Chapter 7
“Oh,Floyd, you are such a good riding teacher!” Annabelle gasped happily as he helped her down from Primrose. “I cannot believe you have got me ridingalready.”
“You have a natural talent for it, I have never seen someone take to horse riding sowell.”
He held onto her hands and stared deeply into her eyes. As they looked at one another Annabelle realized that this was no longer a crush. What she felt for Floyd was so much more powerful than that. It was real, it waslove.
“I do not know what is going on with me,” Annabelle whispered quietly to Floyd. “You make mefeel...”
“Yes, you make me feel the same way too.” His hands snaked around her waist and he lightly tugged her towards him. Annabelle fell willingly against him, she wanted to be nearer to this man because he made her feel incredible. “There are no words for it, arethere?”
“No,” Annabelle replied breathlessly. She could feel her breasts rising and falling against Floyd’s chest, her fingers buzzed with excitement as they wrapped around his neck, her heart hammered. She could not believe what was about to happen. “There arenot.”
Floyd cocked his head slightly to one side, indicating that he wanted to kiss Annabelle. She knew that it was wrong, she had been told many times that it would ruin her reputation if she allowed a man anywhere near her outside of wedlock, but that simply made it that much morethrilling.
Floyd wanted to kiss her, and she wanted to kiss himtoo.
Annabelle moved her lips closer to him, the fizzing anticipation grew, any minutenow...
“Annabelle, are you even listening to me?” her father’s snapping tone dragged Annabelle right out of her fantasy. “What is wrong with you at the moment? You are constantly daydreaming. I feel like I cannot speak with you at all, and we have a lot of things that need to bediscussed.”
Annabelle’s dreams dissipated into nothing. She was pulled from her wonderful fantasy life and plonked right back into the reality of her father’s wish for her to marry Lord Ashdown. Still, even now. He was not letting itgo.
“I am sorry, I do not feel too well,” she panted, refusing to discuss anything wedding related. “Do you mind if I go tobed?”
Otto blew out a deep breath of air and shook his head disappointedly. “Fine, you do not seem like yourself, maybe that would be for the best. We will have to have this conversation at some pointthough.”
“Of course,Father.”
Annabelle walked up to her bedroom for some time alone, but as she got into her own private space she realized that Floyd was walking one of the horses through the garden within her view. He had an older gentleman with him, another staff member by the looks of it, but Annabelle could only see him. As he bent his body forwards to smooth down the horse, causing him to smile brightly, Annabelle bent over the window sill and watchedhim.
His sandy hair looked blonder in the sunlight, his muscles rippled under his shirt, with the dirt across his face he looked even more handsome than before. He was too gorgeous for words, it did not matter that he was the stable boy, the crush that she had on him was growing stronger with every passingsecond.
Maybe it was just a happy distraction from her issues with Lord Ashdown, or maybe it was something much more real. Annabelle was not sure, and the worst part was she could not even discuss it with anyone. This was the first problem that she had ever suffered that she could not discuss with her friends. They simply would notunderstand.
Annabelle was alone, she did not have anywhere to turnanymore.
* * *
For the firsttime in many years, Josephine felt nervous as she stood outside her husband's office. Maybe, in the beginning of their relationship, she found Otto intimidating because she did not know him too well, but that was a very long timeago.
Now, after over two decades of marriage, she fully understood how Otto’s mind worked, and usually she knew how to make him see things from her point of view. She prided herself on being one of the only people who knew how to change his mind, but Watson was the one area he was being too stubborn for words, and it was also the one area she really needed him to listen to her. Annabelle and her future happiness depended onit.
Come on, Josephine,she scolded herself as she raised her fist to knock.This is so important, this is what needs to be done. Your daughter needs you.Just because she was not asking for help anymore, it did not mean that Josephine was willing to give up onAnnabelle.
Knock,knock.
Otto did not answer right away, but Josephine knew this was a tactic of his. It was unlikely that any important visitors would come without being announced first, but he had to play it safe, just in case. He needed to seem busy, powerful, and in control at all times. Even in front of hiswife.
“Come in,” he eventually called out, causing Josephine’s heart to skip an anxiousbeat.
Josephine pushed the door open and she stood just inside Otto’s office. Her head was held high, her chin jutted out, she rolled her shoulders backwards. She looked confident and in control, even if she did not feel it. Otto could not hear her racing heart, which meant she could easily play itdown.
“What are you doing?” Otto smiled at his wife. “Come in properly, take aseat!”
“Right, of course.” Josephine shook her head. She probably did look strange standing oddly in the corner trying to look confident. “I hope that you do not mind me coming to disturb you. I know you are a busyman.”
“I have time for you, Josephine, you knowthat.”
