess and the eldest Bridgerton daughter would somehow be able to see from her face what she had been up to with Eddie.
"Ah, well, it is just one ball and dress-fitting after the other..." Charlotte grinned. "Are we done here, Madame Delacroix?" She enquired, tired from keeping her arms up for so long.
"Oui, Mademoiselle Bridgertón." Genevieve replied and Charlotte scurried away behind a golden floral screen to get changed into her own dress. This time Amelia did not have any trouble keeping a straight face while listening to her godmother's lousy French accent, because now it just painfully reminded her of Eddie and the rooftop in their very own Paris.
"We are looking forward to the wedding!" Kate told Amelia, who had to blink her eyes a few times to remember it was Geoffrey she was marrying and not the viscountess' son. "We got the invitation from the Dorsets today, apparently we are all invited. Even Anthony..."
"Oh, how wonderful." Amelia said with a weird attempt of a smile. She had wished that poor Eddie would not have to attend the wedding, but apparently he was now forced to.
"How can you possibly wait for three more weeks? It has to be so exciting!" Kate grinned.
"I don't know, but yes, it is very exciting indeed..." Amelia sighed, just as the doorbell chimed and determined footsteps drew closer to the room in the back.
"Could you please move along with your dress business...?! You told us to pick you up at seven and we have been waiting outside in the carriage for –" Amelia immediately spun around like a shocked whirlwind when she heard Eddie's voice. "Oh...! Miss Fife...!" He exclaimed with wide eyes – as if she suddenly was the only person in the room – and froze completely still in the doorway.
"We are just about done here." Kate said and gave her son a meaningful look that he did not catch, because his eyes were still fixed on Amelia. So, she had to verbally remind him instead that there were other people present as well. "Eddie. This is Miss Amelia's mother, Lady Siena Fife. Siena, this is my eldest son, Lord Edmund Bridgerton the second."
"Oh, yes! Lovely to meet you, Lady Fife." Eddie blurted out and made a deep bow towards her. Siena glared angrily at him, thinking that the situation was even worse and the damned boy was even more gorgeous than she had feared. It looked like some mischievous god had taken out the best parts of both Kate and Anthony and puzzled them back together into a perfect person. He had Anthony's thick dark chestnut hair and sturdy nose, Kate's huge brown eyes and a slightly lighter version of her stunning complexion. Also, Siena was quite sure that the boy could cast equally charming smirks as his father and innocent young girls would probably get instantly pregnant if they simply made the mistake of looking at him for too long, no other act needed.
"Lord Bridgerton." She replied a bit sourly, with a little curtsy.
"I believe we are ready to go then." Kate declared when Charlotte emerged from behind the screen. "It was delightful to meet you, Lady Siena and Miss Amelia. We shall see each other at the wedding again, if not sooner!" She smiled while herding her two children out of the room. Eddie cast one more longing look at Amelia over his shoulder and she stared back at him with equally heartbroken eyes, before turning back towards her mother with a deep sigh and tried to calm her heart that was racing from having so suddenly seen him again in reality.
"Well, let's get on with your dress then... For your wedding, with Geoffrey Dorset." Siena stated venomously, having clearly noticed the way her daughter had looked at the Bridgerton boy.
"Mrs Dorset wished that the dress would have a high neck and long sleeves." Genevieve said in her normal English with a slightly disapproving tone. Amelia knew that Geoffrey's mother would surely not want such a harlot's daughter as herself to show any cleavage at the wedding and she was probably ashamed of Amelia's freckled arms as well.
"Let's do whatever she wants..." Amelia muttered, all given up.
***
After having quite hastily finished dinner with his family, Eddie hurried back to his own place, somehow having a strong feeling that Amelia would knock on his door again tonight. She had to, he had sent her the book and if that had not been enough, they had accidentally ran into each other at the modiste as well. Eddie had been in an equal torment these past six days as Amelia, after she had left his house. He had tried to keep himself busy and out of the rooms that reminded him of her, victoriously visiting the Doncaster races with his family and their horses, as well as surprisingly eagerly joining his father on his gatherings in the Parliament and meeting up with Augie and his lovely new fiancé. But still, the thoughts about Miss Amelia Fife lingered inside his mind and plagued him especially during the silence of the night.
