Love & Misunderstanding

Chapter Twenty Six - Jonathan's POV

Weeks passed and I did not see Matthew at all. Normally I would have enjoyed spending a few weeks without him, but knowing that he was upset only made me feel guilty. I did not regret falling in love with Miss Hoffman, and I doubted that I ever would, but I found myself wondering what would have happened if I had just told him why she had turned down his proposal in the first place. Although, if I had told him, I fear that she would have hated me even more than she had.

It felt like I was caught between a rock and a hard place. I did not want to lose the woman that I loved, but I did not want to lose my closest friend either. I had absolutely no clue what I could do that would fix this problem. All I could do was pray that Matthew would calm down and let me explain in time. I could not imagine what he was thinking. Although, I was quite certain that whatever he was thinking, it made me look like some sort of horrible monster.

"Jonathan, are you ready yet?" Vincent called from the other side of my door.

"As ready as I can be," I mumbled with a sigh. Pulling open the door, I stepped out of my bedroom, joining my siblings in the hallway.

My father was meeting with the church council today. Normally I had no quarrels with such a meeting, but today I wanted nothing more than to hide myself away in the Library. While I was looking forward to seeing Miss Hoffman again, I knew that in addition to her family, the Caldwell's would be present as well. In fact, they may have already been in the house at the moment. That was one of the only advantages of living in such a large house. It was difficult to tell whether guests had arrived.

"What is wrong? I thought that you would be much more enthusiastic about seeing your friend." Caroline commented. "You have not had the chance to visit with him properly since we returned from London,"

"Matthew and I are not on the best terms right now," I informed them.

"What happened?" Vincent asked.

I explained the situation to them as best as I could, obviously leaving out what the whole dispute was about. I could hardly tell them that the reason we were not speaking was because we were both in love with the same woman. Well, that was not entirely right. I was in love with her, and he was strangely obsessed with her. Either way, I could not tell them.

"Have you tried talking to him?" she asked.

"He does not listen," I replied with a nod. "He is likely to never speak to me again."

"It is fortunate that Father has given us permission to miss the meeting then."

Hearing that, I silently thanked the Lord! At least I would not have to endure the awkwardness to being in the same room as Matthew. Soon after making that announcement, Caroline requested that one of us check the time. Vincent, having his pocket watch on him, quickly pulled it out and showed her. Realizing that she was late, she rushed off, without a doubt heading toward the music room. And knowing Miss Hoffman as well as I did, I was positive that she would be there as well.

"Will you be spending the day in the library as usual?" Vincent asked as I started towards the very place of which he spoke.

I rolled my eyes, turning to leave. "Where else would I go?"

"I thought that you might be going off to see Miss Hoffman?"

I stopped dead in my tracks. "Why would I want to see her?"

"Do not be coy with me. I saw you with her on the balcony in London."

There was no doubt in my mind that if I had been able to see myself in that moment, my face would have been bright red with embarrassment. "Did anyone else take notice?"