Summary: The day Ernest moves to another country finally comes, but how will Daphne handle the distance?
Based on the music prompt: Beautiful Things
February 2018
Sunlight seeped through the sheer curtains of the window when Daphne turned to the side to go back to sleep. Sunny days are rare during winter in Edgewater and the Viscountess normally would have woken up early and use the natural light to draw or paint. However, she didn’t sleep so well last night and didn’t feel ready to face the day she was going to have. Soft steps approached the bed as she covered her body again and pretended she was still sleeping.
“Are you awake, darling?”
She stood still, in silence, focusing on the sound of his steps.
“Daphne,” Ernest called.
She squinted her eyes, fists balled tightly on the covers, hoping he wouldn’t notice she was awake. Much to her dismay, he knew exactly what to do. Lifting up the duvet, he crawled on the bed and dotted kisses up her legs, eliciting goosebumps on her skin. “Daphne,” he whispered.
“No…” Daphne mumbled with her eyes still closed as she fought her boyfriend’s attempts to wake her up. Yet, his soft and warm lips persistently moved up her backside while a hand ran up and down her curves. “Stop it,” she insisted.
“Wake up, my darling,” he murmured against her skin, trailing kisses on her back.
“I don’t want to wake up,” she grumbled, pushing his hands away.
“You’ll have to wake up at some point, Daphne.”
“I’m aware of it, but can I just pretend that you’re not moving to another country today for five more minutes?”
He swallowed hard, mulling over her words. They spent wonderful days together since he told her he was going to Cordonia, but this was their last intimate time. Holding her close, he shifted to the side, inhaled the floral scent coming from her hair then rested his chin on her shoulder. “Alright. Five minutes.”
After a little more time in bed, Ernest guided Daphne to the dining room. On the table, croissants, mochaccino, eggs Benedict, waffles, french toast, and blackberries jam were arranged around a delicate pink tulips centerpiece.
“If I remember correctly, the last time we last breakfast together, you said you miss American breakfast, so I thought our last meal together before I leave should only include your favorite dishes.”
“Aw, Ernest,” she hugged his arms as he squeezed her hand gently. “I feel like I should’ve prepared breakfast for you.”
“You can do it when you visit me in Cordonia or when I return. Today, all I want to see is your smile and I wouldn’t get it if we had black pudding and tea.”
Daphne turned to him and rose on her toes, pressing her lips on his. “Thank you.”
“It’s my pleasure, darling.”
Between smiles and a delightful conversation, Ernest placed a hand on his pocket, toying with whatever he kept in it.
“Hey, is everything alright?”
“Yes,” he replied with a smile. “I was just thinking about these college applications you mentioned earlier. East Anglia and Cambridge have excellent Business schools, but I’ve been wondering if this is really what you want.”
“Well, it’s either that, Finance or Law. Eddie already works in Finance and grandmother thinks Business is the best choice for me.”
“What if you could choose what you want? Something related to the things you wish to study and work with. What would you want to study?”
“Grandmother wouldn’t be pleased, that’s for sure.”
“I’m certain she wouldn’t, but this is an important decision. You can still rule a county and have any major you want. Something related to art, for example.”
Daphne looked down and fiddled with the hem of her nightie.
“I saw the way you looked at that invitation from King Liam and his fiancee to attend Ducitora’s University first art exposition. I’m sure they would be elated to see you support the event and submit an application to the Visual Arts school.”
“Ernest, I don’t know. I may have family in Cordonia and visit them sometimes, but going to a university and living there is a completely different situation. I don’t think dad and grandmother wouldn’t agree to it.”
“Well, I may have a solution for this,” he said, fishing a black ring box and revealing the pearl-shaped engagement ring with tapered baguette side stones that once belonged to his mother.
Daphne’s eyes widened in bewilderment.
“I know this may seem like an impulsive act, but I’ve been thinking about this for a long time,” he took her hand in his as he stood up and went down on one knee.
“Oh my god,” she blurted, pressing her fingers softly to her lips.
“You are the most important person in my life. The very thought of being away from you hurts me so deeply and I don’t know how I’m going to spend my days knowing I won’t see your smile. But if you accept this, our bond will get stronger and there’ll be a promise that whenever you’re ready, you’ll stand beside me as my wife, be your own woman and live your life as you see fit.”