He closed the door behind himself and sat down in the drawing room to wait, trying to read a book, but finding it impossible to concentrate on it. After a couple of hours it was already past eleven in the evening and Eddie had startled both a postboy and an old lady collecting money for an orphanage by yanking up the door instead of his butler and furiously glaring at them for not being Amelia. He gave out a sigh of surrender and poured himself a glass of Scotch, thinking that she probably was stronger and wiser than he was and would not visit him anymore, instead focusing on her upcoming nuptials with Geoffrey Dorset. Eddie sipped on his drink and wondered if Geoffrey had any clue about how lucky he was, to be able to marry such a woman as Amelia. Every day he would see her smile, see the twinkle in her dark green eyes and he would be the one who ran his hands down her naked body and...
Eddie was squeezing the glass so hard in his hand that it would already have shattered if it had been at all thinner, when there suddenly was a knock on the door that tore through all his jealous thoughts. He slammed the glass down on the table so hard that its contents were spilled all over and rushed to the door, yanking it up again and – finally, finally revealing her behind it.
"I..." Amelia began, where she stood on his doorstep, blinking her long eyelashes as if she was finding it hard to believe that he was standing in front of her. "I am sorry, I know I should not have come and I know we agreed upon not seeing each other again, but after I read your thesis and after seeing you at Genevieve's, I could not... I could not help but to –" She did not get to finish her sentence, because Eddie had grabbed a firm hold of her, pulled her inside the house and kissed her vigorously. He quickly closed the door behind them, while Amelia was replying to his kiss equally heartily and jumped up into his arms, wrapping her legs around his waist. With ease, he carried her to the drawing room and slumped down on the sofa with her sitting on top of him. Eddie kissed every inch of bare skin he could find on her bosom before staring up into her eyes with a burning look and burying his hands deep into her long hair.
"I'll be your friend, I'll be your secret lover, I'll be anything you want me to..." He exhaled, breathing hot air on her parted lips. "Anything you want to, as long as you come to me... Please come to me, Amelia... I can't... I can't function without you." He begged, like he was literally on fire and she was the only one who could extinguish the flames from his scorched skin. Amelia grabbed a hold of the back of his neck and kissed him until he was even more out of breath. "Please come to me, whenever you can..." He prayed once more.
"I will, I will come..." She promised and guided his warm hand underneath the hem of her dress.
***
And Amelia did come, whenever she could. Sometimes during the day, if she had lied to her mother that she would meet up with Geoffrey or Emily, sometimes during the night, if she had lied she would spend it at her cousins' place again. The last two weeks had passed for Eddie in a thrilling bliss of constantly waiting to see her and then finally closing his arms around her again, but much to his disdain he had also realised he was utterly and hopelessly addicted to her. He had always despised opium addicts and wondered how anyone could let themselves fall into such a bad shape, but now he had to admit to himself that he was none the better than them. He was neglecting his own family, his friends, his duties... Everything, just to be with her whenever she had the chance to see him. When she was away, all he could think about was her and when he would be able to press his naked body against hers again.
Eddie knew that it was pointless to seek out relief in the arms of some other woman, it was only her he wanted. Only Amelia could provide him with the intoxicating opium of her presence, which he so badly craved for. Afterwards, he always sank into deep regret and shame, desperately telling himself that this was the last time it happened and next time he would be strong enough to tell her that they had to stop. Her wedding drew closer for every passing day and he was falling badly behind in his work with the estate, but every time she came knocking on his door he succumbed to his overpowering addiction and let her in. The worst part of it all was that it was not just her body he was addicted to. He loved having her around in the house, loved to hear her read aloud from a book or laugh at something he told her. He loved her occasional sincerity, her curious mind and countless questions, he loved... Her.
"It was hilarious, at the end of the night Augie was so wasted that he crawled out of the dormitory of Oxford on all fours!" Eddie laughed, when he was once again laying on his bed one afternoon in a delightful tangle with Amelia. She was leaning against the fluffy pillows with her legs wrapped around his chest, while he was looking up at her from the other end of the bed.
"And must I honestly believe that you yourself were completely sober?" Amelia sniggered.
"I do admit I might have enjoyed a few beverages myself as well." Eddie chuckled and kissed the inside of her bare thigh. Amelia sat up and gave him a lengthy kiss on his lips instead.
