“Oh my goodness!” I yelled to myself once Jim was out of sight and out of mind—who was I kidding, Jim was never out of my mind when he was in my life, and the spell he seemed to always cast whenever he was with me would always linger. But I was hopeful today it would dissolve once he left the room. But only until our next encounter, of course.
“Oh my goodness!” I yelled to myself again, then repeated over and over, “Scott King, Scott King.” My Scottish Warrior who loves me for me, my flaws and all, and who has never broken my heart. Remember him, Letticia? Get a hold of yourself, Letticia.
I gave a little shake of my body, as if to shake off all of Jim’s love germs, powers, and spells, then headed back to my room to gather my thoughts before dinner. I was starting to become more familiar with my surroundings, as I was now able to find my way back to my room more confidently with less wrong turns occurring.
As I walked back up the spiral staircase, I acknowledged the old man in the framed picture. “Cleveland Senior,” I said with a bow of my head. I really had no idea who the old man was, I could only guess it was Jim’s father, or grandfather. Damn them, whoever it was, for allowing such a man as Jim to have such a hold over me. Then my anger softened towards the old fellow as I saw the resemblance he and Jim shared. I was doing it again, falling victim to Jim’s spell. I had to turn away before it took hold of me again. I let out a frustrated scream and ran up the remaining stairs, all the way back to my room. If anyone had seen that last little episode of mine, they may have thought twice about my mental state, and for good reason too.
I flopped onto the bed backwards and covered my face with my hands as I took in a few deep breaths. I was still in shock, and very much missing my Scott. I was so worried about what Jim was capable of, and what he had the ability to do to me—to make me unfaithful. I only hoped I had enough strength to finally say no to him.
I got off the end of the bed and walked over to the mirror attached to the dressing table. I started brushing my knotted hair as I took in my extremely messy appearance, which I had managed to acquire after a rough night in the back of the van. I thought to myself, this really isn’t the look I would have chosen if I had any previous knowledge that I would be bumping into an old flame such as Jim Cleveland. Then I ran my gaze over my unmatching, very twentieth-century clothing, and at that moment recalled the outfit Jim had on. He was wearing knickerbocker-style pants with high boots. He also wore a waistcoat underneath his red hunter’s jacket, and a green cap. Not a look or style I had ever remembered Jim to have undertaken back in the day; however, he pulled it off well. If I didn’t know any better, I would say I had somehow ended up in the 1800s with my old flame Jim Cleveland, who had every intention of seducing me that night.
I decided to practice saying “no” out loud to myself in front of the mirror. After about the hundredth no, I started to feel more confident in my ability to say it to Jim. I said the word one last time for good measure, then with a nod of my head and a reassured “yes, I have got this” look in the mirror, I was set and ready for a night of no.
At that moment, there was a knock at the door. “Yes,” I said. Damn it, how did the word yes come out of my mouth so soon, and so easily?
Chapter Eight
The door to my room opened, and in walked a young lady who looked very sweet, but not very worldly. She had an innocent look about herself, her red hair tied up in a bun with a few strands that had broken free.
“Hello, milady. I am your lady-in-waiting for the duration of your stay at Torwood Castle. The lord has instructed me to be at your service. I am here to get you ready for the dinner.”
There he went again, supplying me with a lady-in-waiting. He had started the luring already, casted his fishing rod out for the night, and is dangling the bait right in front of my eyes. Well fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice? Shame on me, I thought to myself. I was not about to fall victim to Jim Cleveland’s charms again, not now that I had my very own Scott King back home, worried sick about me—or on second thoughts, was he, even? Maybe he was still angry with me and not talking to me still.
“That is very kind of you, my lady-in-waiting, or do you have an actual name?” I asked.
“Oh yes, sorry, my name, in fact, is Darcy.”
Well, Darcy I’m very capable of dressing myself, thank you very much.”
Darcy appeared surprised. “Really, how on earth do you tie up your own corset with no help?” she asked innocently.