“But…” she carefully chose her words before speaking. “What about our families? We have to talk to my family. Wait, does Mrs. Sinclaire know about this? What about Ledford Park and Edgewater?”
“We can talk to our families when I return next month and we will live anywhere you want. My only wish is to be with you, my darling.”
Daphne placed a hand on his cheek. It was all so sudden to her, but at the same time, so it felt right. Her lips curled in a smile. “Yes.”
“Oh, Daphne…” he grinned as she leaned in until their lips meet. Time seemed to stand still when the kiss deepened and all they wanted was to savor that little happy moment because they knew it wasn’t going to last.
…
Inside the SUV car parked at the front entrance of the estate, Daphne pressed a tissue under her eyes, dabbed some of her concealer to disguise the redness on her nose and received the bottle of water offered by her driver with a smile. “Thank you, Jonah.”
“Is there anything else I can do for you, Lady Daphne?” The driver asked.
“I’m fine. Thanks for picking me up,” she replied before taking a sip of the water.
“Of course, ma’am.”
After one last look in the mirror to ensure she looked fine, Daphne squared her shoulders and walked out of the car, greeting the servants as she passed by and headed upstairs to rest for a while. Yet, things rarely happened according to her plans when she’s at her father’s house.
“Look who’s finally arrived for last night’s dinner,” Henrietta’s voice echoed in the hallway as she appeared on the doorway of her room. “We would’ve made our guests if we had waited for you to show up.”
Daphne closed her eyes, inhaling sharply before she turned around to face her stepmother. “I don’t see why your guests would’ve starved since I told the people who needed to know where I was that I wouldn’t be home for dinner. But you obviously couldn’t waste the opportunity to diss me.”
“This is preposterous! You should’ve told me! A stepmother always needs to know where her stepdaughter is,” Henrietta bellowed as she heard footsteps coming from the stairs.
“You can drop the good stepmother act, Countess. Dad’s in town for a business meeting.”
“Well, in this case,” Henrietta’s lips curled into a sneer as she stepped closer to Daphne and lowered her voice. “It isn’t my fault this licentious behavior of yours keeps on showing, despite Dominique’s best efforts to make you look like a noblewoman. But how can anyone expect a bastard child to learn how to be a proper lady?” She sniggered.
“You don’t need to look for any excuse to throw me under the bus in front of other people just to ensure Edmund or Harry as heirs to Edgewater. Do go on trying to deride me. If there’s something this bastard child learned is the more you talk about someone, the more you show who you truly are,” Daphne hissed and ignored her stepmother’s glare, turning on her heels and marching to her bedroom.
With a sneer, Henrietta retrieved her phone from her purse and dialed one single number as she walked back to her bedroom. “Theresa, is the daughter of Viscount Lochdale still interested in Sinclaire? I know something that will certainly be useful to her.”
…
Days passed by slowly after Ernest’s departure Cordonia. Unsure of what to do with herself, Daphne spent most of the time in her bedroom, painting on her balcony and only left to check in on Mrs. Sinclaire.
Worried with her isolation, her friends and family searched for solutions to lighten up her mood. “Daphne?” Briar poked her head into the room and knocked on the partially open door. “Can I come in?”
“Yeah,” the viscountess replied, closing the book she was reading and placing it beside her.
“Hey,” Briar took a seat next to her friend on the bed. “How are you holding up?”
“I’m okay,” Daphne shrugged.
Briar stared at her friend, watching her body language carefully.
“I am.”
“Locking yourself in your room for the past ten days to read sad romance novels doesn’t scream ‘I’m okay’ to me. Or to anyone else, for that matter.”
“The door wasn’t locked.”
“Because we told you we were stopping by to visit.”
“Persuasion has a happy ending for the main couple,” she insisted.
“But they had to go through one hell of a heartache to be together,” Briar objected. Noticing her friend looking down, she squeezed Daphne’s hand. “Girl, you can’t keep going like this. Ernest had to move to another country, but you guys are engaged. Unofficially, but still. He will come back for you.”
“I know,” Daphne replied with a weak smile that quickly faded. “I just didn’t think it would be this hard.”
