Amanda got their undivided attention rightaway. The other women on the table now focused solely on her in stunned surprise, nobody was able to make a reply.
A proud smile curving Amanda's lips at their expression.
"It was a good long time ago when he was still so young, sixteen or seventeen perhaps... I'm older than him... only by a year or two..."
Amanda corrected when she saw her listeners frowning.
"I tell you, those days were terrific. He was one of the greatest lover I ever had."
Ava picked up her tea and took a quick, long swallow, feeling a sudden uneasiness stirred inside her.
"And he was not only prodigious in his wealth and achievement, but also in his performance and his ..." she paused deliberately to make a significant effect.
".....personal attribute."
Ava nearly spurted everything in her mouth at the last words. What a brazen woman she was. Such an unbelievably vulgar remarks. She stared at Amanda in shock and disgust.
"I'm impressed."
Lady Byrne retorted tartly with a straight face.
"By the way, how it could ever happen? Little chance he would have come to your house to court you, wasn't it?"
Amanda chuckled, reacting to the curt response in perfect indifference.
"I came to the manor every morning to bring the dairies, you know my father's farm served the household's needs at the time. I met him every single day."
Lady Byrne replied in unchanging expression, only arched her brow a little bit.
"Again, I wonder, how could it ever happen?"
"Yes, Amanda. How did it happen? I mean, how did it begin? How did he advance you for the first time?"
Mrs. Puck urged Amanda to tell more in pure enthusiasm, completely unaware of Lady Byrne's murderous glance.
"I always knew he wanted me, from the way he looked at me from the very first time, the gleam of desire in his eyes..."
Amanda halted and sipped her tea slowly, making the other women growing mad in anticipation.
"I daresay nobody knows he is very fond of painting. One day when I walked past him, he asked me to be his muse. He said he wanted to paint me."
Ava stiffened at once. The words echoing again and again in her head.
"And he really did paint me, at first. But it didn't last long. Soon he was overtaken by his wild passion and had his way with me. We had a torrid affair for months before I went to Paris..."
Amanda looked heavenwards with a dreamy smile as if she was musing on the passionate memories.
"You won't believe how wicked he could be. He whispered nasty things in my ear all the time when we made love. I didn't know how he could come up with such things, it was outrageously arousing..."
Ava got up suddenly with a loud sound of her chair grinding against the floor, startling the three women.
"Excuse me, milady. I think I should be leaving now. Mrs. Puck." She nodded to both women, not bothering to make any gesture to Amanda. The woman wasn't bothering to show her any politeness right from the start, and she wouldn't meet her again after this.
"I can't let you walk home all by yourself, dear. I'm taking you home now." said Lady Byrne.
"No, please don't bother, milady. It would be ..."
"I insist." Lady Byrne cut her in firmly. She got up and nodded at Amanda.
"Amanda, it's nice to see you, but I have to go now."
Amanda glanced at the lady nonchalantly, didn't seem to care to stand and make a curtsy. Such an ill-mannered woman, Ava thought.
"We should see each other again next time. There's a lot I want to tell you."
Lady Byrne hauled Ava and scurried away, leaving Mrs. Puck with the stack of boxes behind them. They entered the carriage and waited Mrs. Puck to come in. Soon the three were sitting in the running carriage.
"Why do we need to go so soon?"
Mrs. Puck peered back through the window, sounding more than a bit disappointed.
Lady Byrne tilted her head high and said in a cold voice.
"I don't want to waste my time listening rubbish. Amanda is too much of a braggart and a shameless liar. I daresay half of what she said is merely a lie."
"Which means the other half is true." Mrs. Puck replied mischievously, narrowing her eyes.
The lady glared at her.
"I'm not buying her shit whatsoever."
"Don't forget Amanda was chased by half of the men in this town in her younger days. You can't underrate her attraction." Mrs. Puck protested.
"A trustworthy source told me, Amanda is a sex goddess. One time with her is both a blessing and a curse. For the man will have the most terrific experience in his life, but no woman will ever be able to satisfy the man again."
Lady Byrne frowned with disgust.
"His Grace would have never considered her." She said respectfully.
"I trust he has quite a fine taste in women. Such a tawdry slut like Amanda would never have a chance."
"I think Amanda had slept with him."
Ava sat rigid in the corner as the two women arguing, listening to each word while a strong indignation burning inside her. Lady Byrne defended her virtuous duke wholeheartedly, spoke highly of him as too honorable to sleep with a woman out of wedlock.
