A Daughter's Duty

Chapter One

     Cordelia groaned as the maid pulled open the thick curtains in her room, letting the morning's light in. "I'm afraid it's time to wake up, Miss," Jenny apologized, beginning to open Cordelia's drawers and setting aside the pieces of her outfit for the start of the day. 

     "Oh Jenny, what time is it?" Cordelia's brown eyes opened wide, no longer able to ignore the morning sun's blinding rays. She looked to the clock on her bedside table and groaned, once again, when she read that it was seven in the morning. "Remind me again why I have to rise so early today?" Jenny was still racing through the room when Cordelia had just sat up, rubbing her eyes and letting out a monstrous yawn. 

     "Your father's orders Miss, I just abide by them. I do believe, however, that are entertaining early guests today." Jenny held up a horribly-colored yellow day dress that Cordelia absolutely abhorred, along with frilly-laced gloves with an equally awful parasol to match. Cordelia rolled over into her pillows and sighed, remembering exactly which guests they were to entertain today. 

     Her father had invited Lord and Lady Heyworth, along with their several children, to stay at their estate, Loddington Lodge. While her father repeatedly denied it, she had a feeling he was planning on setting her up with one of the sons. What was the eldest son's name again? David? Anthony? She knew she had met the family a number of times during one of her father's many house parties, but for the life of her, she couldn't recall the heir's name. 

     Eventually rising from bed and washing herself up, she began dressing for the day. Walking by her room's mirror, Cordelia stole a quick glance at her appearance and headed down to breakfast.

     "Cordelia, I expected you downstairs several minutes ago," her father gruffed, his eyes never leaving the morning's paper as she sat down in her seat across from him. As soon as she was seated, servants began rushing around, preparing her plates and tea. 

     "Papa, good morning to you too. I had some trouble getting out of bed this morning, I'm afraid." Her father only grunted in response as he set his paper aside and began eating the meal in front of him. She started doing the same, nibbling on her fried potatoes and eventually cutting into her chops. 

     "I expect that you remembered the Heyworths are arriving today to stay with us for the time being." Cordelia nodded, and he continued, "they will be bringing along with them their sons Charles and Malcolm," that was his name, Malcolm! "The eldest, Malcolm, is the heir to their estate, you know..." Her father began. Internally, Cordelia rolled her eyes. 

     "Is he now? Well that's very lucky for him, I'm sure," Cordelia started, trying her best to get her father to drop the subject. This made him finally look up from his meal, shooting his daughter a glare. 

     "Cordelia, darling, we've been through this before. There will come a day when you will need a husband, you cannot truly expect to be on your own forever!" Lord Alfred let out a small chuckle, "that would be absolutely ridiculous, and us Gardiners never appear ridiculous." 

     "Yes, father," Cordelia answered obediently, staring back down at her potatoes. 

     "Besides, dear, everything isn't all doom and gloom, your cousin Gertrude will be arriving later this evening to keep you company!" Her father exclaimed excitedly, clearly missing Cordelia's solemn sigh at this news. She hated her cousin Gertrude, with a passion. As they were of similar ages, Gertrude and Cordelia were always expected to play together as children, and Cordelia has always found her tiresome. 

     Cousin Gertie never hesitated to read psalms or scripture at quite possibly the worst moments in the history of time. When she wasn't doing that, she was chastising the rest of her family and acquaintances about their relationship (or lack thereof) with the Lord, and when her decrees fell on deaf ears, she quite often enjoyed describing the pits of hell to which her loved ones were destined. 

     Outside the window, Cordelia noticed a stable hand giving her horse, Adrastos, a trot around the yard. Adrastos' head bucked around as he pranced gracefully around the stablehand. Cordelia saw this and felt her palms itch for the heavy straps of her driving reins and the wind through her hair on a ride around Loddington.  Riding and exploring were her favorite things to do, and ever since she was given Adrastos for her fifteenth birthday, the two have been attached at the hip.

     "Cordelia? Cordelia? Cordelia, are you listening to me?" Her father hissed, smacking his paper down on the table as he stood up. Cordelia's head swiveled to face her father.

     "Yes, sorry Papa."

     "Our guests will be here any minute-" with that, they heard a coach pull through the gravel drive, "let's greet them with our most alert, smiling faces please." Her father plastered a false grin onto his mustached face and opened the door to the breakfast room, Cordelia straightening up and following close behind. 

     "Oh Lord Alfred, how good it is to see you! Lady Cordelia, it's a pleasure, you've grown so much since the last time we saw you!" Lord Heyworth began, giving her father a firm handshake and Cordelia with a delicate kiss on her gloved hands. She forced a smile similar to her father's from before as she bowed her head to the portly and impeccably dressed man in front of her. 

     "Lord Heyworth, thank you. Welcome to Loddington Lodge," Cordelia started. As woman of the house, it was her job to play host when she and her father were entertaining guests. 

     "You remember my wife, of course," Lord Heyworth said, Cordelia and Lady Heyworth each tilting their heads at one another, "and my two sons, Malcolm" and with that, a man similar in stature to his father stepped onto the drive, shaking Cordelia's hand quite aggressively. He flashed Cordelia a grin from beneath his too-thin mustache, and Cordelia couldn't help but notice he had a surprising amount of food between his teeth.

     "And my youngest son, Charles." With this,  a young man with strikingly dark eyes stepped down from the coach, a thick book under his arm. In an effort to avoid his intimidating gaze, Cordelia craned her head to inspect the book's title on its cover. She felt pulled up by those eyes and took in the man in front of her. Lord Charles Heyworth gracefully grasped her dainty hand in his large one, and planted a kiss on top. 

     He was all elegance, yet somehow wasn't even the least bit ostentatious, seeming humble in his greeting and the way he met Cordelia's stare. "My lady," he said, in an almost-whisper, forcing Cordelia to practically lean in closer to him to hear what he had to say. When she bowed her head to Lord Charles, she noticed the ends of his mouth twitched up into what looked like the start of a smile, and she began to feel a fluttering in her stomach, similar to the time she had too many cookies at a holiday party and took Adrastos for a ride.

     She hated that feeling.

     When she cocked her head back up, Cordelia swore a silent oath to keep Lord Charles at arm's length.