"I must go..." She sighed deeply. "If I don't dine at home with my mother tonight she will surely start suspecting something. My cousins are not so nice that anyone would spend this much time with them..." She muttered and caressed Eddie's dark wisps of hair away from his face.
"Mmm, no... Please stay, just a little while longer..." Eddie complained and wrapped his arms tighter around her. "I won't let you go." He stated determinedly.
"Yes, you will. Didn't you have a ball you needed to attend with your family?" Amelia smirked, wrenched herself free from his arms and stood up wearing just her underwear.
"Argh, yes..." Eddie growled. "I would not go otherwise, but it is the Bassets who are arranging it. Usually they host the last ball of the season, but not this time of course..."
"Because tomorrow is the big wedding of the handsome future Duke of Hastings and his bashful bride?" Amelia teased while pulling her dress over her head. "We are not invited."
"I know, but perhaps it is for the better. Otherwise, I would surely find some dark corner I would drag you into..." Eddie purred close to her ear, after having got up from the bed as well. He wrapped his arms around her again and pressed his naked upper body against her back, grinding the front of his black trousers against her now fully dressed behind.
"You would not dare to ruin such a fine young lady as myself in public. During your cousin's wedding, on top of it all!" Amelia giggled and turned around to kiss him.
"Oh, I most certainly would..." Eddie murmured and kissed her again.
"Have a pleasant night, my lord." Amelia grinned and gave him one last kiss before trying to leave for the door, but Eddie did not let go of her hand. "Goodnight, Eddie." She repeated her words with a meaningful smirk and he finally eased his grip a little. She pulled away her hand, but could hear him following her as she walked out of the room towards the staircase.
"When will I see you again?" He hooted after her from the doorway of his bedroom.
"As soon as possible!" She yelled back at him before hurrying down the stairs.
***
It proved out to be four excruciating days without a glimpse of Amelia. First, there was the Hastings ball, then Augie's and Roberta's wedding, which both had been lovely and joyous events, even though Eddie had once again been forced to spend his evening mostly running away from eager unmarried young ladies and their even more eager mamas, trying to find some cousin to hide behind. But, in the days following that, it was Amelia who had been awfully busy, shopping this and that for the wedding with her future mother-in-law or dining with Lady Siena Fife and the Dorsets in the evening. Eddie's only consolation this morning, while squirming in his bed hopelessly alone without Amelia, was that today would be the day of the Grand Picnic in Hyde Park, which surely also the Dorset family and the lovely betrothed of their son would attend. Also, Eddie happened to know that Miles was planning on proposing to Emily today, so apparently at least he was certain that the Dorsets would be there. Eddie jumped up from his bed, got hastily dressed and left for Bridgerton House.
Miles' proposal to Emily was just as carefully planned and picture-perfectly romantic as anyone could have imagined. He had taken her a bit away from the crowd, close to the river to watch the swans next to some blooming rose bushes, got down on one knee and asked the important question with thoughtfully selected words. Emily had of course almost fainted from happiness, screamed "yes" so loudly that a flock of ducks got scared and flew up into the air, while the Bridgertons, the Dorsets and anyone who happened to be close enough applauded the happy event. Miles walked back to the Dorset camp with a slightly uncomfortable smile, probably regretting that he did not choose a more private way of proposing, since he was now showered with congratulations from both his family and complete strangers, while Emily was clinging to his arm with a wide grin.
"Congratulations, both of you." Geoffrey smiled, with Amelia standing by his arm, before giving his ecstatic sister a tight embrace and Miles a hug as well, with a manly pat on his back.
"Thank you, dear brother-in-law." Miles smirked and let go of Emily, who rushed away to show her engagement ring to Amelia and other young ladies who had gathered around.
"Took you long enough." Geoffrey teased and stood as close to Miles as he dared, while watching all the commotion around the future Mrs Emily Bridgerton a bit further away.
"Well, I wanted to be certain." Miles stated and crossed his arms over his chest.
"About what, is my sister not the perfect wife for you?" Geoffrey enquired, a bit offendedly.
"No, of course she is perfect, but... I mean, it is a huge choice, to decide which person you want to spend the rest of your life with." Miles muttered while rubbing his cheek, like Geoffrey knew he always did when he did not feel comfortable in a situation.
"I understand, you do not need to explain it to me..." Geoffrey sighed.
