Falling Petals

Chapter Six

Sophia was very impressed with the meal, the smell of each food item mouth watering. Each taste was unique, the flavor coating her taste buds easily. The beef was cooked to perfection, the potatoes smooth and creamy, and the cooked carrots were salted in a way that was easy for her to enjoy. Not too much, not too little. Perfect.

When she thought the meal couldn't get any better, the butler Arthur carried out to plates, each holding a single slice of cake. But she could clearly see the delectable looking dessert.

Vanilla cake with red chunks spread throughout the dessert, the center of the cake lined with a whipped cream and a separate red filling. The top was iced with what looked to b plain vanilla icing. On the top rested a small sliver of lemon and two raspberries close together. A few raspberries even leaned on the plate next to the cake sliver.

Damon took his eyes from his butler and turned his attention to the young lady sitting nearby. Her pale blue eyes were saucers, sparkling in the light from the windows. A smile cracked on his thin lips. "I remember how much you spoke about liking raspberry desserts in some of your previous letters. So I arranged for a special cake to be made. The cake is lemon, with raspberry bits throughout and a lemon icing. I hope you enjoy it."

The older nobleman's voice drew Sophia's attention to her fiance sitting nearby, unable to fight the wide smile that spread across her face. "Oh, it looks positively wonderful. Thank you."

And her words rang true. When she took a bite, her taste buds were attacked with an intense flavor that rivaled anything she's ever tasted before. The sponginess of the cake was just right. It was clear that the dessert hadn't been left out a single minute to allow the outer layer to become hard. The whipped cream was light and sweet. The lemon icing had a slight tang to it that only added to the mix of flavors in a single bite. And the raspberry. The raspberry pieces were so evenly distributed Sophia was unable to take a single bite without the burst of sweetness from her favorite fruit.

Damon took delight in the way the young noblewoman's eyes lit up after her first bite. He knows that she is still unsure about this sudden engagement. He was so used to women his age coming after him for his wealth, his status. But she was clearly different. The way she admired his home. The way she paid attention to such small details showed him that this was a girl who he could possibly be comfortable around.

The meal passed rather quickly. A little too quickly for Sophia's liking, for she was nervous about what Lord Larson could want to show her. Her first thoughts, being as paranoid as she was, led her to picture something foul and frightening. 

"Now, Lady Anderson, if you'd be so kind as to follow me," Damon spoke in such a calm, smooth tone that it was impossible to tell what intentions he had. His violet colored eye gazed at her, narrowed in a surprisingly gentle fashion. With his cane in one hand, he began to approach her chair.

Her heart began to beat rapidly against her chest, filling her ears. What was he coming to her side for? Why did his mere presence make her so utterly nervous? There were servants around, of course, but would they stop their master if he were to try anything?

Pausing just to her left, Lord Larson extended a white, gloved hand to her and a smile that looked more like a sly smirk played onto his lips. 

It took Sophia a moment to register what he was doing, but soon graciously accepted his help to stand from her seat and flashed a soft smile his way. "Thank you, my Lord," she murmured.

Damon gazed at the gloved hand in his own, the fingers so small and slender compared to his. She held his hand so delicately, it was like she wasn't holding on at all. And when he helped her to stand, she was so light that he was almost afraid she would collapse as soon as she stood. Then there were her eyes. Those blue orbs that gazed at him anxiously, like prey staring at a looming predator and awaiting their demise.

After a few very long seconds, the raven-haired Earl walked in front of the blonde, leading her through the maze-like halls of his mansion. The halls were decorated in the same white and gold colors as the rest of the vast building, and despite knowing just what to expect, the young Lady still found herself mesmerized each time they turned a corner. 

Sophia could picture images from stories she had read and could imagine herself wandering the corridors of a grand castle, led by the handsome and generous prince to a place where she could live out the rest of her days with positively no worries like the young heroine's in her books. Alas, she was instead led by a dark, intimidating man to a place only her maker knew where.

She walked behind him for only a few minutes before the taller male stopped outside a set of double doors. The wood was clearly polished and taken very good care of, much like the rest of the mansion. Sophia was surprised that a man who looked the way he did would care so much about keeping his home the way his parents intended. 

"My Lord," she at last found her voice as she gazed at the doors, "just where have you led me?" The young lady was unable to help herself from being anxious and could do nothing to hide her nervous, trembling fingers.

Damon's thin lips twitched into a very faint but genuine smile. "Lady Anderson, you don't have to have any fear walking beside me. If my intentions were to harm you, why would I when your family knows where you are?" He then turned his back to her, grabbed both brass handles of the door in his hands, and shoved them open with ease.

As the doors were pushed out of the way, Sophia's blue eyes widened in disbelief and wonder. Shelves upon shelves, rows upon rows of books lined floor to ceiling. Ones had worn covers, some looked brand new and well-kept. No dust settled anywhere, indicating that it was cleaned often. And if it was cleaned often, no matter how worn the books were they would still be readable. 

She stepped past Damon and into the room, her fingers already trailing over the spine of the closest leather-bound book. "I-I've never seen so many stories in one place before," Sophia murmured, her heels clicking against the wooden floor. "I don't even recognize most of these titles."

The Earl needed to bite his tongue to keep himself from smiling. The joy in his young fiance's face sent a sense of pride coursing through him. He'd done that, he'd put that smile on her face. "You are welcome to whatever ones you want. You can take a few with you when you go home, and simply return them on your next visit. I want you to feel welcome here. I'd like you to be comfortable around me."

Lady Anderson had barely heard him over the sound of her rushing heart. His words made a soft warmth appear in her cheeks, and she swiftly averted her gaze away from him and back to the books before her. "That's very kind of you, thank you, my Lord." 

This was strange to Sophia. A man who looked so frightening, yet at the same time could be so kind and gentle with her. While she still wasn't sure if she wanted to marry him, she knew she had no choice in the matter either way. This wasn't a book, this was her story. She had an adventure laid out before her, and Sophia knew she had to accept the challenge.