“It’s funny,” Lillian hissed, and Hattie and Stella gave out hesitant chuckles.
“What are we still doing here?” I asked, irritated, hoping that I could keep the tears at bay until I was alone.
“We’re waiting on one other,” said Mabel in her soft voice.
“One more?” I asked, just as there was a knock on the door. The sound filled the spacious entry hall, and I tried to peer over, confused.
“Who is it?” Hattie asked, standing up from the couch to take a look. I don’t think the trio had been expecting any further competition. As we all rose to go see, I caught sight of Annabelle rushing toward the door.
“Announcing Ms. Christine Croft,” the butler said, turning to us. From behind him stepped a small woman. I’m ashamed to say that I briefly wondered what she was doing here. Her dress must have been at least a few sizes too big for her, and had wrinkled as if she’d slept in it. Her frame was slight, reminding me of a girl I’d known in school who had stopped eating to lose weight. Dark hair was twisted into a simple bun at the nape of her neck. She cast her eyes downward.
“Miss?” Lillian snickered. “Just miss? What is she doing here?”
Annabelle whispered something to her, then raised her head to address the rest of us. “Ladies, thank you so much for joining us,” she said, tucking a blonde strand of hair behind her ear. “Mr. Potter will see you all to your rooms. We’ll begin everything tomorrow.”
Hattie scoffed next to me. ““Where’s the duke?”
“The duke will be returning from business tonight,” Annabelle told her, already seeming exasperated with the questions. “As I stated before, you will see him tomorrow.”
“What sort of business? Is he with the prince?” Hattie asked with wide eyes.
“What was your name?” Annabelle’s eyebrow was raised and a hand was on her hip.
“Hattie Thorn,” she said proudly.
Annabelle nodded as if it all made sense. “Well, Hattie, the duke’s business is none of your business.”
“But if one of us is to be married to him, shouldn’t we know?” Hattie crossed her arms like a child.
The new girl, Christine, looked at Annabelle with a start, but Annabelle didn’t seem to notice.
“Hattie, is your mother involved in everything your father does for business?” Annabelle asked.
“Well, no, of course, it’s not women’s work.” Hattie shifted uncomfortably, her face turning redder than mine had been earlier.
“So why on earth would you expect that we would tell you what the duke is doing? You aren’t his wife. He hasn’t even met you yet.”
Hattie raised her chin and looked straight at Annabelle. “Well, he will tomorrow.”
Annabelle rolled her eyes. “Mr. Potter, please show these ladies to their rooms.” She was clearly finished with the conversation.
Mr. Potter, the butler, motioned for all of us to follow him. The new girl started too, but Annabelle stopped her. “Except for Miss Christine. I’m taking her with me.”
We were all quiet as Mr. Potter led us up the stairs to our rooms. I hardly had time to take in the ugly olive wallpaper or unpack into the mahogany wardrobe before I found tears slipping down my cheeks.
Chapter Four
When I woke up the next morning, sunlight streamed through the arched windows, creating a warmth that didn’t match my mood. With the curtains pulled aside and daylight filling the room, it only served to cast light on the pea–green wallpaper. That, coupled with the mahogany furniture, caused the whole room to feel tight and dark like a prison, despite the tall ceilings. I stared up at the canopy of the bed for a moment before rolling over to check the time. No one had given me much information about what time things were supposed to start today. The clock said 9:00 but was that early or late? No one had come to get me yet, so I had to assume I wasn’t missing anything.
I pulled myself out of the bed, my feet padding against the soft rug. To the right of the bed was my own restroom, and I used the washbasin to rinse my face. My eyes were a little puffy from falling asleep while crying. I pressed a cold cloth against them and sat down in a chair across the room, hoping the cold would reduce the swelling.
I wasn’t ready to face this day. I had no idea what was in store for me; no one had told us anything. Adam had mentioned interviews, and I had done my research on how to be alluring. I had no idea if it would actually work or if I would be able to pull it off.
