He turned away in one swift motion, facing Mrs. Ollerton. “Please excuse me.”
“Oh, yes, of course.” Mrs. Ollerton fluttered her hands about herself as if unsure whether to allow him to leave or not, before giving a resolute nod. With so much jam and tea all over his clothing, he must have been eager to change.
And eager to escape me.
The moment Mr. Hill left the room, Mrs. Ollerton’s exhale turned to something of a groan. “Miss Sedgwick…” she began in a reprimanding voice.
I squeezed my eyes closed, shaking my head at the floor. “Forgive me, Mrs. Ollerton. Perhaps I am a bit tired from my journey, after all.” I put a hand to my head, hoping the gesture would add credibility to my claim. A familiar pounding headache had started creeping up my temples again, but this one had surely been brought on by embarrassment. Mr. Hill’s sharp gaze still lived in my mind. What had he meant when he said I had won his attention? That had been the very last thing I had hoped to do.
“It may be wise for you to spend the rest of the day relaxing in your bedchamber.” Mrs. Ollerton’s thin lips were pressed together, her brows drawn down. “Perhaps tomorrow you will awaken with a bit more elegance and grace.”
I drew a heavy breath, nodding my agreement. “I do become quite ungainly when I am tired.”
Mrs. Ollerton’s eyes rounded. “Do you? Oh, I am quite glad to hear that behavior like this will not be a common tragedy.”
Was this her idea of a tragedy? A pot of spilled tea and a few tartlets? I had seen far more tragedy in the form of poverty and desperation, lives destroyed and lost, loved ones cast away to prisons where they had little hope of escape, and every expectation of execution or starvation. My heart ached, the sting spreading over my arms and tingling into my fingertips. I dropped a curtsy. “I thank you for understanding, Mrs. Ollerton.” I kept my voice meek and reserved.
“I will have a tray sent to your room for dinner, and you may spend the rest of the evening to yourself. I will give your excuses to Mr. Hill, though your absence at dinner may come as something of a relief to him after the events of this afternoon.” She spoke casually, but the other four women in the room erupted in quiet laughter.
Mrs. Ollerton seemed to remember they were still there, for she turned around in a quick swish of her stiff taffeta skirts. “In the chaos, I’m afraid I neglected to introduce you to my other guests,” she said in a methodical tone. “Allow me to present Miss Joanna Benham.” Mrs. Ollerton gestured to the brunette woman, who was the shortest of the four, and the most extravagantly dressed. She then introduced Miss Lydia Coppins, who was petite with honey-blonde hair, and seemed to possess a great deal of energy. The next was Miss Mary Taplow, the woman with the deep auburn hair, the quietest of the four, and then Miss Caroline Downsfield, the tall blonde who had made the remark about my desire for attention. She gave me a polite smile with Mrs. Ollerton watching, but as soon as the woman’s back was turned, her expression transformed to one of disdain and condescension.
After the introductions were complete, Mrs. Ollerton dismissed me to my bedchamber, enlisting the maid who I had caused to trip to lead me there. She did not seem very pleased with me, and understandably so.
Thankfully Jessie was inside my room to greet me, finishing unpacking my trunk.
“You did not have to do that for me.” I shook my head, dropping to my knees to help her.
Jessie shook her head, swatting my hand away. “‘Tis my duty. How did it go? Tell me everything.”
I sat back on my heels, hiding my face in my sticky hands. Mr. Hill’s handkerchief hadn’t managed to clean them completely. “I made a complete fool of myself. Or rather, of Sophia.” I cringed.
Jessie chewed her lower lip. “How so?”
I explained everything, from the spilled tea tray to the scrambling around on my knees to clean it up. “I was not thinking clearly!” I sighed, gritting my teeth. “How could I have been so daft?”
Jessie paused for a short moment, studying my face. “Was the gentleman handsome?”
“Well, yes,” I said in a blunt voice. “There is no questioning that.”
“Then I know exactly why you be actin’ all foolish.” She wiggled her eyebrows.
“No, Jessie. No.” I held up a hand. “You are wrong. I would have done the same thing no matter how blue his eyes were.”
Jessie giggled, eyeing me with no small amount of suspicion.
“I was simply nervous to be meeting so many new people under Sophia’s…pretenses.” I rubbed one side of my face before remembering the jam on my fingers. The substance stuck on the tiny hairs near my ear. I groaned. “Did I mention Mr. Hill had to remove himself from the party to wash himself because I soiled his clothing and his face?”
Jessie laughed again, throwing her head back. “’Twill take a great deal of timidity to make him forget you now.”
“It doesn’t matter if he remembers me for what happened today,” I said in a confident voice, though I didn’t feel it. “If he comes to think of me as the ‘clumsy, odd, ridiculous lady’ of the five, then I will consider that a success. All Sophia asked of me was that I do not draw his eye toward me as a potential choice of wife. He will choose one of the other ladies, I am sure of it.”
Jessie gave a slow nod, pursing her lips before a laugh burst out. “I believe you’ve done the trick.”
I joined her laughter, holding one hand against my side before pulling it away fast. I needed to stop touching things with my jam covered fingers. “I think you are right. Perhaps now all that remains for us to do is enjoy our time away from Sedgwick Manor. I wish we could explore Bibury this afternoon. Mrs. Ollerton has condemned me to this room to rest until tomorrow morning.” I turned toward the window, where a clear view of the gardens showed through the glass.
“Perhaps if you arise early enough tomorrow, you’ll have an opportunity to see the grounds before the rest of the guests demand your time.”
I smiled, letting the sun warm my cheeks as I stepped closer to the window. “That sounds like a wonderful plan.”
Arising before the sun had become a habit of mine, so I was surprised to find the peach glow of dawn seeping through the drapes when I awoke the next morning. I tossed the blankets off as quickly as I could before remembering that I was not at Sedgwick Manor; I was at Winslow House. I did not have to attend to Sophia, or anyone else today. I could take a leisurely walk through the gardens instead.
I stretched my back, unable to stop the wide smile on my cheeks.
When I stepped outside, the faint trill of birdsong carried across the peach and pale grey sky. The grass was damp, as if it had rained overnight. My boots made a suctioning sound as I marched over the grass that led to the stone path. The path seemed to lead straight through the gardens behind the house, so I followed it, ducking under the slightly overgrown trees. The branches were only partially clothed in leaves, large gaps still remaining from the winter months. What flowers the bushes did bear were small and pink, white, and purple, bursting out in tiny buds.
I filled my lungs with the chilled air, wrapping my arms around myself. Perhaps I should have waited for the sun to rise completely before setting out on my exploration, but I had been too excited. Winslow House was lovely, and I could only imagine how it would look a month from now, when spring had fully emerged among the bushes and trees. Two robins were perched on the lowest branch of a nearby tree, chirping to one another, as if making commentary on my impertinence to be interrupting their quiet morning routine.