our love blooms (like flowers in the spring)

women can do anything a man can

As the week goes by, Jack finds himself unable to sleep. It is no secret that he has trouble sleeping. Everyone is awfully aware of this, yet Jack still tries to play it off like it is nothing. When he does manage to fall asleep, it is in his office. Cold and alone. At times, Mrs. Hanson swings by and covers him with a blanket.

However, it is worth mentioning that now part of his daily routine includes going for a walk in his garden. Jack enjoys the quiet humming and the on tempo snipping.

Jack was about to walk outside when his mother called him. He turns to her.

"Yes, mother?"

"I am worried for you, my son." Her voice is quiet. "You have not slept in your quarters the whole week."

Jack's shoulders tense slightly. "It is nothing." He shrugs her off.

The woman sighs. "Please, Jack."

He turns his head to the side. "The baron is returning this week. I do not know when."He lowers his gaze. "However, it is worth mentioning that he told me that you should prepare for his arrival."

The woman smiles softly. "Finally, I missed him."

Jack looks at her with a concerned expression plastered on his face. "Mother, he does not know any boundaries whatsoever."

"Give him a break." Her tone is quiet. "I should be living with him in his Manor -"

"Unacceptable." He immediately interrupts. "He is from a lower class. I am doing him a favour."

"That is no way of speaking of your stepfather. You respect him." Her tone is stern.

Jack takes a deep breath. "I shall respect him when he provides me with the same seriousness." His tone is calm and collected. "Excuse me." With that, he steps outside.

The Lord mumbles under his breath as he tries to find the gardener. The afternoon had just started, and he has done everything he needed for the day. His eyes run wild under the hot sun as he searches for him.

He walks around slowly at first, but as time goes by, his pace quickens. "Where is that gardener?" He mumbles.

After walking a marathon on foot, trying to find him, Jack settles on mounting a horse to get the job done quickly. He rides to where he left off and keeps searching. His heart was racing. Where was he?

However, it is such a sunny spring day that the horse grows tired quickly. Jack unmounts it near his lake and guides the animal to drink from it.

As the horse drank the water, Jack looked around. His eyes stop at the sight of a white shirt. "Dear Heavens..." He mutters.

It was the gardener. He was washing his shirt in the river, whilst not wearing any garments. He was turned to the lake, unknowingly turned to Jack as well.

His vision may not be the best, but Jack still puts in the effort. His brunet hair was drenched in water. Water, which droplets fall into his chest and roll down his torso. He seems to have a defined body-completely normal due to the nature of his job.

Jack sees him making a move to leave the river, and he forces himself to look away. He must. Yet, at the same time, he is being hidden by a bush. No, he must not. The gardener deserves dignity.

He mounts his horse again. Somehow, his heart felt calmer. Jack rides back to the house with all the time in the world. The Viscount studies his property. The blooming flowers, the well-tended gardens. He sure knew what he was doing.

Jack then returns to the house. He felts much more relaxed. The manor is quiet, except, that is, for the pianoforte being played in the living room. He smiles softly. He figures Ava must be having her piano lessons.