“Corset, what corset?” I asked just as innocently.
“This one.” Darcy opened up the closet door. I had forgotten about my new wardrobe of clothing. “Oh, ah, yes. Well in that case, I may need you to stick around after all,” I said.
“At your service,” Darcy said with a curtsy, then gave me a look that said, “where do I start,” as she looked at me up and down before picking out my outfit for the evening. She was clearly contemplating how to start this project she had in front of her, called cleaning Letticia up.
She decided this project needed a bath first as she got near me and gave a few sniffs. There was a stand-alone bathtub in the corner of my room, and Darcy instructed me to get naked and hope on in.
“I will do no such thing,” I protested. Darcy didn’t take my no for an answer. If my nos were not even working on Darcy, how on earth were they supposed to work on Jim, then. I must admit, after having buckets of hot, soapy water poured over my sweaty, smelly body, it wasn’t as bad as I had first thought.
Once I was clean, and up to Darcy’s standard of cleanliness, I was instructed to get out of the bath. She dried me down with a towel, which felt rather awkward, but I was in the 1800s, so I decided to just go along with it. Plus, my nos were having no effect so far in the 1800s anyway. Darcy then proceeded to put my undergarments on me, then the dreaded corset, which took far too long for my liking to do up. On the plus side, there was no way Jim Cleveland was going to get me out of this in a hurry if my nos failed me tonight. Darcy then showed me the most beautifully made dress I had ever seen, a long green silk embroidered gown that looked simple but attractive at the same time.
I was finally dressed in my corset, petticoat, stockings, garter, and a padded bum roll, which I refused at first, saying I had enough natural padding already, that there really was no need to add to it. Once again, my no was ignored, and my bottom had now doubled in size. It was not looking good on the no-front, I thought. Finally it was time to slip on the emerald-green dress. It fitted like it was made for me, and me only. Darcy then added a black silk choker around my neck, and I slipped on a pair of lace-up ankle-high boots with a slight heel.
I had never worn a corset before, and it was in fact hugely uncomfortable, but what it did for my waist and breasts was amazing. I felt like a million dollars and looked like a million dollars too. I was ready for dinner, and to start dishing out some nos.
I was about to head out the door when Darcy stopped me. “Um, not quite finished yet, milady. We still have hair and makeup to go.” She laughed.
“Oh yes, of course.” Why was I so eager to see Jim Cleveland again? I needed to cut free from his fishing line, I decided.
Chapter Nine
Darcy had done an amazing job on such a plain, smelly canvas such as myself. I now found myself walking down the hallway towards the second spiral staircase, which would lead us to the dinner hall, when Darcy announced, “Milady, the lord has asked to see you before dinner, right this way.”
Before I could even say no, we were at a door I could only imagine was the entrance to Lord Jim’s bedroom.
Darcy gave two knocks, then I heard someone say, “Yes, come in.”
Darcy lead the way, and I followed in behind her with a stomach full of butterflies. Why on earth did Jim want to see me alone before dinner? From past experience, I already knew the answer to that. What did Jim only ever want from me? I was always only ever good for one thing in Jim’s eyes, and because I had fallen for his smooth-talking and allowed myself to be lured in b
y his English charm all those years ago, he always got that one thing he wanted, with the hope from me that someday there would be more.
Snap this line he has you hooked on, Letticia. Snap it once and for all. No such luck, though. The line was strong and luring me right up onto the so-called boat deck.
I walked inside the lord’s room behind Darcy. I was using her as my very own personal shield, protecting me from Jim’s luring powers and love spells, and it did seem to work until she moved aside and left me exposed in the middle of the battlefield of totally screwed-up false feelings that were being shot in all directions. I was trying to avoid being hit by them, but it was no use. Jim Cleveland held power over me.