I pulled the cloth off my face and crossed back to the restroom. I looked a little bit better now, and I could breathe a sigh of relief. I was back to my usual, boring self.
As I left the bathroom, there was a knock on the door. I wasn’t dressed to receive visitors, but I was curious, so I went back through the room and opened the bedroom door. A young woman wearing an apron with her dark hair in a ponytail stood holding a breakfast tray.
“Hello, miss,” she said, swallowing. I noticed her hands shaking, spilling tea over the rim of the cup. “I have your breakfast.”
I hadn’t realized I was hungry, but now that I could smell the food, my stomach growled. “Oh, thank you,” I said, reaching out for the tray.
She relaxed a little. “I’ll set it down,” she told me, and I stepped aside to let her rest the tray on the small table at the foot of my bed. When she was done, she squared her shoulders and took a deep breath.
“You all right?” I asked her.
“Oh, yes, miss. “
“You look...nervous.”
She glanced down at her hands. “Oh, well, I’ve delivered breakfast to three of the ladies so far, and it didn’t go well.”
I sat down in the chair next to the table and began to eat one of the crumpets slathered in melted butter. “Oh?” I asked.
“They said they didn’t eat those sorts of things. One of them threw the tray at me!”
“Oh my God,” I said, covering my mouth as I tried to eat. “I’m so sorry.”
“We don’t usually have a lot of ladies in the house. I just wasn’t expecting it.”
“Ladies or not, they shouldn’t have treated you like that,” I said.
“It’s all right, miss,” she said with a smile. “I should get going. I still have three trays to deliver. Good luck.”
“Thanks, I said with a smile, and she shut the door behind her, leaving me in the room alone.
I had just finished up my breakfast when there was another knock on the door. Thinking it was the maid coming back to collect my tray, I didn’t hesitate to stand up and open the door for her. Instead, I came face–to–face with Adam.
“Oh,” I said, crossing my arms over my chest. “I wasn’t expecting you. I’m not exactly decent.”
“I don’t mind if you don’t,” he said.
I rolled my eyes, pinching my lips into a tight line. “What can I do for you?”
“May I come in?”
“I suppose.” I stepped to the side, and Adam slipped into the doorway, shutting the door behind him.
“I wanted to talk to you,” he said.
“All right, but I’ve got to get ready.” I crossed to the wardrobe and opened the doors, studying the dresses I had brought.
Adam came up behind me. “Wear the blue one.”
“I turned around to look at him. “What?”
“The blue one. That’s the one you wore the other night, right? It looked nice on you.”
“Oh.” My fingers lingered over the fabric hanging from the wardrobe. Finally, I chose the blue one. If Adam thought it would look good on me, then perhaps the duke would think so as well.
Adam took a seat in the chair by the window as I carried the gown over to the bed.
“You needed to talk to me?” I asked, dusting off an imaginary thread instead of looking him in the eye.
“I just wanted to prepare you for today,” he said.
“All right.” I slipped the thin straps of my nightgown over my shoulders and let it fall to the floor. I knew what I was doing. I was doin
g it on purpose. If he could mess with my head, I was going to mess with his.
“Um,” Adam’s voice faltered as he gazed at my nearly naked form, but I pretended not to notice.
“Yes?” I pulled on my slip and stepped into the dress.
“Um, well...what?”
“You were going to tell me what’s going on today, which is good, because no one else has.” I reached behind me to do up the buttons, but my fingers couldn’t quite meet.
Adam sprang up from his chair. “Let me help you with that,” he said, and I didn’t protest. His hands brushed against my back as he took his time doing up each button.
“You were saying?” I asked as I held my hair out of his way, wanting to continue our conversation.
“Right. We’re doing interviews in a bit, then we’ll all have dinner tonight.”
“What sort of questions will they be asking?”
Adam’s fingers hesitated right as he got to the last few buttons. “I don’t think I’m supposed to tell you that.”
I turned around to face him, our bodies just inches apart. I’d do up the rest of the buttons on my own. “Don’t you want him to choose me?” I asked.
