Chapter Twenty-Eight #2
Meanwhile, I look forward to receiving a letter with all your news. I send you hugs and kisses. Ian asks me to send his love as well.
With greatest love,
Athena
Selena held the letter to her chest with a happy sigh. Reading these lines were the next best thing to a conversation with Athena. It helped to close the distance between them, making it almost feel as though her sister were sitting there beside her.
After a quiet moment, Selena turned to the second letter, which was from Diana.
Pendowar Hall
Portwithys, Cornwall
December 22nd, 1852
My dearest Selena,
I hope you are celebrating the season in grand style at Darkmoor Park, that all of your holiday festivities are going off exactly as planned, and that a good time is being had by all!
I am thrilled to have Athena, Ian, and their darling Henry here.
I wish you could have come as well, and I miss you more than words can say.
I understand, however, why you chose to remain at home.
Although I’ve only met Mrs. Hillman once, that summer we came to visit, she is a dear soul, and it was both thoughtful of you and I think important to put her needs and wishes first. You owe her a great deal—you are, after all, her heir and Darkmoor Park is your forever home!
It is so wonderful to have William home for the holidays.
I missed him so much this year when he was at sea, and he has missed so much of Charlotte’s daily development.
But he is on leave from the Royal Navy for four months, which is a great blessing.
Charlotte has grown and changed so much since you saw her last Christmas!
To think that, a year ago, she wasn’t even walking yet, and now she runs like a cheetah!
She is talking now, too—not just babbling but real words and short phrases, and she is so happy and curious about everything.
I have decided that nothing inspires pure joy as much as a child’s smile and laugh.
Emma is quite the young lady now. She wears her hair up and insists on having her frocks made to mirror the newest fashion plates.
Her reading and writing have improved a hundredfold since I began tutoring her three years ago.
Last month, I finally persuaded her to read Jane Eyre.
She adored it. (If she hadn’t, I believe I would have had to disown her as our cousin.)
Emma turned eighteen this year and dreams of having a coming out ball.
William and I have been discussing the matter.
Since we have so little society here, a season in London might be a better way for her to meet a suitable gentleman—but that will require us to move to Town as soon as possible for a few months’ stay before William returns to sea.
Charlotte would come with us, of course.
It would be quite an undertaking—but I am more and more inclined to make it happen.
Which leads me to another thought. Yesterday evening, when we were all gathered around the fire, I took in all the love in the room—the heartfelt affection that Athena and her husband and son so visibly share, and the loving bond that I have formed with my own dear husband and family—and I thought of you.
It is my dearest wish, Selena, that you will find your own perfect soulmate one day and experience the same deep joy from that relationship that Athena and I have found in ours.
I believe, in the depths of my soul, that it will happen for you—that you will encounter the man of your dreams—and when it happens, I cannot wait to meet him!
I think of you often, sister dearest, and look forward to the day when we can be in each other’s arms again. Until then, Happy Christmas and Happy New Year!
With all my love, your sister,
Diana
Tears pricked Selena’s eyes as she read—and re-read—the last paragraphs of Diana’s letter, and the phrase, your own perfect soulmate.
Selena felt that she already had met such a man.
She loved Dr. Dalton. She sensed that he had feelings for her.
In spite of all that had happened between them, he had come back for her.
Saved her life. And kissed her with such passion.
And yet, after all the suspicions she had leveled at him, was there any way that he could forgive her? Even if he did, was it even possible for them to build a future together? She didn’t see how.
She moved to her mirror, where she smoothed the skirts of her new evening gown, a confection of iridescent ice-green silk that featured silk roses and leaves along the edges of the bodice and cap sleeves, as well as a cascade of flowers and embroidered butterflies trailing down the front.
Mrs. Hillman had been so generous with Selena’s clothing allowance, and this stunning gown fit her to a “T.” Selena had ordered it to wear on New Year’s Eve—having no idea, of course, that a gentleman would be in attendance, for whom she would want to look her very best.
The idea that the doctor would have to leave Darkmoor Park, and soon, filled her with such anguish, it caused those threatening tears to spill over and roll down her cheeks.
With firm hands, Selena wiped her face dry.