"Nonsense!"
Mrs. Puck exclaimed in utter disbelief.
"I can't believe how naive you are! He couldn't be an untried youth!
For the first time, Ava wondered about such a thing. Lady Byrne continued like a persistent lawyer, asserting the fact that the duke had never been touched by gossip or scandal, especially the ones that relating him with a particular woman. Thus far, no woman had ever been associated with him. He had such an impeccable reputation in that matter. Ava wished she could be as convinced as the lady, but she wasn't.
She disliked Amanda at the very first sight, but now she discovered another reason for hating her. She was a shameless hussy, a tawdry slut like the lady said. She wished her boasting was a total lie, but she was afraid it was the truth. Even if it was only half true, it was bad enough.
Everything about Amanda radiating sheer sensuality. Her eyes were magical, mystical and her mouth was deliciously tempting.
Amanda's soft creamy skin was smooth and flawless. The few freckles sprinkled over her nose didn't make her face less appealing, they just accentuated her bright and warm complexion. Next to Amanda, her own complexion looked as dull and pale as a white porcelain vase.
Amanda's fiery red hair captured light in vibrant red-orange hues, tumbling over her shoulders like a flowing lava, her own black hair could never be a scorching flame under the sun like that.
Until now, she was perfectly happy with her well-proportioned figure, but it certainly could not compete with Amanda's generously endowed assets.
"I always knew he wanted me, from the way he looked at me from the very first time, the gleam of desire in his eyes..."
By firsthand experience, she knew he was not easy to impress. Did Amanda really grab his attention in the first place? She hardly believed it. Surely Amanda had her attractions, but she didn't have a mysterious sensuality and smart, sophisticated style like Delilah. Amanda was somewhat coarse and vulgar.
She recalled the first time they met. She never forgot the night she saw his eyes gleaming in the dark. But that was certainly not a gleam of desire. Her fingers curled into fist in her lap, clutching the fabric of her skirt unconsciously. She had more than her fair share of men's interests, but suddenly all seemed too little, all meant nothing.
A sudden awareness entered her head. There was another thing to consider. A much more important matter, and her mind was fully occupied with a totally unnecessary concern; comparing herself to Amanda Chapman.
Why on earth was she comparing herself with Amanda Chapman?
Her reaction to Amanda Chapman puzzled her. As long as she could remember, she had never felt insecure about her looks, even with a sister as striking as Del by her side. Another thought came upon her inevitably.
Why did it disturb and upset her, that Amanda probably had slept with him?
Her insane mind offered an undesirable answer. She skipped the silly thought, trying to concentrate on the more significant problem.
"One day when I walked past him, he asked me to be his muse. He said he wanted to paint me... And he really did paint me, at first..."
Did he do it with women lots of times? Or sometimes? Either way was terrible. Was it a trickery to have his way with a woman? Was it a game of seduction he had played more than once? She thought about each and every suspicious moment she had with him. Did he pretend to unconsider her yet flirting subtly with her at the same time? If it was a game indeed, it was a game well played
"For God's sake, Betty! Amanda is a goddamn liar!"Lady Byrne shouted loudly, made Ava and Mrs. Puck nearly jump from the seat."Do you forget when she came back from London, telling everybody she met the Prince Regent at the opera, and the prince asked her out for dinner?"Lady Byrne shook her head in great disgust."That's a lot of damn nonsense! Only a blithering idiot will ever trust her."Stung, Mrs. Puck shut her mouth and sank to the couch. Her anxiety reduced a bit. Lady Byrne was so convinced that everything was a lie. The lady definitely knew Amanda better than her, she wouldn't judge her harshly without a good reason. Perhaps it was just one of Amanda's made up stories."I daresay nobody knows he is very fond of painting."Amanda knew one significant thing about him. How did she get to know such things? This was bad. Really bad. She wouldn't
He frowned at her reaction. He was rather uncertain what really was going on. Her eyes wandered over his body and rested somewhere along his chest. What was the meaning of it?"What are you doing?" She asked nervously as he halted just inches away from her."Help you to the sofa." he replied shortly as he gripped her upper arm and pulled her up. She rose from the settee, too late to realize her body was shaking like a leaf and suddenly a rain of blinding spark fell on her vision, the room was smothered by darkness.Her head crushed something sturdy and she felt a strong grip on her other arm. Everything was black for a while and when she began to regain her consciousness again the first thing she recognized was her own breath, short and unsteady, then a scent, a familiar scent of clean male skin and fresh linen, and a subtle smell of oil paint, and that warmth generated from the body holding her still. Next, she was crad