Jim was standing in front of a full-length mirror, pulling on his dinner jacket with the help from his footman. Jim didn’t acknowledge me until he was finally dressed and ready. I never was his priority, always second best, and had to wait for him for everything. When the time was right for him, he eventually turned around and said, “Hello, gorgeous. Wow, look at you, you look amazing.”
Okay, so it was obvious this line was not going to be getting snapped anytime soon now. Here I was falling for him once again, succumbing to his bullshit.
Once I came out of my huge fantasy bubble, called The Bubble of Jim, I noticed his footman staring at me in disgust. I’m not sure why it took me this long to really take notice of him, but once I did, I was in utter shock. It was Scott, my very own Scott. My Scottish warrior, who truly loved me—all of me. Why, then, did I not react and go to him? There was a powerful force keeping me from doing so. The force called Jim.
Jim broke this awkward situation without even knowing it, due to his selfishness, his all-about-Jim personality, and he took hold of my hand. “Let’s go to dinner, shall we, darling?”
At that moment, I could feel myself taking yet another huge bite of the bullshit bait that Jim was so good at dangling in front of me. I was hooked pretty good now, and there was no unhooking me for a while, I felt. Even with a man such as Scott right here with me, with the tools and goods to unhook me from this man called Jim, the force was just far too strong.
Jim and I held hands all the way down to the dinner hall. He complimented me on my appearance the whole way there. It was what he did, and what he was so good at doing to lure me in.
We arrived at two huge wooden barn like doors that were shut. Outside stood two butlers who proceeded to open the doors for us as we approached. With the doors fully open, I was greeted with applause, and while people stood up from their chairs to welcome the lord of Torwood Castle and myself into the dining hall, I looked on in amazement.
It was a long dining hall consisting of rustic-looking wooden floorboards, and chandelier lights that hung evenly along the length of the long wooden banquet table. The chairs were also wood, with red-and-green velvet cushioning. The table was set with Torwood’s finest china and cutlery. People had already settled in for a night of feasting and socialising by the looks of it, as the wine and ale flowed constantly.
Jim still had my hand in his as he led me to the top of the table where two larger vacant seats awaited us. It didn’t occur to me at first that one of them belonged to me for the night until I was ordered to sit down. I was seated at the top of the table next to the lord of this castle, by the name of Jim Cleveland, and oh, how I knew him so well. Did this mean I was the lord’s date for the night? That I could refer to myself as the lady of Torwood Castle? My childhood fantasy was finally coming true.
My Lord Jim stopped the applause and chitchat with a clink of his glass, using the end of his fork. Everybody obeyed his order and took to their seats to listen. “Welcome, everybody, to Torwood Castle for the night. I can see a lot of the Clevelands seated around the table, along with lifelong friends. Now let us enjoy this feast we have before us tonight, but not before a good Scottish blessing.” Jim went on to say a very Scottish blessing in a very Manchester accent, which left me very confused. “Some hae meat and cannae eat. Some nae meat but want it. We hae meat and we can eat, and sae the Lord be thankit.”
It was a strange choice of a blessing made by Jim, I thought. I also couldn’t stop thinking how much better it would have sounded coming from Scott—a true Scotsman, not a man from Manchester who just happened to be an owner of a Scottish castle in the 1800s. Another bone I was going to have to pick with Jim, that had started to stew inside me, was that he didn’t even introduce me to the hall full of people in his welcome speech. I was just here to warm the otherwise empty seat beside him and stroke his already huge ego until he was ready to have his way with me. Where is your self-respect Letticia? Obviously I left in the twentieth century, I answered myself.
While I was deep in conversation with myself, two men dressed in a uniform one could only assume they were guards of Torwood Castle, approached Jim and spoke to him quietly, as to not let the other guests hear. But being the lady of Torwood Castle for the night, I was in close enough range to hear every single word.
“Me lord, we have captured three thieves, a man and two women, in the castle grounds, trying to steal from the cellar. We have put them in the dungeon, what would you like us to do with them?”