“Well, yes—”
“So shouldn’t you give me as much of a leg up as possible? I have some tough competition.”
“Do you think so?”
“Absolutely.” I crossed the room to the mirror over the dresser. Twisting back my hair, I secured the honey–brown locks with pins. When everything was in place, I rummaged through my jewelry box. I lingered over my emerald earrings, one of my favorite sets, before choosing the pearl ones instead.
A slipped the earrings in, and in the mirror I could see Adam lingering hesitantly behind me. I turned to face him, an eyebrow raised expectantly.
“Well? Are you going to tell me?”
“I suppose. They’ll probably ask you about your hobbies, about the things you like to do.”
“That should be easy enough,” I said, giving myself another once–over in the mirror.
“They’ll probably also ask about domestic things, such as running the household.”
“All right. I can handle that.” I sounded much more confident than I felt, but I plastered on a smile to convince Adam.
“Great,” he said, glancing at his watch. “We’d better get downstairs then.”
“Lead the way,” I said. He held the door open for me, and I stepped out after him. The hall was carpeted in a thick rug, and tapestries hung from the walls, woven with little wolves around the border. My room wasn’t too far down the hall from the staircase, and I found myself admiring the stained glass windows as they cast rainbow patterns on the landing.
Adam led me back to the parlor. The trio was there, sitting on the same couch they had sat on the night before. Mabel was sitting in a high–backed chair along the wall, but I didn’t see Susie or the girl with the dark hair. I chose to sit on the loveseat near Mabel, away from the trio of awfulness.
Before I sat down, Adam caught my hand, pulling me toward him. He put his lips to my ear.
“Good luck,” he whispered, then dropped my hand and turned to leave the room. I stood in the parlor, shocked for a moment before going to sit down. As I moved, Hattie and Lillian giggled.
“Ooh, what was that?” Hattie asked. “What did your lover have to say to you?”
“He’s probably just trying to throw her off, that’s all,” Lillian said with a smirk.
I just rolled my eyes.
“I don’t know, they looked awfully cozy,” Hattie said.
“Cozy? Please, he can’t stand her. Why would he? She’s beneath him. It’s a joke that she’s even here, really.”
I was trying to do all I could to block them out. On the end table between Mabel and me was a book of poetry, and I picked it up and began to page through it, praying that it sent the message that I wasn’t listening.
I had actually gotten a bit engrossed, only looking up when Susie hurried in and sat next to the fireplace. After that, I kept ignoring the three until there was movement in the doorway and Hattie, Lillian, and Stella stopped giggling. I looked up to see Annabelle ushering in the thin, dark–haired woman who had come late the night before. Then the other girls began giggling again, and I gave the woman what I hoped was a reassuring smile.
“Interviews will start at half–past,” Annabelle announced to us. I glanced at the clock over the mantel. Only a few more minutes to go.
The woman sat down next to me, sending the trio into yet another fit of giggles. They whispered something amongst themselves. I was ready to go back to my book and ignore them, but the woman next to me had a different idea.
“Excuse me?” she asked, squaring her narrow jaw.
Lillian laughed. “We were just talking about how fitting it is that the two lower–class girls sat together. It’s better that way. That way the rest of us don’t have to interact with you.”
“Oh, Lillian, you’re so bad!” Stella shrieked, though I was pretty sure she hadn’t even been paying attention.
The woman turned to me, rolling her eyes. “My name’s Christine,” she said, offering her hand.
I took it. “Hazel,” I told her.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Hazel.”
Hattie, Lillian, and Stella continued their giggling, and Christine’s body tensed.
“Is there something I can help you with?” she asked, staring them down.
Hattie smirked. “Well, if you’re offering, I could really use someone to shine my shoes.”
“You mean your daddy didn’t buy someone to do it for you?” Christine asked, shaking her head as if it were a tragedy.
Hattie’s jaw dropped, and for the second time in twenty–four hours I saw another woman get the best of her. Usually I thought of myself as sharp, but around these witches, I could scarcely find the scathing words I wanted. Perhaps it was because they’d had a lifetime of experience being awful.
