A Perfect Mistress (5 page)

“Oh, I see,”
Delia
said softly.
She smiled, and her eyes were cold as ice.
“He couldn’t get me to go to his backwater home, so he’s working on you instead. Well, beware, sister: Once he realizes exactly what
he’s
getting in you, he’ll turn you out like a shot.
And
who will ta
ke you
then
, sister
?
Not me!
I
won’t
have you back
, Sophie
. So if you
decide to
go
with him
, you
’d
better make sure you’re set up right and tight, because
you won’t be
sneaking around here ever again.”

Resentment welled up in Sophie, and oh, she felt like a
tea
kettle with hot air built up inside. She wanted to let it spill. She was tired of keeping her mouth shut. She was tired of creeping around the house like a scared little mouse. Sophie crossed her arms and looked her sister up and down.

”Oh?
Who are you going to get to run your house then, Delia?
” she asked sharply.
 
“
Servants demand payment, unlike poor sisters.
You’d
have to actually pay someone, and you couldn’t work them to the bone the way you do me.
And
what are you going to pay them with, exactly?
Good looks?
Yours are fading fast, which is why
‘your men’ are
long
gone and you have no
money. You
couldn’t
do the work yourself, either.
You
can’t scrub floors or shop for food; it would interfere with your whoring!”

And
Sophie swept
out of the kitchen, leaving Mrs. Ferguson
hiding a smile behind her hand and her sis
ter gaping after
her in
angry
astonishment.

Chapter Three

When Sophie woke the next morning, her first thought was of Jackson.

She’d
tossed and turned all night, not falling asleep until the wee hours of the morning. Her dreams
weren’t
restful, either; it had started well, with Jackson kissing her, and then had turned darker. Jackson’s face in the dream
became twisted
with anger and lust, and Sophie had been afraid. She woke with her thin coverlet in a ball, soaked in sweat.

She ached to be with him, and yet…he frightened her. She knew what he wanted, and she
didn’t
know if she could give it.

With a sigh, Sophie swung her legs over the edge of the bed.

“Just get moving,” she said aloud. “You have too much to do today. You can figure it all out later.”

Sophie worked hard all morning, but she
didn’t
mind – she needed to clear her head, and a bit of hard work was just the thing to do it. She scrubbed the entryway floor, helped
Claire
polish the staircase (while assuring that Delia would most certainly
not
dock her week’s wages), and helped
Mrs. Ferguson
with the bread making, all before Delia even stirred from her bed.

She
was seated
at the kitchen table, enjoying a rare moment of inactivity, when Delia stormed in.

“Where is my breakfast?” she demanded. “You didn’t bring it to me.”

Sophie sipped her tea.

“It’s on the sideboard,” she said calmly. “You can serve yourself. I’ve been a bit busy this morning.”

Delia put her hands on her hips.

“If you think for one moment…”

“I’m not your servant, Delia,” Sophie told her, putting her cup down on the table with a click. “I’m your sister. I don’t mind working, but I will not be treated badly.” She stood up. “Now, if you don’t mind, I’d like you to leave this kitchen and go away. I really don’t care to talk to you right now, after the remarks you made to me yesterday.”

“You’ll keep a civil tongue in your head, or you’ll find yourself on the street!” Delia hissed.

“And you’ll find yourself without anyone to keep your house for you,” she said. “I won’t be treated this way anymore, Delia.
I’m
going outside to work in the garden, and then I’m going for a walk in the park. When I come back, I expect you to treat me as your sister and
not your unpaid
help.
We can help each other, or we can part ways. You choose.
”

Sophie fumed while she weeded their small vegetable garden. Delia
hadn’t
heard a word she’d said; she’d stormed out of the room, muttering to herself. She jabbed the spade viciously into the ground. It was her fault as much as
Delia’s
, as badly as she hated to admit it. Delia treated her this way because
she’d
let her do it for so long. Maybe if
she’d
stood up for herself in the beginning, things might be different.

She decided to put some flower arrangements out, and she moved along the wall that bordered their yard, clipping choice blooms and putting them in her basket. Lord knows they had plenty of vases, and flowers were a cheap way to make
oneself
feel better. She was humming a sprightly tune when a sudden voice made her jump.

“What have we here?” asked a teasing voice. “I don’t know which is the more beautiful – you, or those roses.”

“Jackson!” she said, a smile coming to her face as she whirled around. “Am I late for our appointment in the park? Surely it’s not that time already.”

He leaned on the low wall and winked at her.

“No, you’re not late,” he said, and smiled. “I was just impatient to see you this morning. I found myself pacing the floor, and decided to go for a walk. My feet brought me here of their own volition.
And
just when I was cursing myself
and brooding over my bad mood
, I saw you there and
my mood lifted as if by magic. I
couldn’t resist speaking
to you, even though we are to meet later in the day
.”

Sophie blushed and looked down shyly. “I’ve been thinking about you, too,” she admitted in a small voice.
A satisfied grin spread over his face, and Sophie let her eyes drink him
in
.

My, how handsome he looked! He was
dressed soberly yet fashionably in a black frock coat, vest, and pants that clung to his muscular thighs. His cravat was snow white, and it set off his dark skin perfectly. Sophie felt her stomach flutter, and she clutched a hand to it.

“You look very nice today,” she said.