“Leave them there for the night, I will deal with them accordingly in the morning.”
The guards took their orders and walked away, leaving me shocked. I knew precisely who those three people were, but only one of them I cared about, and that was Sophie. I needed to rescue Sophie before the morning, and before Jim would deal with her “accordingly,” which I had no idea what that entailed, being in the 1800s and all. One can only think it would not be very ethical or humane, to say the least.
Jim turned to me in his seat and said, “Wait right here, I won’t be long. I’m just going to say hello to a friend over there.” He pointed toward an older fellow, round and jolly by sight. Because my self-respect was in the twenty-first century still, I agreed, and did what I was told. How could I not? Jim had his sleek look going on tonight, the one that oozed importance and status, which added to his sexy, mysterious nature. And if I had the ability to be with him, then he must obviously see the same in me—well, so my lack of self-respect was telling me. If my self-respect had been present, it would have been telling my lack-of-self-respect self, “No, no, he sees no such thing in you. What he sees is an easy woman who will give him whatever he wants when he wants it.”
My mind was buzzing, and I was starting to feel rather overwhelmed. I decided to disobey my orders from Jim and get up and mingle also. I didn’t get very far before the footman, Scott, pulled me aside into an alcove with a curtain attached. He pulled me right in and shut the curtain behind him. “Letticia, what are you doing?” he asked angrily.
I returned his glare with a blank expression on my face. “Whatever do you mean, Scott?”
“What are you trying to achieve here with Jim, what about us?” Scott asked.
“What am I trying to achieve here? Oh I don’t know, Scott, maybe to teach you that it is not okay to walk out in the morning without saying good morning—or even goodbye—and it is also not okay to not reply to my apologetic text, which come to think of it, I had nothing to even apologise for.”
Scott looked dumbfounded. “Hells bells, Letticia, is this what this is all about? Your way of getting back at me after we had one little disagreement? You go to these extremes to teach me a lesson?”
I was fired up at this point and nothing was off-limits. “Well yes, I would, Scott. I’m so sick of the way males think they can treat women. Like we are just an object to them, who are at their beck and call. They say boo and we jump. Well, news flash, not anymore. I’m taking a stand and putting my pride and self-respect back where they belong. Now if you’ll excuse me, I need to go find Jim, the lord of this castle. I am his lady tonight, after all.”
Scott still looked dumbfounded. “Letticia, how is going to find Jim Cleveland putting your pride and self-respect back where it belongs? He is the one that took that away from you in the first plac
e.”
I looked at Scott and thought about what he said. It did actually make sense and had a lot of truth to it, but I was still under Jim’s love spell, well, so it felt like anyway. And truth be told, my self-respect was long gone. I wanted to feel like I mattered tonight. I wanted to feel important, like I was someone. And in my own mind, being with the lord of this castle was the way to achieve this.
Scott pulled open the curtain of the alcove and started to walk away, leaving me there. He turned around after only a few steps, though. “Letticia, you are on your own, goodbye.”
I was both shocked and confused. Surely Scott would never give up on me just like that? Well, fine, so be it. Scott was just a footman anyway; I was playing with the big boys now. I was with the lord of Torwood Castle.
I found my way back to my lonely chair, with Jim still to return to his. I sat there drinking a little too much ale—well, I had to pass the time somehow. Plates of food cooked by Mrs Chubs and her team were now being brought out, which saw Jim finally return to his seat. “Hello, beautiful, sorry I was a bit longer than I thought. So many people to catch up with.”
I smiled a little smile, but deep down wondered why he didn’t invite me to meet these so-called “many people” he talked of. My self-respect raised its head—It’s because he wants to keep you on the perimeter of this so-called mysterious life of his and not let you get too deep into it, to make it hard for himself when the time comes to swallow you up then spit you out.
After we feasted on succulent, juicy meat and roast vegetables picked that very day from the castle’s gardens, Jim said, “Let’s go take a walk, Letticia.”
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