Chapter 6 #2
Why did she have to embarrass herself so spectacularly in front of Anthony of all people?
She was a very competent rider, and was certainly capable of getting on and off a horse.
She had never done anything like that before.
She had just got so flustered at the thought of Anthony…
What exactly had she thought he was going to do?
There was a step she had used to get up onto Rosalind, he was probably just going to move that over for her.
She was such an idiot. How was she going to face him now?
And why was she reacting so strangely to him?
She had known Anthony and been tormented by him for her whole life.
Some of her earliest memories were of him teasing her, calling her by much loathed nicknames like Little Squirrel, the one that had unfortunately stuck, and playing endless practical jokes on her.
She had always known he was good-looking in an abstract sense, but why was her body betraying her like this?
Was it seeing him at his best, suited and booted for society that was doing this to her?
Or was it just that she was so intent on finding a husband and focused on comparing bachelors that she was subconsciously analysing Anthony as well?
Which was ridiculous. If there was one man Alice was sure would never settle down with a wife, it was Anthony, regardless of what he might say about potentially looking for one.
What she wanted was a nice, kind man, who enjoyed spending most of his time in the country.
Who liked riding and animals. Not someone who frittered away his life gambling and drinking, leaving a string of mistresses in his wake.
It would also be preferable that the man she married actually liked her and did not just see her as a nuisance.
She needed to stop wasting her time thinking about Anthony and focus on finding a man who would make her a good husband.
Alice sighed, she was going to have to come out of her room soon.
Anthony would have left for his club by now and she imagined he would be there for hours.
She was beginning to feel less flustered knowing he was out and was able to think about the rest of the day ahead.
She and her aunt were shopping for shoes that afternoon.
She needed a new pair before attending her next ball and would be picking up the first of her evening dresses ready for this event as well.
Not that she was looking forward to putting herself through another ostentatious social gathering, but at least she would feel properly attired this time and she was going into it better prepared.
The only thing she was a little concerned about was her dancing, which was hardly proficient, but aside from practising by herself in her room, there was not much else she could do to improve that. She should be fine as long as she had strong partners to lead her, she reassured herself.
Determined to put the dismounting incident from her mind, Alice threw herself into preparing for the evening.
The shopping trip with Aunt Jane that afternoon was very successful.
Despite having little natural interest in fashion, she was pleased with her new acquisitions: several pairs of evening shoes, gloves, and two evening dresses were ready, which were much more in keeping with what she had seen the other young ladies wearing at the first ball she attended.
They returned home and Alice hurried back up to her room.
She wanted plenty of time to prepare for dinner.
She rang for Beth who had spent the day practising new hairstyles on Aunt Jane’s lady’s maid.
Alice suspected her poor maid sometimes got a little frustrated with having a mistress who spent most of her days in clothes she could clean out the stables in and with her hair in a plait.
But what better way to show Anthony how in control of herself she was than to try out one of her new dresses and hairstyles?
She would apologise to him for her abrupt departure earlier, citing her headache as an excuse.
Then she would be sophisticated and witty all evening and prove to him that his catching her as she fell had had no effect on her whatsoever.
When Alice finally descended in her new pale pink empire-line gown, she felt more confident and elegant than she had since arriving in London.
Alice had to admit it was lovely to wear a dress that was fitted for her rather than her sisters' hand-me-downs.
She guessed when she was married she would have to continue to make more of an effort with her appearance.
She doubted her future husband would appreciate her sitting down to luncheon not noticing she had a piece of straw in her hair, so she had better get used to dressing up.
Doing her best to calm the nerves in her stomach, she walked down the main staircase of the house as gracefully as she could, not knowing when she would encounter Anthony.
She entered the drawing room to find her aunt enjoying a pre-dinner sherry.
Aunt Jane beamed with approval at Alice’s appearance. “My dear, you look lovely! That colour suits you beautifully and gives you such a charming waist. It is a shame there is only me here to appreciate it tonight.”
“Oh, is Lord Tonbridge not joining us?” asked Alice, trying to appear as disinterested in the answer as possible.
“No, he had a prior engagement.”
Alice felt herself deflate. How would Anthony know that she was unaffected by what had happened earlier if he could not see her being unaffected and marvel at her composure?
“But he did leave something for you,” Aunt Jane added, gesturing to a small parcel on a table next to Alice’s favourite chair.
Intrigued, Alice opened it. Inside was a book, ‘Pride and Prejudice’ by Jane Austen, and a note, ‘Something for you to read while you are stuck inside being a gentlewoman. A.’
Alice turned the novel over in her hands. Her reading tended to focus on books about animal husbandry, and she would usually far rather be outside than inside with a book, unlike her sisters who both seemed addicted to the gothic novels which seemed so popular at the moment.
“Oh, how lovely, I have heard good things about Miss Austen’s writing,” said Aunt Jane. “I am sure it will be an excellent distraction for you.”
Later that evening, after supper and a few hands of cards with her aunt, Alice was making her way upstairs with her new book when she heard a knock on the front door.
She froze on the staircase. It would not be a guest so late in the evening, but surely Anthony could not be back.
She would not have expected him to crawl in until the early hours of the morning judging by the tales she had overheard her brother and their friends recounting when they had not realised she was around.
The door was opened by the butler and Anthony walked into the entrance hall. He was not smartly dressed enough for an evening out, and he was certainly managing to walk in a straight line.
“Good evening, Miss Fairfax,” he said, giving a bow. Again, no wobble there.
She gave a slightly awkward curtsy as best as she could on the stairs.
His gaze travelled slowly over her new gown and elegant hairstyle. For once, he seemed almost at a loss for words. “You look… exceptionally well this evening,” he eventually said.
“Thank you,” Alice managed.
He coughed. “I trust you have had a good day,” Anthony continued.
“I have indeed,” she croaked before clearing her throat and saying, “I apologise for my abrupt departure earlier today. My head…” She trailed off.
“I do hope you are completely recovered now.”
“Yes, thank you.”
“As you appear to be retiring for the night, l will bid you good night, and shall see you in the morning,” he said, bowing again and turning to go into the drawing room.
“Thank you for the book,” Alice blurted out, waving it in the air above her head as if he might not be sure what book she was referring to.
The corner of Anthony’s mouth definitely twitched. “It is my pleasure. I hope you enjoy it,” he said before continuing on his way.
Alice hurried to her room, her heart pounding.
What was going on with her? This was Anthony!
Anthony who had been known to jump out of obscure hiding places purely for the delight of hearing her scream.
He was horrible. She could barely stand to be in his presence.
She could not possibly be finding him attractive, could she?
But what other reason could there be for the ridiculous way she was behaving.
She dropped the book on her dressing table bad-temperedly and went to bed, hoping her actions the next day would be more rational.