“Thank you. They’ve been laughing at me from the moment I walked in here,” I muttered to Christine.
“How tacky,” she said.
The three didn’t have a chance to formulate a response because the minute hand was finally pointed straight down. Lord Merrill Bleddyn, an ancient and bearded man, appeared in the doorway.
“Lady Whittemore,” he said, glancing over at Susie. She had fallen asleep in the last few minutes. “Lady Whittemore,” Merrill repeated. Christine reached over and poked her, and Susie sat straight up.
“Yes, what?” she asked.
“Lady Whittemore, I need you to come with me now,” Merrill said.
“Oh, yes, quite,” she murmured, standing up and following him down the hallway.
A hush had fallen over the room. For all of the bravado Hattie and Lillian put on, they were just as nervous as the rest of us. I couldn’t keep my eyes off the clock, watching the seconds tick by as we all waited to be called.
Eleven minutes passed before we saw Susie go back upstairs. Right behind her was Stephen, Annabelle’s husband, and he ushered for Mabel to follow him. I almost had to laugh; Mabel was nearly the opposite of Annabelle. She was quiet and docile, where Annabelle took charge and spoke her mind. I wondered if Stephen chose Mabel for precisely that purpose.
Mabel spent about fifteen minutes in the interview before she, too, passed by the doors of the parlor and started up the stairs. I caught sight of Adam behind her, and my heart began thumping in my chest.
He stepped into the room, wearing his most charming smile. “Hazel,” he said, holding his hand out to me. I didn’t take it. Instead I ducked my head past the giggling threesome and followed him out of the room. I breathed a sigh of relief once we were out of their sight.
“What was that all about?” Adam asked me.
I tried to shrug it off. “Oh, you know how they are. They’ll laugh at anything, even if there’s nothing funny.”
He looked at me a moment. “Sure.”
We continued down the dimly lit ha
ll toward the back of the house.
“You don’t have to be nervous,” Adam said.
“I’m not,” I lied, which was stupid because I knew he could hear my heartbeat. “I just want to make a good impression, that’s all.”
We came to a stop just a ways down the hallway from a few sets of heavy double doors. Adam turned and put his hands on my shoulders.
“Hazel, listen. You always make a good impression. He’s going to be blown away by you. You’re going to do amazing, do you hear me?”
I nodded.
He pulled me in, and for the first time in almost nine months, we embraced. I cherished everything, the way his body felt against mine, the scent of his hair, the warmth of his skin. I never wanted to let go, but I had to. I couldn’t let myself fall all over again. I pulled away.
“Are you ready?” he asked.
“As ready as I’m going to be.”
He took my arm and guided me toward one of the double doors. He pushed them open and ushered me over.
“Miss Hazel Ackerman,” he said, introducing me, and I stepped inside.
Chapter Five
I stepped into a room covered floor to ceiling with books. The shelves on the far side of the room were broken with an arched window stretching up to the ceiling. To my right, a balcony split the wall in half, an alcove underneath, both parts filled with shelves filled with books. A step below, in front of me, was a table stretching from this end to the window. On one side, the duke, his men, and Annabelle sat, waiting. On the other side was a single chair.
“Go ahead and sit down, Hazel,” Adam said, giving me a little nudge. I swallowed and stepped to the open chair, keeping my head level, hoping my heart wasn’t pounding too loudly.
I recognized everyone at the table from town, though I didn’t know all of them well. On the far left was Lord Udolf, a man who had been a friend of my paternal grandfather. Beside him was Lord Bleddyn, nearly as old, and next to him was Lord Melle, who always appeared angry about something. Across from me was the duke, and he smiled at me comfortingly. I’d always thought the duke was an attractive man, with his dark, nearly curly hair and dark eyes, but he wasn’t my type. He wasn’t Adam.
The Wolf's Choice (The Wolf's Peak Saga Book 4) Page 4
