Secret of the Sonnets by Samantha Hastings

Author:Samantha Hastings
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Covenant Communications, Inc.
Published: 2022-12-20T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 18

Thou art thy mother’s glass and she in thee

Calls back the lovely April of her prime;

So thou through windows of thine age shalt see,

Despite of wrinkles, this thy golden time.

—Sonnet 3

Robert tapped his thumb on his leg impatiently. He stood next to his mother at the front entrance of Hartley Hall. Lady Gunther was by Adelaide, who steadily avoided eye contact with Robert. He wondered if Frederick had told her about Miranda—or gently hinted that her regard wasn’t returned. His friend and Eugenia hovered a few feet away from the group and spoke in the appalling whispers that lovers always seemed to converse in.

He watched as two carriages slowly made their way up the lane. Before the first carriage had come to a complete stop, a boy of seven pushed open the door and jumped out onto the gravel.

“Aunt Jenny!” he yelled and ran into Eugenia’s arms, hugging her roughly.

Robert braced himself, for he knew he was about to be accorded the same treatment from his nephew Theodore. The lad bounded toward him and squeezed his middle, wrinkling his favorite coat. Carefully dislodging the small arms, he stood back to see that his nephew had grown an inch or two and had a new sprinkling of freckles on his nose.

“Uncle Robert, guess what? Guess what? Papa is going to give me a pony. My own pony, can you believe it? Will you teach me how to ride it? Will you? Will you? Please, please, please!” Theodore jumped up and down, wringing his hands as he pled.

Robert sighed. He could think of few worse fates than attempting to teach his exuberant nephew how to stay on a horse.

“Do say you will, Robert,” his sister Lady Anne Witherington said as she was assisted out of the coach. Anne was a younger version of their mother, with the same large eyes and dark hair. “It would be such a treat for my dear boy. Theodore talked of nothing but you for months after you took him on a ride in your phaeton.”

“And sprung ’em!” Theodore yelled, his face glowing in delight of the memory.

Robert shivered.

“Why Robert would have any interest in entertaining your vast nursery is beyond me,” another voice said.

He turned to see his eldest sister, Lady Cassandra Thornton, being assisted out of the second carriage by her unassuming husband, Lord Humphrey Thornton, Duke of Sutton. Robert had always felt awed by Cassandra, for she was an imposing figure. Her husband followed in her wake like a footman.

His mother embraced his sisters warmly, wisely ignoring their previous confrontation. Cassandra and Anne had fought all growing up, and now married, they still did not get along.

Anne hugged Eugenia next. “How beautiful you look. Oh, I am so happy you are finally to be married.”

“So am I,” Eugenia said, beaming at her family.

She appeared to be in such high spirits that she hugged Cassandra as well—something Robert would never dream of doing. He watched Cassandra endure the embrace with a slight grimace.

“Of course, we are all very happy to see you creditably established,” she said.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.