Summer 1818

Chapter 2 - Poetry

After their encounter with the Patriarch, Camila, and Adela sought refuge by continuing their stroll toward the woods, which were also adjacent to a serene lake not known to many in the ton.

"I think Benedict is handsome. Do you not think so?" Camila inquires of her best friend.

Adela, lost in her thoughts, catches only the tail end of Camila's statement. "Of what?" she asks.

Slightly annoyed, Camila, accustomed to Adela's aloofness, retorts, "Christ, where has your head been these days?"

Adela shrugs in response, concealing her contemplations about Jasper. They had played together as children, but Jasper's family had relocated to France for undisclosed reasons. Now, older, Adela harbors a burning feeling for him, one she struggles to articulate.

"In the clouds, surely," Camila responds. "As I was saying, Benedict is handsome, is he not?"

Adela's face betrays her thoughts, prompting Camila to raise an eyebrow. Attempting to deflect, Adela stammers, "Um, right. Yes, I think he is lovely, but..."

"But?" Camila interjects. "Adela, be brutally honest with me. Am I going blind, or perhaps I am going mad? Is he truly the beast everyone says he is?"

"No, it's not that," Adela reassures, exaggerating her conviction. "He's just not someone I would... court with."

"And who might that be?" Camila scoffs.

In the distance, two boys laugh and converse, tossing rocks into the river. Adela urgently pulls Camila behind a thick tree trunk to hide.

"What the hell are you doing?" Camila exclaims in shock.

Adela hushes her, attempting to keep their presence unknown. Irritated, Camila says, "You know how I feel about being shushed."

"I apologize. Please just quiet down. I do not want them to know we are near," Adela whispers.

Camila peeks from behind the tree, spotting Jasper and Benedict facing away, throwing rocks into the lake. Smiling, she turns back to her friend. "You like him. Jasper," Camila says with a knowing smile.

Adela shakes her head, denying what they both know to be true.

Camila's smile fades as she remarks, "Oh, really?"

Breaking a small branch with her foot and screaming as loud as she can, Camila falls to the ground, pretending to faint. From a distance, Benedict and Jasper hear the agonizing scream.

"What was that? Did you hear that?" Jasper asks.

"Yes," Benedict says, alarmed. "We should see if something terrible has happened."

As Benedict moves towards the sound, Jasper holds his arm out, stopping him. "Wait, maybe it is alright. I am sure it will work itself out," he says, eager to return to skipping rocks. Another louder scream comes from the same area.

"No, we are going," Benedict declares as he heads towards the direction of the scream. Jasper lets out a sigh as he follows behind.

Adela rushes to Camila's side with urgency, asking, "Are you joking? Get up." Camila shakes her head no, leading Adela to give in to her game. "Fine, I would court with him, can we go now?"

"Not yet, you'll thank me later," Camila whispers. She looks away from Adela and screams again, causing Adela to cover her ears. Adela's face fills with dread as she hears the boys come closer. Jasper and Benedict spot the two girls on the ground, Camila holding her ankle and Adela right by her side.

"What happened?" Benedict asks as he approaches Camila.

"She has stepped on a branch and twisted her ankle," Adela replies.

"Let me get a look at it," Benedict says as his hands gently graze her ankle and examine it. Camila looks at Adela and winks, causing Adela to snicker.

"Yes, be gentle. The pain is unbearable," Camila says to Benedict. Adela can't take this situation seriously anymore, so she hides her face in her hands as she laughs silently and quickly walks past Jasper. To Jasper, it looks like she is crying, so he follows behind to make sure she is alright.

Adela hears the footsteps and crushing leaves as Jasper follows behind. She begins to run away towards the lake so she does not reveal that she is laughing, but he continues to chase after her. Finally, they reach the lake where Benedict and Jasper were just skipping rocks.

Out of breath, Jasper asks her, "Are you alright?"

This makes Adela start laughing even harder with her head still in her hands. Still, it looks like she is crying to Jasper.

"I believe she will be just fine. Trust in me that Benedict will take great care of her. I am sure of it," Jasper says, trying to reassure her.

Adela starts laughing uncontrollably. Finally, it is now obvious that she is okay and was never upset to begin with. Jasper lets out a huge sigh of relief; his relief then turns into confusion as he watches her laugh at her friend's pain.

"I apologize. I did not mean to worry you; I just—" Adela cuts herself off with her own laughter, laughing even harder than before. Jasper can't help but join her. They both laugh until they are on the grass.

"She was faking it," Adela says through laughs. Jasper looks at her laughing as well but still confused. "Camila. She just wanted Benedict by her side."

"Really, she wants to court with Benedict?" Jasper asks. Adela nods her head, smiling. "Interesting..." Jasper replies as his mind drifts.

"I missed you. When did you come back from France?" Adela asks, wanting to keep him focused.

Jasper turned his attention to her, smiling. "Last summer, my family decided that continuing my studies here would be of use to me," Jasper elaborated on his experience in France, not omitting any details. Well except the ones that included his scandalous affairs with women.

"Wow, that all sounds incredible," Adela said with wide eyes of amusement; Jasper was always a great storyteller. "Is school better in London than in France?"

"That is what my family believes. Me, I am indifferent. I believe the real reason is because they missed London. I as well," Jasper replied, looking Adela up and down, analyzing the details of her dress.

Adela's face began to heat up. "Do not tell anyone, but I have always dreamed of going to school. Being able to learn from professors looks like a joy," she said, changing the subject.

"It is more of a pain," he replied, making her laugh. As she laughed, Adela could see that Jasper's mind was drifting again.

After a comfortable silent moment, Adela asked, "What is on your mind?"

Jasper looked back at her, smiling as he gently said, "It does not matter, I suppose."

"Of course, it matters," Adela replied.

Jasper smiled at her even wider, then said, "You look very lovely."

Adela could not hide the look of surprise on her face. "Oh, thank you," she said, looking down.

"Why are we so far apart?" Jasper asked. Again, this caught Adela by surprise. She had never spent this much time alone with a man who wasn't part of her family. She could see his green eyes getting darker the longer he looked at her. Adela inched closer.

Jasper smiles, " I wrote you a poem some time ago." Adela's eyes widen. "I have warmly burned to see you and the beautiful eyes akin to the oak trees gracing the land of France. I pray I am as acquainted with you as I am with the venerable trees-"

"That was beautiful!" Adela exclaims cutting him off.

"I wasn't finished," Jasper says laughing.

"No need," Adela says as she hugs him.