“Yes, she is that. And more. ” I sighed a little, the ostrich feathers from my fan brushing my cheek lightly.
“How did you come to know her?”
“She is a dear friend of my husband. When I first visited Buda, my family and I attended one of her parties. My husband said it was there that he first saw me and decided I must marry him. ” I attempted to keep my anger from my tone, but there must have been a sharp cut to my words for Percy leaned toward me, his expression curious. I faltered for a moment, then continued. “I never wanted to marry and I fought savagely with my parents when they proposed we accept his invitation to visit his country home. ”
“Why would you not wish to marry?” Percy’s countenance was perplexed by the concept. “Certainly you wanted a husband to care for you. ”
I pursed my lips slightly, averting my face from his speculative gaze. At last, I said, “No. I did not. I wanted to choose my own way in life and not be hindered by marriage. I was adamant. ”
“Yet, you are Countess Dracula. ”
“Yes, I am. My family was killed during our journey to Vlad’s home. ” My voice grew lower and slower as I weighed each word carefully before stringing it into my story. “He brought me into his home and cared for me as I recovered from the tragedy of their deaths and my own wounds. ”
“And you grew to love him. ” Percy grinned. “And therefore you did marry. ”
“Yes,” I answered, the lie not coming easily.
His smile diminished. “You did not marry for love, did you? Was it gratitude?”
“Let us not fool ourselves. Not many people actually marry for love, do they? They marry out of obligation. We are told we must marry for it is right and proper and therefore, we do. But how many truly marry for love?” I hated the bitter taste in my mouth and the coldness in my soul, but I knew my words were true. “Of all the marriages I witnessed during my life, only one was for love: my father and mother. And they suffered for it. Mother was Northern Italian and a scandal. She was much younger than he was and a foreigner. He did not care, but people were so cruel to her. ”
“Now I understand your support of Laura’s vow to never marry. ”
I saw the sorrow in his face and immediately regretted my angry outburst. “Forgive me, Percy. I forgot. You did marry for love, didn’t you?”
“I did. I loved Abigail from the moment I saw her. I wooed her and she did marry me. ” His smile was strangely bittersweet and it made my heart ache for him.
“Is it hard to be away from her?”
“Very much so. Very hard. ” He fell into silence as our tea was brought to the table. I poured for both of us, enjoying the rich fragrance of the freshly brewed tea. As he scooped a spoonful of sugar into his cup, he appeared withdrawn and thoughtful. He poured a bit of milk into his tea, a little sloshing onto the saucer but he didn’t seem to notice. “I miss my wife. I miss England. But the life I shared with her is now gone. She died in childbirth. ”
“Oh, Percy!” I clutched my hands together beneath my chin, horrified by his words.
“I did marry for love, Countess,” he said somberly. “And I lost her. I do understand your sentiments. I have witnessed the bartering and trading of young women my whole life, but I truly did love my wife. And I can never return to her. She is gone. I find it sad and somewhat ironic that I cannot see my beloved wife in this life, while you appear to hope that your do not see your husband. ”
“Do not think me a cruel person!” I reached across the table on impulse and gripped his hand. “Please, Percy. I do love. I love someone madly. With all my heart. But it was my misfortune to meet him after my marriage. ” The words came pouring out of my mouth and though I knew I should be cautious, I plunged onward. “I cannot be with the one I love either. He is far away from here and I fear I should never see him again. And though my husband has provided for me and I do believe he loves me, I can never love him with a pure heart. ”
Percy squeezed my hand gently before releasing it. “I am not one to judge you. I cannot. I have committed my share of sins in this life. I am saddened by the news that your marriage is not all it should be. ”
“I am not unhappy,” I assured him. And it was the truth. With Vlad entombed, I was much happier now that I did not live in fear of his violence and cruelty.
“But this is not the life you would have chosen for yourself,” he finished for me.
“Yes. That is it exactly. ”
“You are far too young to be so jaded. ” He stirred his tea with a delicate silver spoon, the steam swirling about his hand.
“I am nineteen,” I said, a bit defensively.
He laughed with amusement. “As I said, far too young. Of course, I am an old man of forty-eight. I am old enough to be your father. ”
“Father was much older than you. ” I grinned at Percy. “He was almost sixty when he was. . . when he died. ”
“I suppose we could avoid scandal by saying I am your uncle. ”
Giggling, I pretended to sip my tea.
Percy glanced about the cafe, observing the other customers with some amusement. “I wonder what others think of us as we sit here speaking in English. I see them stealing glances our way. ”