3. Ambrose
Ambrose
Annabelle’s picnic started at noon, and like every picnic I’d attended since I was fifteen, it was very boring.
I found it harder to be cordial with people I didn’t like with each year that passed.
However, when I spotted Benjamin Dawson openly kissing Richard Smith nearby in Annabelle’s garden, I couldn’t help but smile.
I liked them, at least. They’d been seen together for a while, and with Richard being outside of Benjamin’s elite circle, they were the talk of the town.
It was refreshing to see two people of different social statuses come together.
A couple sharing a public courting kiss at a social event was akin to proposing marriage.
Several people clapped for them, while a few others turned up their noses and continued eating from their fancy picnic blankets. My youngest sister, Hattie, put a hand to her chest, touched by Benjamin and Richard’s kiss before the two men nodded at everyone and walked off to the garden.
Sighing, I went back to eating with Hattie, wishing I could share such a kiss with someone I loved and adored. A man who could come in and sweep me off my feet, a man who would take care of me and show me how much I meant to him…
“Ew! Amby, get this thing off me!” Hattie squealed as she drew up her hands, garnering attention from several people sitting around us.
I set aside my plate of partially eaten strawberry shortcake and narrowed my eyes at the culprit of her whining. A large June beetle crawled along the bottom of her yellow dress. I moved over and plucked the green little guy off, and she smoothed out her hem.
I let the bug crawl over my hand, admiring how its color gleamed in the sunlight, but Hattie wasn’t having it.
“Amby, I swear, get rid of it before it lands on my food!” She swatted at my hand with hers, and the beetle flew out to land on someone’s plate nearby. A woman shrieked and threw it down, and my lips twitched in amusement.
I grabbed Hattie’s gloved hand and got to my feet as Catherine Wilkes glanced around to search for who could have tossed the bug her way.
When her sharp gaze narrowed on me, I pulled Hattie away from our blanket.
We both stumbled off through the picnic on the lawn and further from the house, our hands over our mouths to stifle our laughter.
“Goodness, Catherine is not going to like you after that!” Hattie exclaimed.
“I’m rather fine with that, actually.” I ticked off another potential bride that Emiline and I had talked about before.
Hattie looped her arm around mine as we made our way to Annabelle’s backyard garden.
My sister’s golden ringlets flowed over one shoulder, and her dazzling blue eyes gleamed in the sunlight.
Having been out of school for a few months, my baby sister had her mind set on a higher education at the nursing institute for girls come autumn.
I couldn’t believe how fast she’d grown. Only ten years ago, she’d been running around carefree with me through the fields. Those were good memories. Vibrant, spirited, fun…
“It’s a beautiful garden.” Hattie cupped an orange hibiscus in her palm. “Anna has kept it up since her parents passed.”
I eyed the maintained gravel paths and organized beds of daffodils and tulips.
The yellows and purples popped out at us, and Hattie bent to pluck one.
The garden was so properly trimmed, the bushes immaculate and the flowers perfectly aligned.
There was too much order, as far as I was concerned.
It was much different from our small flower garden at home, where moss grew between the walkway bricks, various plants grew out of worn pots, and ivy climbed the trellis.
I liked our unruly garden much better.
We continued along the paths so Hattie could point out the different species of roses. Once done, I planted my hands in my pockets as we strolled out of the garden and past the blankets to the terrace along the back of the house.
Our father stood there in conversation with one of his wealthy colleagues, Edward Cooligan.
I drew in a deep breath as we approached his tall, lanky frame.
Edward had a particular disdain for me. The Cooligans were a family who believed strongly in arranged marriages, and his son Damien was already betrothed to someone else.
So when Edward found Damien and I getting handsy in the back room of his tobacco shop five years ago, he tore into me.
I’d given him sass, and he’d thrown me out of his shop.
Thankfully, I no longer cared, as Damien turned out to be as rotten as a spoiled egg.
As we reached my father, I straightened my back and adjusted my glasses. Necessary, with how piss-poor my eyesight was at seeing things from a distance.
“Ah, there you two are.” Father nodded at us, then gestured to Edward. “I was telling Mr. Cooligan how you will be stepping up at the bank soon to take on the family business one day, Ambrose.”
