Page 56 of A Governess' Forbidden Flame
“This gives us a wonderful opportunity to spend some time together, the three of us.” Vivienne beamed while they were still seated at the dining room table.
“Well, I suppose,” Amelia replied, feeling tongue-tied. That was the last thing she wanted to do, spend even a single moment longer in this awkward woman’s company, but she could not be rude as to downright refuse her. “Perhaps after the morning lessons, we could have tea in the garden.”
“Splendid.” Vivienne nodded. “I shall be waiting for you there.”
She dabbed the corner of her mouth with her napkin, only to walk over to Anna and unexpectedly plant a kiss on the surprised child’s head.
“Enjoy your lesson, my dear.” Vivienne smiled. “Afterward, we shall have some fun.”
Upon those words, she left the dining room, leaving Amelia and Anna alone and stunned. Anna frowned as soon as she heard the doors close. She rubbed the place on her head where Vivienne had kissed her.
“I don’t like it when strangers kiss me,” Anna pouted.
“I can understand that.” Amelia smiled reassuringly. “If luck would have it, they shall leave tomorrow, or in the worst case, the day after tomorrow.”
“I can’t wait.” Anna was still frowning. Then, she seemed to think about something, remembering it finally. “You know, I’ve seen the man…Frederick? Yes, I’ve seen him walk through the garden, looking at the flowers as if he is…reading them.”
It was Amelia’s turn to frown. “Reading them? The flowers?” She had never heard that term before, so she waited for her little ward to clarify what she meant by it.
“Yes.” Anna nodded. “I can’t quite explain it. It’s not like when you and I look at flowers. We…smell them, we revel in them, we look at the flowers themselves, the colors, the petals, the leaves. But he…it seemed that he wasn’t even looking at the flowers themselves, but rather moving them to the side, looking at the ground underneath, as if reading them, as if there was something to find, only he didn’t know exactly where it was.”
Something to find…
The words echoed inside Amelia’s mind. She had no idea why, but something assured her that they were important and she shouldn’t forget them.
“Perhaps he simply has a funny way of enjoying the beauty of flowers,” Amelia tried to explain, but it was obvious that neither of them believed it.
If he was moving the flowers, bending them to the side, he was obviously in search of something.Perhaps he had dropped a ring or a key, or it fell out of his pocket right among the flowers?Amelia wondered. What else could he have been looking for?
Anna pushed the chair as she stood up, and the sound brought Amelia back to the present moment. They walked to her room together, so the day of lessons could begin. Amelia had completely forgotten about Frederick’s strange “reading” of the flowers as well as their plan to have Vivienne join them for afternoon tea, when she knocked on the door to Anna’s chamber, opening the door before she was even allowed to do so.
“Oh, you are still immersed in your lessons?” Vivienne seemed stunned to see them still reading. “No, no. The day is so wonderfully sunny, and you will miss it all. Come now.” She walked over to them and gently took the book from Anna’s hand.“There will be plenty of time for reading. One must rest from these intellectual endeavors as well, you know.”
Anna glanced over in Amelia’s direction, asking for approval. Amelia would have liked nothing more than to tell this interfering woman to leave them alone, but this was neither her home nor was it her place to say anything even remotely that rude.
“I suppose we could have a little break,” Amelia acquiesced.
“Exactly,” Vivienne confirmed, taking Anna by the hand and leading her out of the room, with the child throwing a helpless glance at Amelia, who rushed after them, not wanting to leave her alone.
About half an hour later, things seemed to have settled down. Amelia stole curious glances at the woman sitting opposite her at the table in the garden, which was bathed in the soft, golden hues of the afternoon sun. Despite the rude way they had been forced out, Amelia had to admit that it ended up being a good idea.
It was a warm afternoon, with birds chirping in the distance, the bees buzzing, hurriedly gathering pollen, and an occasional butterfly would flutter by so close, causing Anna to gasp with awe and wonder at the sheer loveliness of its wings.
Tea was poured by one of the servants and dainty, delicious pastries graced the table. Anna had already excused herself with the desire to make a flower wreath, so only Amelia and Vivienne were now seated at the table. Amelia found the woman rude, but by no means lacking in beauty. However, Vivienne was not in possession of all those delicate qualities most gentlemen of thetonwere in search of, such as a timid disposition, a soft-spoken voice, and classical facial features.
There was something dark, almost ominous about her, which, in combination with her outspoken persona, seemed to demand attention from all those present.
“From what I’ve heard, you have not been employed here for long, have you?” Vivienne suddenly asked, turning her attention to Amelia, who was slightly taken aback by this question, which seemed to answer itself.
“No, not really,” she admitted softly, grabbing her teacup in an effort to hide behind it, although such an effort was all but futile.
“Where was your previous employment?” Vivienne asked, sounding even more curious now.
Amelia considered lying, but something assured her that Vivienne was not the sort of woman who asked questions without having some sort of prior knowledge regarding the topic. And it was no secret that Amelia had been employed withLord Davenport. So, she decided that, as always, her path would be the truth.
“I was employed as a governess with Lord Davenport,” she said simply, but upon hearing that, Vivienne’s eyes seemed to light up.
“I know him!” she exclaimed. “That is, his wife. We used to play bridge with a few other ladies of theton.I’m not sure whether you would know them.”
