Hopeless Heart

“No time like the present,” she murmured with a frown as she eyed the rest of the list. Now was not the time to get drunk, but it was daylight outside and perfect weather to be able to experience something on her list.

“To scrump for apples,” she whispered.

Dare I? She looked down at her rather plain, pale brown dress. She had brought it with her because it was something she ordinarily wore to do chores in. It was clean and serviceable, and wouldn’t upset her too much if it got ripped or soiled.

“To scrump for apples it is then,” she murmured as she gathered her shawl about her shoulders.

Ruth had gone into the village to fetch some provisions and intended to visit a friend before she returned. Georgiana left a note on the kitchen table to explain where she had gone before she let herself out of the house and set off down the garden.

Half-way down the path she stopped and stared at her aunt’s orchard. To pick some apples from there wasn’t as daring as it ought to be to qualify as an adventure.

Was it because it wasn’t really scrumping if she was just picking apples off her aunt’s tree? She had watched her brothers climbing someone else’s tree many years ago. That had seemed considerably more daring, especially when they had been chased away by the farmer who had owned the orchard.

With that in mind, Georgiana turned her attention to her surroundings but had no idea where she might find another orchard. Nor did she intend to ask anybody because she would have to lie to them about why she was looking for one.

“As long as I choose my tree wisely nobody need ever find out about this. This is my adventure, and a secret I need to keep to myself,” she whispered as she climbed the fence at the end of the garden and began to march across the field.

She had no idea where she was going but it was nice to be able to savour the crisp air and brilliant sunshine on her face. It was so pleasurable that at first she completely forgot about why she was out walking, until she stumbled across a small group of trees. Beside it was a hedgerow laden with blackberry bushes, but what captured her attention was two large apple trees nestled beside the woods.

“Perfect,” she whispered.

The only problem she foresaw was that both apple trees and woods were located directly beside the main road leading into the village. Anybody who passed by would be able to see her.

“I can’t let that put me off,” she sighed.

Before wisdom prevented her, Georgiana lifted her skirts and stepped toward the tree closest to her. Minutes later, she hung several feet off the ground, her feet dangling uselessly beneath her as she struggled to find a way to get down from the tree without breaking her neck. She tried to swing her feet onto a lower branch so she was able to stand up and ease the aching in her arms. Unfortunately, her legs were nowhere near long enough to reach the branch she needed to use to reach safety.

“Heaven help me,” she muttered in dismay when she realised she was going to fall. “As a lady of one and twenty years, I most definitely should not be climbing trees.”

Still, an inner core of strength she never realised she possessed refused to allow her to concede defeat and drop to the floor in an undignified heap. Instead, she gritted her teet

h and began to swing her body harder. Wriggling and squirming, and shuffling along the branch awkwardly with her hands. Georgiana eventually managed to place her feet on a nearby branch and, with one last surge of energy, she propelled her body forward and grabbed hold of a higher branch. Seconds later, she was sitting high in the leaves of the tree munching on an apple.

While she ate the sweet reward of success, she contemplated the enormity of what she had just done. It was horrible to admit it, but this was her one and only major accomplishment in life. She couldn’t remember ever having an occasion where she had set out to do something so wayward, or physically demanding, and had succeeded. It was rejuvenating; invigorating even, more so than skinny dipping had been. Although it was only climbing a tree, she had just conquered something major. She had certainly proved to herself that she had more physical strength than she had realised. She had also become aware of mental determination she hadn’t recognised before and knew now that she was inclined to see her problems through to the bitter end no matter how dire her situation. Not only that, but she was also competitive. Anything her brothers had done she was able to do as well. She was no weaker sex. She was Georgiana, a woman who was capable of succeeding at whatever she wanted to turn her mind to–she just had to be interested in it and have faith in herself.

Unfortunately, her joy was dampened by the appearance of someone far below her.

“Georgiana, just what in the world are you are doing?”

Georgiana closed her eyes and silently prayed she had just imagined Will’s voice, but suspected that God wasn’t listening today. She opened her eyes and sighed deeply. Her prayers hadn’t been answered because the ground had neither swallowed her up nor spirited him away.

“What do you want, Will?” she asked in disinterested tones.

In spite of the wild flurry of emotions churning deep inside, Georgiana kept her face impassive, if a little bored, and glared down at him.

“What are you doing up there?” he demanded, craning his neck up to see her through the branches.

“Eating.” As if to prove her point she crunched loudly on the crisp sweetness of the apple and began to munch.

“Can you come down for a minute so we can talk?”

“Nope,” she replied unconcernedly.

Determined not to give up, Will tried again, hoping to instil common sense into her.

“What do you intend to do if the magistrate sees you?”

Georgiana shrugged. “There is no reason why he should see me. If he does, what is he going to see, someone in a tree munching an apple? It is not illegal. Of course, he would see you talking to a tree. It is hardly the crime of the century either way so I am sure he won’t pay all that much attention.”