She and Mrs. Hillman had, weeks before the guests had arrived, put a lot of effort into planning a grand New Year’s Eve party—and Selena was determined to enjoy it.
Even though, she thought sadly, there were three fewer guests present tonight than they had counted on.
She put on a smile and descended to the dining room, where the Christmas boughs and holly that decorated the mantelpiece and the centerpiece of the beautifully-set table had been joined by twice as many candles and sparkling ornaments made of blown glass and gilded and silver paper.
Everyone had dressed up in their finest clothes for the evening festivities and were in fine spirits to match.
Selena was the last person to arrive, and to her regret, she found herself sitting at the far end of the table from Dr. Dalton, making it impossible to talk to him.
His brows lifted when she walked in and the bright-eyed stare he gave her, combined with a gentle shrug of his shoulders, seemed to indicate both his appreciation of the way she looked, as well as his own frustration with the seating arrangements.
Mrs. Nash and the kitchen staff had prepared a delicious feast, which was enjoyed by one and all. The group lingered at the table laughing and chatting so long that before they knew it, it was almost time to ring in the new year.
The night was clear and the weather, after all those days of storms, was so comparatively mild, that after leaving the table, Selena and all the members of the party donned their coats and hats and mingled on the back terrace, where everyone gazed with undisguised pleasure at the vast array of stars sparkling in the heavens against the inky sky.
Selena spotted Dr. Dalton across the veranda. She had just started towards him when Mrs. Hillman appeared, took Selena by the arm, and turned her in the opposite direction.
“How are you feeling, my dear?” Mrs. Hillman asked.
“Better, thank you. I understand that I may not be fully recovered for a while yet. When school starts, I thought I might ask Athena to take over one or two of my classes.”
“A good idea. Or you might want to hire another teacher?” Mrs. Hillman’s gaze darted to Miss Thompson, who was pacing back and forth by the veranda railing, staring at the ground rather than the night sky. “I’ve been thinking how sad it is that Miss Thompson is out of a job.”
Selena understood the older woman’s implication and smiled.
“I’ve been thinking the same thing. Miss Thompson was once a governess and said she has always wished to teach at a school.
She is quite proficient at the pianoforte and has a beautiful singing voice.
We need a music teacher and I’m sure she could teach other subjects as well. ”
Mrs. Hillman’s lips curved upwards. “I suppose you would have to get Athena’s approval before you could formally hire her?”
Selena shrugged. “I am headmistress now. Athena wrote and offered to share the duties of headmistress at some point if I find the duties too taxing. I might take her up on that in future. But for now, I can hire whomever I like. That is,” Selena amended, “if Miss Thompson is interested in the position.”
“Oh, I know for a fact that she is,” Mrs. Hillman replied with a knowing look, “for I may have proposed the idea to her in passing.”
“Mrs. Hillman!” Selena cried, both amused and admonishing.
Mrs. Hillman beckoned to Miss Thompson and then drifted away to chat with other guests.
The young woman darted up to Selena, her eyes wide and a slight blush staining her cheeks. “It’s a lovely evening, isn’t it?” she said.
“It is, indeed.” Selena saw no reason to waste any time. “Miss Thompson, I know that you have dreamed of owning a flower shop. But while you save to make that dream a reality, would you like to join the staff at the Darkmoor Bridge School for Girls to teach music and perhaps some other subjects?”
“Oh!” Miss Thompson cried. “Thank you so much. I’d be thrilled to work at your school.”
Satisfaction bubbled up inside Selena’s chest. “I’m so glad.”
Miss Thompson returned her smile and then, hesitating, she lowered her gaze. “By the way, Miss Taylor, there’s something I’ve been wanting to tell you.”
“What is that?”
“A few days ago, when you questioned me about my background, and about my work with Mrs. Whitlock? I was so nervous, I worried that you might suspect me of something unseemly. I wanted to explain why I was anxious. It’s because I had known that Mrs. Whitlock was a thief.
When we would call on other ladies or visit them for tea, Mrs. Whitlock always came home with some new bauble that I knew she had stolen from our hostess.
For the past three months, I have lived in fear that I would be blamed for the things that Mrs. Whitlock stole. ”