"Of course you do, you have always understood me. That is why you are my best man, on my wedding day and every day." Miles smiled, turning around to look at Geoffrey and ruffled up his blonde hair. Geoffrey's heart skipped a beat, as it did every time Miles unexpectedly touched him and looked right at him. He tried to put on a smile as well and think about something equally endearing to say in return, but the moment had already passed. When Miles was about to turn back towards Emily again, he suddenly slipped on some swan droppings in the grass and would have landed down on his butt in them, if Geoffrey had not caught him in time.
"Christ, how embarrassing...!" Miles laughed once he was up on his feet again. "Luckily it was just you who saw it." He flashed a wide smile at Geoffrey, before some of his cousins attacked him with congratulations and he turned to talk with them instead, leaving Geoffrey standing there shattered by the fact that he would always be "just you" for Miles. A simple friend, a nobody, someone who he did not even bother to be embarrassed in front of.
Meanwhile, Amelia had sneaked away from the screaming mass of girls who had surrounded Miles' fiancé and tried to figure out a way to be able to exchange a word with Eddie, but the man was nowhere to be seen. Much to her surprise, Anthony Bridgerton had even cast her a semi-polite smile when she had tried to have a peek towards their canopy and picnic blanket, but he had only been accompanied by his wife and daughters. Slowly she wandered off, away from the crowd towards some trees and a wonderfully fragrant tall bush of lilacs, picked a branch and inhaled the heady scent of summer, just like Eddie had described. She was just about to turn back around to the others when she was grabbed by strong arms from behind the bush. Amelia tried to scream, but her mouth had already been covered and soon she was pressed against the stem of a tree behind the thick lilac bushes.
"Hush, it's me!" Eddie hissed at her, finally taking his hand away from her mouth.
"Eddie...!" Amelia wheezed out. "Why did you have to jump on me like some bandit...?!"
"Well, I could not exactly yell across the park that 'could you please come and see me behind these bushes, Miss Fife, soon to be Mrs Dorset'?" Eddie pointed out a bit sourly, but soon his face melted into a smile and he kissed her passionately. "Oh, my Amie, I've missed you so much..." He breathed out after a long kiss and sniffed her like she herself was a lilac flower.
"It has only been four or five days..." Amelia smirked and kissed him again. "But I have missed you too, dearly..." She added with a sigh, pinned between the tree and his body.
"Can you come tonight?" Eddie exhaled and kissed her several times on the neck.
"I can't, the Baron Dorset is in town and we are meeting him for dinner..." She muttered sadly.
"Ah, fuck..." Eddie cursed brazenly. "Can you not cancel it and spend some time with your favourite cousin Edmundina?" He purred, kissing his way down from her neck to her bosom.
"No, Edmundina, I can not..." Amelia laughed. "I have already cancelled too many times."
"But you will come to the Royal Ascot with the Dorsets tomorrow, right?" Eddie enquired.
"I will, but I will not lay with you behind some dunghill...!" Amelia grinned mischievously.
"I shall come up with some other place then." Eddie smirked equally naughtily and kissed her ardently, until he could hear his father calling for him. "I will see you tomorrow." He said determinedly, looked deep into her eyes and gave her one last kiss before walking away.
"Eddie, what the hell? You cannot go and relieve yourself in the bushes at Hyde Park like some uncivilised savage...!" Amelia could hear Anthony Bridgerton angrily scolding his son and had to cover her mouth with her hand to prevent a giggle escaping from her lips.
"Where would you have wanted me to piss then, into the river?" Eddie snapped back at him and she could no longer hear the rest of their bickering once they moved further away from her. She picked up the lilac branch she had dropped when Eddie had grabbed her and waited for a while before exiting the grove at another place than where her secret lover just had.
"I went and picked some flowers for Emily!" Amelia quickly explained to Geoffrey once she had found him again, but he did not even seem to have noticed that she was gone.
"Oh, how nice of you." Geoffrey replied with a strained smile, ripping his sad eyes away from his sister and Miles. Amelia glanced at him with a slightly wondering look.
"Is everything alright?" She asked and placed her hand on his arm.
"Yes, yes of course." Geoffrey replied and blinked his grey-green eyes a few times. "Everything is just splendid." He smiled, this time a bit more believably happily, while placing his hand on top of Amelia's. "Come, dear fiancé. We should prepare ourselves for the dinner with the baron."