Chapter Fifteen #2
“The drinking killed him in the end, but it took a long time. Once I inherited and gained access to funds, I brought Elizabeth to live with me, away from the overbearing personality of our aunt. However, we are still reliant upon Aunt Lucinda for chaperoning Elizabeth during the Season.”
Jane nodded. It was not a happy tale. She hadn’t realized his childhood had been so painful. Perhaps it explained his conservatism and desire to create a large family of his own.
He ended her speculation by abruptly saying, “Enough of this maudlin talk, it must be time for luncheon.” Jonathan escorted her from the gallery without a backward look.
After their meal, the whole house party assembled in the hall ready for the outdoors.
The ladies wore their warmest cloaks, boots, gloves, and muffs.
The two gentlemen, in coats, old boots, and gloves, were charged with carrying a timber sled apiece.
Jonathan led the way from the house in the direction of a little wood off to the side.
The landscape was still and quiet, hushed into somnolence by the snow.
Thirteen-year-old Katherine ran ahead. From time to time the sound of snow pushed off a branch by squirrels reached their ears.
When they reached the trees, they saw small birds flitting in the undergrowth of holly bright with berries.
A robin’s red breast flashed near a log.
Within a few minutes, they had reached the foot of a long, gentle slope and debated who should be the first to try their luck.
“Come on, Dalton, show us how it is done,” Dr. Logan prompted.
Elizabeth and Jane soon took up the request.
Katherine and Anna, eager to be first down the slope, began trudging up with Jonathan, drawing their sled behind them.
Elizabeth and Dr. Logan drew away from Jane and Charlotte to talk privately. Jane placed her arm about Charlotte’s waist and drew her close, smiling into her marred face.
All conversation stopped when Jonathan hurtled down the slope toward them. He was closely followed by Anna and Katherine. Their screams demolished the silence of the snowy landscape.
Jonathan attempted to make a controlled halt with a sharp turn to the left. Instead of achieving a graceful finish, the sled tipped on its side, flinging him onto the soft snow. He slid downhill on his back, coming to rest at the feet of Jane and Charlotte.
If he was expecting sympathy, he didn’t get it. Jane and Charlotte laughed at him covered in wet snow, his clothes getting damper by the minute and his wavy hair curling tighter.
Anna and Katherine, who had followed him, averted his disaster by tobogganing straight down the hill until their sled slowed and stopped. They rushed up the slope to laugh at him too. Jonathan joined in good-naturedly and threatened dire consequences when they had their next turn.
Katherine insisted Charlotte join her for a ride, while Elizabeth took a solo journey. Charlotte smiled her first smile since she had been rescued, and joy filled Jane’s heart.
Jane’s three sisters demanded she take a turn. She shook her head and looked to Jonathan for support. She got none.
Elizabeth was just as forceful in her determination that Dr. Logan be next. He demurred. “I think I am far too old for this sport, Lady Elizabeth.”
“Never too old, Dr. Logan!” she responded. “Not even you.”
When he still resisted, she changed tack. “Well, help me drag the sled up the hill; it’s exhausting. Old or not, you have more strength than me, I’m sure.”
He found no answer to this tactic and joined her in trudging up the slope.
“Shall I drag your sled for you, Jane?” asked Jonathan. Taking the rope, he offered his other arm to her, which she accepted, and they climbed the slope with a degree of dignity.
By taking a more direct route, they arrived at the summit before Elizabeth and Dr. Logan. “Are you brave enough to slide by yourself, Jane?”
“Indeed, I am!” Jane softened her response, not wanting to start a disagreement. “But thank you for your concern.”
“I meant no offense. I was just angling for a ride with you rather than watching you disappear away from me into the distance again.”
“Oh!” Jane said. His words warmed her heart. “I’m sure we can manage together.”
He grinned. “Excellent. You may have the exciting front seat, and I shall steer from the rear.”
She considered his words. “It sounds like a sensible plan, my lord.” In fact, it sounded like a delicious plan, a way to have his strong arms around her and feel protected again.
“Jonathan,” he reminded her.
She looked at him blankly, not understanding.
He quirked his eyebrow. “My name.”
She realized what he meant. “Of course, Jonathan.”
He sat on the sled with the steering rope in one hand. “Come aboard, Jane,” he said, waving her forward.