Bailey Robinson's orders were simple; get rid of the letter and get back to work.
When Bailey begins a correspondence with a mysterious woman, the last thing he expects is to fall in love with her. Or worse, find out that the woman behind the words...
Bailey found it impossible to take his eyes off of Elizabeth for an entire minute.
When he arrived London that afternoon, Frederick immediately put him to work around his grandfather's estate. At first, Bailey thought they were simply expecting a guest for dinner but as he made his way past Frederick's bedroom, he heard his master mumble something about marrying Elizabeth and the torture of having to seat through her presence for an entire evening. It was then, Bailey understood that Elizabeth was on her way to the estate.
Nervous, to say the least, Bailey stood trembling from head to toe on the front porch with Frederick and his grandfather as they waited for the carriage that carried Elizabeth and her entire family, to come to a halt before them.
The footman pulled open the door to the carriage and a man climbed down. Bailey couldn't see the man's face from his position on the porch but he could tell the man was a man of influence just by the quality of suit he wore.
The footman maintained his position by the carriage, his hand outstretched to help someone else down. For a second, as Bailey sighted a red gown, he assumed it was Elizabeth. But the woman who appeared seemed a little too old to be unmarried. Her red hair was styled in elaborate curls that was clipped atop her head.
Frederick and his grandfather began descending the stairs of the front porch but Bailey maintained his position, certain he couldn't even convince his legs to move.
A boy of about seven or eight, climbed down after a few seconds. His face was squeezed into a frown and Bailey immediately knew who he was; Samuel, Elizabeth's little brother. He could tell, just by looking at Samuel, that he hated having to be dressed in a suit, or having his red hair combed and slicked to the back.
Bailey tore his eyes off of Samuel long enough to catch a glimpse of a blue fabric. His breath immediately ceased as he watched Elizabeth climb down the carriage.
Dressed in a blue lace gown that fell to her ankles, her hands were covered in wrist length gloves. Her hair, a mass of curly black locks, was braided to the back.
Bailey was still studying her features when she lifted her head up and their eyes immediately locked. All Bailey could think of was how breathtaking her eyes was and how much he wanted to stare into those eyes forever. He wanted to put a pause on that moment as they stood staring at each other, he wanted to be the one she was here to meet.
Bailey might not have grown up with a silver spoon, but he never, in his entire life, longed or craved for the things society put emphasis on. He always focused instead on how blessed he was to have an incredible mother and how he wouldn't trade in the life he had for anything in the world.
Yet, here he stood, envying Frederick. For the first time in his entire life, he wanted to be the one standing in Frederick's position. He wanted to be the one who would most likely be Elizabeth's husband. The void and longing in his heart for Elizabeth in that second, left him reeling in so much pain, he felt tears well up in his eyes.
Elizabeth turned from him then and his eyes turned to Frederick who was now kissing her knuckles.
Tears made their way down his cheeks and he immediately bent his head to try to hide them.
Bailey was certain he wouldn't make it through an entire evening without making a fool of himself.
And he had been correct.
He reached down to wipe his knees, too embarrassed to look up.
“Are you okay?”
He heard Elizabeth's voice and simply nodded to her question.
“Here, let me help you.” Elizabeth said and he lifted his eyes to find her staring down at him.
Her face was so close to his, it would have been so easy to lean in and kiss her. She was so beautiful, he thought but as quickly as the thought entered his head, he remembered what he was doing on the grass in the first place.
Bailey had gone to the garden with a tray of tea for his master and Elizabeth. The second he saw Frederick on his knees and he heard Frederick's question, he tripped. Embarrassingly, there had been nothing in his path to cause him to fall. The tray, tea pot and two tea cups, came crashing down as well.
Elizabeth wasn't his to kiss, he shook his head as if to scold himself. A frown settled on Elizabeth's face and he immediately knew she assumed the shake of his head was in rejection of her offer to help.
Straightening, she stood before him and watched as he rose to his wobbly feet with much difficulty.
Frederick stood to the side, a look of disgust on his face.
“I'm sorry, Master.” Bailey bowed his head in shame. “My lady, I'm sorry.”
“You are dismissed.” Frederick called. “Get someone to clean this mess up.”
Bailey nodded and turned to leave the garden.
“It's a bit chilly out here, we should go inside.” Elizabeth said.
“Oh,” Frederick didn't sound too pleased with Elizabeth's request. “Very well.”
Bailey hurriedly made his way into the building, his heart beating loudly in his chest.
Would Elizabeth accept his master's proposal? Her neglect to give Frederick an immediate response could act in Bailey's favor because knowing his master, Frederick most likely wouldn't ask again due to his ego.
Bailey nodded in satisfaction. So, it was settled; Frederick and Elizabeth would never be wed. But as soon as the thought entered Bailey's mind, another one entered just as quickly. Elizabeth will be wed someday. It didn't matter whether or not it was to his master, what mattered was that it would happen and it would never be to Bailey. And, there was nothing he could do about it.