My stomach dropped at the mention of the bank.
I tried to put a warm welcome on my face anyway as I regarded my father.
He was every bit the poised, respectable man required by Everdeen’s elite society, always dressed for the occasion, standing tall and slim.
His brown hair was parted and combed over in a fashionable, tame style—a sharp contrast from my unruly curls—and his thin mustache coiled outward, twitching as he inclined his head to hear my reply.
“Father and I have talked over plans,” I finally said, trying my best to appear the gentleman I didn’t want to be. “I just hope I can conduct business as well as he has with the bank. He’s so prominent around here, I’d hate to ruin his reputation by stepping up too early.”
Hattie’s cough hid her sideways stare at me, but there was no backtracking. What I said already hit Edward’s ears, and now he was sporting a curious expression. He could easily see I didn’t care one whit about the bank.
“Ambrose often underestimates himself,” Father clarified to Edward. “My son’s humbleness is one of the things I love most about him. It’ll make him an excellent leader of Somerset and Sons one day.”
“Thank you, Father,” I replied carefully, wondering where such compliments spawned from.
Father nodded. “And when you court Miss Winters, you’ll prove to the town that a family man is hiding in there, ready to fulfill his destiny as a Somerset.”
My expression faltered. I wasn’t very good at hiding my distaste, and Hattie’s look of pity over her flower confirmed that I wasn’t masking my feelings very well either.
Edward’s eyes darted from me to my father. “Do you seriously think your boy can win one of the wealthiest women in Everdeen? She’s become more popular since returning from the City with the newest car design. Half the town wants to court her.”
“Only half?” Father blustered, raising an eyebrow.
Edward quipped back with a humorous, “The other half is female!”
“I’ve heard quite a few women share their interest in Annabelle as well,” I said. It did make sense, as she was smart, and beautiful, and had a huge tract of land.
“Mm, afraid you’ll lose to better options?” Edward Cooligan cooed mockingly, and I’d never disliked the cocky man more.
My father seemed to take his words as jest, and chuckled.
“There’s no competition to my boy, is there, Ambrose?
You’re going to get the girl.” He placed a firm hand on my shoulder and squeezed.
I knew that grip of his. Father expected me to start pursuing her today, and so far all I’d done was wander around with Hattie.
Shit, it was hot. I loosened my tight collar and searched for an escape. That’s when the shadowed porch and open door of Annabelle’s house called to me. “Yes… I think I’ll step inside for a moment and search for her now.”
“That’s my boy. Real go-getter.” Father clapped my back as I took a step. His affectionate push threw me off balance, and I tripped over my own feet before catching myself to practically run away toward the house.
It felt wonderful to escape. The house was cool as I stepped into the open hallway and pulled off my cap.
As soon as the door closed, I leaned against it and sighed heavily.
It was quiet in here, the air smelling of baked apples.
The kitchen must be near. I walked away from the delightful aroma and headed for the front of the house in search of a parlor where I might reasonably hide for the next few minutes…
or perhaps a lifetime. Oh, how I hated these social events.
They were a reminder of how my father expected me to fit in among the other gentlemen and talk about boring things, such as banks, and to marry within my status.
I’d much rather be throwing June beetles around instead. Or having an adventure through the woods.
I was surprised the hallway was so long as I passed closed door after closed door.
Curious, I opened one of them to find a storage closet filled with various tea sets before shutting it back.
The next door was a smaller room that held a desk and several polished bookcases.
This wasn’t the parlor, so I shut it and moved on.
My, this house was enormous, much more so than our little country manor a few miles down the road.
Frustrated, I rounded a corner, only to find another hallway.
Even more surprising, a well-dressed man stood halfway along the corridor at a hall table.
His cap was tucked under his elbow as he held up a large vase in both hands, inspecting the intricate, blue designs closely.
Stopping quietly, I squinted at his back, admiring his slim physique, broad shoulders, and dark hair. How lovely. When a sense of familiarity washed over me, I drew closer. In fact, as the man shifted to the side, I blinked in surprise.
I did know him. One look upon his face made all the memories of our past rush back, and the next words out of my mouth were, “Zeth? Zeth Washer, is that you?”