“Aw,” Briar pulled her friend into an embrace. “You’re going to be all right. We’re here for you, okay?”
“Thanks,” the viscountess nodded. “Hey, you said Annabelle was coming over too. Where is she?”
“I’m here,” Annabelle smiled as she appeared on the doorway, holding a male pug puppy in one arm.
“Oh my god!” Daphne’s face lit up as her friend walked into the room and sat on the bed, handing her the tiny dog. “You’re so adorable! You know you’re adorable, don’t you?” She beamed, talking in a funny tone with the dog while scratching his belly. “Whose this precious baby?” She asked.
“Yours, if you want to adopt him,” Annabelle replied.
“What?” Daphne furrowed her brows.
“We’ve been talking to the guys and Lord Vincent suggested we get you a pet. We thought about adopting a cat, but Eddie pointed out Harry is allergic and would be sad for not petting the cat when he comes home. Since Minerva’s pug’s puppies are about two months, this is the perfect timing,” Briar beamed.
“Do you want him?” Annabelle smiled giving her friend a knowing look.
“Of course I do. How could I ever say no to this cutie?” Daphne lifted the dog and kissed the top of his head. “I love you already.”
“I assume we succeed,” Lord Vincent smiled from the doorway.
“Yes. The pet idea worked like a charm, sir,” Briar grinned.
“Excellent,” Vincent nodded sauntering over with his phone in one hand and passed it on to his daughter before taking a seat on the chair nearby. “There are a few people who wish to talk to you, my dear.”
“Hey, Daph!” Harry smiled on the screen while Edmund waved his hand.
“Hey, you guys!” Daphne’s lips curled up. “I’ve missed you.”
“I’ve missed you too,” Harry replied. “Did you like the puppy?”
“Yes, he’s the cutest.”
“Awesome. I knew you wouldn’t resist Peaches’s puppies. Now do everybody a favor and get out of your Sinclaire funk,” Harry’s expression grew serious.
“The what?” Daphne made a face.
“Harry!” Edmund scolded, elbowing his brother.
“In my defense, Briar’s idea to name your current mood was way worse.”
“Hey!” Briar shouted.
Lord Vincent shook his head.
“Regardless of these two morons call your emotional state,” Annabelle glared at Briar. “We all agree you haven’t been well lately, Daphne.”
“Ed just told me if he didn’t insist on going to your room, you wouldn’t have said goodbye to him before he came here,” Harry pointed out.
“Yeah, I…” Daphne bit down her lip. “I’m sorry, Eddie. I wouldn’t have taken you to the airport because of you know who, but I shouldn’t have canceled movie night before you left to Paris.”
“It’s okay, I understand. Just get out of that bloody room and go write your essays for college,” Edmund smiled.
“They’re right about that, dear. You should be working on your college applications,” Vincent agreed.
“We can help you out. We’re all doing it anyway,” Briar suggested.
“Okay.”
“Keep your options open, sis,” Harry smiled and mouthed. “Sorbonne Université.”
“You promised you wouldn’t meddle, mate!” Edmund scowled.
“I didn’t say anything,” Harry shrugged and winked to the screen.
Daphne giggled. “You guys are so dumb. But yeah. I know I haven’t been myself lately. Working on college applications will be a good start.”
“I couldn’t agree more,” her father grinned.
“Mission accomplished, everyone!” Harry cheered.
Briar and Annabelle put their hands up and hit them in a high five while Vincent and Edmund laughed.
“You’re all ridiculous,” Daphne pursed her lips.
“We know and we don’t care,” Harry plastered a cheeky grin. “Bye, Daphne!”
“Bye,” she waved to both of them, gave the phone back to her father and glanced at her loved ones. “Thank you for doing this. I’m lucky to have you with me even when I push you away.”
“We’re all here for you, sweetheart,” Vincent squeezed his daughter’s hand gently.
“And to be honest, you’ll have to try harder than that if you really want to push us away,” Briar teased.
The room erupted in laughter.
“The three of you have work to do, so let me take this little guy for a walk in the gardens,” Vincent stood up and took the dog in his arms.
“Thank you, Dad.”
“It’s my pleasure,” he leaned down and kissed the top of her head before leaving the room so the three friends could start working on their college applications.