"It's enough.""It's not. You're not going home before the plate is empty."It was no use denying him, and she was overwhelmingly hungry anyway, she managed to finish the meal, resisting the urge to demolish the crumble of the sandwich. She placed the empty plate on the table, took the half empty glass and drank a little. She glanced nervously when he got up and approached her."Give me your hand." he said"Just in case you have yet to recover, I don't want you to fall on the floor."She took his hand and let him help her to get up, feeling her cheeks warm. Why did she react like a silly fool? He just wanted to help her."I'm all right now." she looked down to hide her blushing face."Are you sure? Walk slowly."He released her carefully as they walked to the canvas, but he stayed close beside her
"Please stop here." She exclaimed when the familiar road to home appeared in a distance. Her house was still a hundred meters meters away, but she didn't want to be seen descending from a fancy coach by anyone. The carriage drew to a halt, a moment later, the door opened and the servant appeared."Be careful, Miss." he said politely as he helped her climb down the coach. The servant looked at the row of cottages a distance away."Do you need me to escort you home, Miss?"She was just about to refuse his offer, when a sudden thought occurred to her."That's very kind of you, Freddy, it's your name? Isn't it?""Yes, Miss."Freddy followed behind her as they walked along the path."How long have you worked for His Grace, Freddy?" she asked casually."This is my fifth year, Miss.""I see that he treat
"What are you doing here?" she asked in astonishment, totally forgot about the standard polite greetings. She thought she would never see him again."Waiting for you." he replied as he stopped a feet away from her.Silly of her, the simple answer suddenly sounded so romantic."Why?" her breath caught in her chest."I want to give you this." He drew something from his pocket."Here, please take it."She glanced at him, then at the tiny, beautifully wrapped box in his hand."What is it?""It's only a small gift, I want you to have it.""I..." she hesitated."You said you didn't do it for money. I didn't mean it to be a transaction either. I just think you deserve it. Please don't turn me down this time."He had been waiting for her in this place to give it, and she would
How could he meet her here? He came to this sacred place to seek for guidance, for enlightenment, for peace, for serenity. He had just prayed to God to deliver him from evil, yet the moment he opened his eyes, the Lord Almighty put this pure temptation right before him. Looked like the Holy Father had decided to keep putting him to the test. Heaven kept sending her again and again into his gravity. Dazed, he ceased to move and stood still as if his feet was rooted to the floor.For a brief moment, she considered to curtsy or greet him with his title, but she decided quickly that it would be odd. She never curtsied nor greeted him from their first encounter. Looking back at it, she felt strange. What kind of relationship they had? From the first time, there had never been a usual formality between them. She observed him carefully, trying to decipher his reaction. He looked surprised, but there was no signs of irritation.
Polly tossed the dough and stared round-eyed at the lady."My goodness!!! Are you sure about it? How do you know?""I attend the party every year, and his family is always invited.""Go bring her, then! You don't need to compensate. Take her with you as long as you want!""My idea is brilliant, isn't it? But we must keep it a secret. I'm afraid she will refuse to go if she knows she will meet him there.""Agree." Polly nodded."Godspeed. Don't come back empty-handed.""Of course, I bet my plan will work," the lady said confidently."Or I'll compensate you, twice. No, make it three times. Pour me some more tea, Polly. These biscuits are really good.""Agree! Though I'd prefer you to win."Polly got up to fill the cup."Looking forward to hear
He dashed up the narrow road in rapid speed. His mind rioting and his heart pounding. The thought of losing her was extremely terrifying. He expelled a sigh of relief as the sight of her back in a distance caught his eyes. A sudden realization came upon him like a lightning. He thought he had accepted that he had to leave her alone and go on with his life, a life in which she had no share. And he thought he could do perfectly fine with that. But at the very moment he was realizing for the first time, he would only be able to do perfectly fine as long as she was within his reach. He never considered if she was really going.She was strolling along the sidewalk leisurely, no signs of her being in a hurry. She looked around and stopped a few times to see through the shop window.Following her in a relatively safe distance, Ashton battled his own conscience. What the blazes was he doing here? If she really left his to