Jackson laughed. “You’re the only person who thinks so, my dear. I had a hat, but the wind blew it away
and
I
couldn’t
catch the blasted thing. A
small
child cried when he caught a glimpse of my face
as I was chasing it. His mother hurried him away
and glared daggers at me
for frightening him
.
”

“No such thing!” Sophie said roundly. “Why, your eye patch makes you look dashing. The frown on your face likely frightened him, I daresay.”

He laughed again. “Come, put me out of my misery and go for our walk in the park early. Elsewise I might frighten more children with my frowning.”

“I’d hate to be the cause of more suffering,” she said demurely, and then spoiled it all by grinning broadly. “Let me take the vegetables and flowers inside. I’ll meet you at the front gate in a few minutes.”

When Sophie opened the kitchen door, the smile that lingered on her face dropped off in a hurry. Delia stood right inside the door, and she
didn’t
look happy.

“What do you think you’re doing?” she hissed. “I told you…”

“And I told
you
. You don’t get to vet my friends, Delia, or make decisions about my life.”

She brushed by her sister, dropping the basket on the table. She spared a smile for
Mrs. Ferguson
, who looked frightened and fascinated, all at the same time.

“
The bean
s are doing well, Mrs. Ferguson. Perhaps we could have them with dinner,
” she said brightly, keeping her back to Delia. “And if you wouldn’t mind putting these flowers in water for me, I’ll arrange them as soon as I am back.”

It was Mrs. Ferguson’s horrified face that
warned her. She whirled to face her sister, finding her with a fist raised and her face contorted with anger.

“You’ll not treat me this way!” Delia howled. “I won’t be dismissed as if I count for nothing.”

“I’m going for a walk,” Sophie said tightly. “If you expect me to stay here, Delia, you’ll let me live my life as I please. Don’t ever, ever, raise a hand to me again, or I will leave, and I will never come back.”

“Leave then!” Delia screamed. “I don’t want you here! I never wanted you here.”

Sophie stared at her, horrified. “Do you really mean that?” she whispered.

“Yes!” Delia raged. “I mean it. I want you out of here by the end of the week.”

Sophie stared into her sister’s eyes, but she could see nothing but anger in their depths. No love, no sorrow…nothing but rage and vitriol.

“Very well,” she said softly. “I will make arrangements.”

As she walked out the front door, her head was reeling.
Jackson
was there waiting for her, and he called out a gay greeting. When she
didn’
t
answer him and merely looked
shocked
,
he took her arm in concern
, his fingers warm against her cold skin
.

“What is it, Sophie?” His brows drew together. “Are you all right?”

“Let’s walk,” she said wanly. “Give me a few moments to pull myself together.”

They paced in silence, and Sophie was glad that he
didn’t
press. When she did begin to talk, her voice was thin.

“It appears I must find somewhere else to live. My sister is no longer happy with our arrangement.” Despite her best efforts, her voice caught in a sob, and Jackson pulled her to face him.

“Why? What has happened, Sophie?”

“She doesn’t like it that I have been seeing you, but it goes farther than that. She wants me to go back to being the scared little mouse that I was before, and I just can’t do it.” She smiled up at him. “Come, let’s go to the park and walk through the trees. We’ll listen to the children playing and forget my troubles for a moment.” When he hesitated, she gripped his hand tightly. “Please, Jackson. I need that.
I’ll
tell you about it, I promise, but not now. I don’t want to weep all over you.
”

“All right,” he said slowly. “Perhaps it wouldn’t be a bad idea to calm down before you tell me about it.”

He tucked her arm under his, and walked slowly through the park with her. Eventually, Sophie felt her heart rate slow and her thoughts calm. The warm breeze and the laughing children were exactly what she needed. After all, who could be unhappy while children played all around them?

“She’s become unstable,” she said abruptly as they strolled beside a small pond. “Delia, I mean.
She’s
beginning to act as if I really was her servant and not her sister. She tried to strike me when I said I was going out, and then she ordered me out by the end of the week.”

‘What will you do?”

“I don’t know.” Sophie reached her hand up and trailed it through the strands of weeping willow that stood beside the water. “I will find something.”

His gaze was warm on her face, and he brought his hand up to tuck a strand of hair behind her air.

“My offer is still open,” he said softly, and Sophie felt her face heat up. “I
haven’t mentioned it for fear that I would scare you away, but I
think we will do well together, Sophie. I…I find you very attractive, and I know that you feel the same way. I would give you a place to live as long as you want it, and I would make sure that you
are taken care of
if you decide to leave me. I will have papers drawn up, if that is your worry.”
He looked away from her, his mouth compressed. “I will be leaving on Friday,” he said. “I don’t…I can’t stay
here
any longer. I am needed at home.”

“Let me think about it,” she said. “I …I will let you know by Thursday, all right?”

“If you decide against coming with me…I will miss you, Sophie. You’ve made my stay here most interesting.”

Sophie felt tears sting her eyes and she blinked furiously to hold them back, afraid if she started crying now she
wouldn’t
be able to stop. “I would miss you, as well,” she said when she could trust her voice.
She squeezed his arm against her side
, liking the way she felt when she touched him. She felt secure and cared-for, and his touch almost made her forget her troubles with Delia
. “I would miss you very much.”