“Eleanor, how lovely!” The Countess said, looking up and smiling with pleasure.
“Eleanor!” The relief in Cynthia’s face was clear, she jumped up and ran to hug Eleanor.
“Cynthia!” Although there was a bit of reproof in the Countess’ voice for Cynthia’s brash behavior, there was no real censure. Eleanor bit back a laugh; Edwin had told her about his conversation with the Countess and her plans for Wesley to marry Cynthia. The fact that she’d actually been successful would probably mean a great deal of tolerance for Cynthia’s behavior as long as it wasn’t scandalous.
“I’m sorry, my lady,” Cynthia said, pulling away from Eleanor but still clinging to her hand. In a lower voice, she said to Eleanor: “You have no idea how glad I am to see
you.”
"No, no, no, the cream and sage, not the cream and mint. She wants her gown to be rose pink and the mint will be too light to contrast nicely against that."
"I'm sorry, my lady, but these are what I could find," the exasperated housekeeper said.
"Oh dear... I hope they're not at the estates. I suppose I should go have a look." Turning, the Countess smiled at Cynthia and Eleanor. "Please excuse me, dears, I really must go look at the linens we have here."
When the Countess left, Cynthia sighed with relief and plopped down on the chaise in a distinctly unladylike position. Eleanor couldn't help but laugh as she seated herself on the comfortable couch across from her.
"She's a force of nature, isn't she?"
"Let's just say, I'm glad I don't have an opinion on what the color of the linens, and relieved that she even asked me what color I would like my wedding gown to be!" Cynthia said, giggling a bit. She gave Eleanor a wry look. "I suppose you've heard?"
"Of course," Eleanor said, smiling warmly. "Wesley sent a note to us this morning telling us that, as of last night, you are engaged. I'm incredibly pleased to offer you my best wishes."
"I fear I may need them." Twirling one of her curls around her finger, Cynthia looked in the direction of the door the Countess had exited through. The gesture made her look rather younger and more unsure than she normally did. The morning dress of soft sky blue she was wearing only emphasized that. "I was worried she'd be upset. But if she was, she's hiding it very well."
"Why did you think she'd be upset?" Eleanor asked, rather curious. It appeared that Cynthia had also been unaware of the Countess' machinations. Edwin had told her about them, of course, after they’d returned home from the first Assembly. Although that wasn't too surprising that Cynthia was unaware; Wesley was not the type to go along easily if he thought he was being manipulated, and Cynthia didn't seem to be either. She didn’t think that Cynthia would have gone along with any plan of the Countess’ if she’d been aware of it.
Cynthia shrugged. "I've been a bit of a trial to her, on occasion, I'm afraid." She didn't look particularly sorry about it though, Eleanor thought with amusement. "I didn't think she'd want me as her son’s Countess, but she seems rather eager to become the Dowager."
"Well Wesley's been a trial to her his whole life," Eleanor said, smiling cheerfully. "And she still likes him. Perhaps she thinks he deserves you. Unless you're overcome by a sudden desire to behave now that you're going to be a Countess?"
To her surprise, Cynthia hesitated. Her hand rubbed the side of her bottom. "Well... not entirely. Although the Earl doesn't react quite like the Countess when I do."
Rather shocked at the revealing gesture, Eleanor stared at her. "Did he spank you?"
Somehow she couldn't imagine it. Oh yes, her brother had been raised to do so. And serious, dictatorial Edwin... it had been surprising but not entirely shocking that he disciplined her in such a way - especially considering that he was the man her father had chosen out for her. But charming, easy-going, good-tempered Wesley who was always quick with a joke? He had spanked his ward?
"More than once," Cynthia said rather ruefully, blushing although she appeared to be attempting to look nonchalant about it. "He ah... may have caught me kissing Mr. Carter last night."
"Oh dear..." Well, perhaps Eleanor could understand Wesley's reaction then; she'd seen the way he watched Cynthia. Still, it was hard for her to get her head around the idea.
It seemed that Cynthia was eager to share, wanting someone to talk to about the experience, because she leaned forward so that she could lower her voice a bit. "He spanked me in the carriage... much harder than he's done before. I'm still sore today but I can't let on in front of the Countess, I don't know what she'd think. But he spanked me and then he put his hand between my legs, which he'd never done before... is that usual? It felt wonderful but I'm a bit worried since almost immediately after he told me that we would be married. Are you sure it's only a man's cock in there that can get a woman with child?"
Eleanor found herself at an utter loss for words. So many revelations that she absolutely had not needed about her childhood friend! She turned bright red just thinking about him in such a way. It seemed he was more akin to her husband that she'd realized, despite their different temperaments. If Wesley had touched Cynthia like that then no wonder he had decided to marry her, although Eleanor was still shocked that Wesley found such activities arousing. She didn't want to think about it, he was so much like a brother to her... did that mean that her own brother-
Oh stop, stop!
She had to answer Cynthia’s questions and halt that line of thought.
"My understanding is that it must be a man's... ah... rod, because of the seed that is expelled from it," she responded, slightly dazed, in such a low whisper that Cynthia had to lean even further forward to hear her. "His fingers can't... ah, won't...” Eleanor felt her face turning even brighter red. She shook her head, trying her best not to picture the situation in my mind, when something else Cynthia had said finally came to her attention. “Did you say he told you that you're getting married? He didn't ask you?"
Cynthia shook her head. "He took me to my room last night, after he spanked me in the carriage, but he didn't do anything but kiss me. I thought he was going to, but he didn’t... and then when I asked why he didn’t, he said I'd have to wait until we were married to be completely ruined."
Rubbing her fingers to her temples, which were suddenly pounding, Eleanor wondered what on earth was wrong with her male friends. First Edwin and now Wesley. At least her own brother had done the right thing and been betrothed and married in the proper way. Although it somehow seemed completely ironically appropriate that Wesley, great rake that he was, would insist on his bride being a virgin on their wedding night, to the point of refusing to do the deed himself. He could be surprisingly conservative in some ways. Even if he was rushing the wedding.
Of course, if he was amenable to bedding Cynthia before the wedding perhaps he wouldn't be in such a rush to get to the alter. Or perhaps he would be in more of one so that it wouldn’t be too telling to count back the months after her first child was born.
"Well he did the right thing in that regard. Although I can't believe he was so... so... bloody man, he should have asked."