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Chapter Text

     Sidney felt the rush of the chilled waters of the coast of Sanditon wash over his skin. This had been one of his favorite spots to bathe since the time when he was still a boy. It was an activity his father had introduced to his two eldest sons on most mornings, all-year-round. Arthur had been too young to join, and then old Mr. Parker passed away. Tom stopped when he went away for university but Sidney had found himself addicted to the invigorating exercise. Enclosed in a horseshoe of boulders, the cove was practically hidden from the shell-filled beaches on either side. It was down from the grassy cliffs, and far away from the town. In all his years, he had never encountered another human soul while he took the waters, and bathed his stresses away in the sea. After several days in Tom’s company, his incessant and unrealistic demands were weighing on him. The expectations of his family, the expectations of his friends, and the equally unexpected reactions he was having in regards to a certain young lady. All of these burdens were heavy on his shoulders, and he needed to let the salt water lift them away, even if only for a short while.

     He had always preferred to dive deep into the water. Completely submerge his senses, and silence the world above. He was a strong swimmer and always had been. His time in Antigua, with its crystal clear turquoise water, warm as a bath, and constant temperate climate had only increased his abilities. During the painful period after Eliza ended their engagement, he had thrown himself into more destructive pursuits, but in Antigua bathing had once more become an almost daily occurrence. In the morning when the air was not as heated, or in the evening, when the sweat of the day had become unbearable. In the summer months, he would often indulge his childhood passion twice a day. So when he returned to the rockier shores of England, he took his opportunities to bathe whenever he could, and Sanditon offered the perfect conditions. He did not like to share the beaches with other men bathing. For him it was a time of solitude, a time of reflection, and a time of escape.

     Escaping was what he was trying to do today. Entertaining his friends and boxing to keep them occupied, attending Lady Denham’s insulting luncheon for Georgiana. She was an old woman, only acquainted with the customs of English society, traditions, and whimsical fashions. A pineapple indeed! He scoffed, as he had come up for air. And how could she have ever imagined Georgiana with her reptilian nephew was beyond him. At least as Georgiana’s guardian he could step in and put a stop to any thoughts they might have had at the match. He would have never approved of it. Georgiana as the next, “Lady Denham,” almost made him laugh under the water.

     All of these experiences, demands, concerns were swirling around him like the water itself. But no matter how far from shore he swam, they were all still tethered to him. It was only a momentary escape. He came up and laid back, floating on the top of the waves, many yards from shore, wishing the current would take him away. pull him away from all his unwanted responsibilities, and all his unwanted reactions to that young woman. How she had been sat next to him at lunch was both a delight, and a torture. Wanting to be near her, and hating himself for it at the same time. He certainly seemed to be succeeding in making her hate him, he thought. Perhaps succeeding a little too well, his subconscious answered back.

     It was getting late, the sun was lowering in the sky, and he knew that his time in the ocean, with all it’s comfort was coming to an end. He slowly started to swim back to shore, taking his time. At the right distance, he decided to challenge himself. How long could he swim, how far, without coming up for air? The tide was gently heading in, so he knew the waves would help him in his ‘quest.’ He took a moment to stretch his lungs, took an even larger breath and began the underwater trek back to shore as quickly as he could.

      He emerged through the water's surface feeling very proud of himself. Challenge completed and conquered. Smug, he drove his hand through his hair to sweep off the water as he stood to stomp through the shallow waves toward the beach. The small figure collecting shells on the beach had escaped his attention, it wasn’t until she gasped at the sight of him that he noticed. Still confident from his achievement he reacted with more arrogant calmness than the situation entitled him to. “Miss Heywood, am I never to get away from you?”

     He grinned to himself. For once the sharp tongue of Miss Heywood was blunt and slow. Her eyes wandered down his body, and he found that he very much wanted them to. Standing there, naked, in front of her made him suddenly realize that her good opinion of him mattered more to him than anyone else’s.

     She snapped out of it and spun around, away from him. “Mr. Parker, I assure you, you are the last person I wished to see.” Her voice was strangled but her words still stung.

     “I beg your pardon, I spoke in haste. Forgive me.” He bent his head, shaking it, displeased with himself. He could not have chosen a more inappropriate occasion to be coy with her.

     “Of course… excuse me…” Her back remained turned at him.

***

     Being the anvil at the blacksmith's would be less painful than being Sidney’s head at this moment. His back ached as if a newly-shod horse had trotted all over him. Every sand grain from the beach seemed to have gathered in his mouth. Sidney was both, still drunk and very hungover, laying sprawled over a table in yesterday’s clothes. “Show some mercy”, he muttered to himself. For every breath and every heartbeat it felt as if Stringer’s men were hammering on his head. In his mind he backtracked the events prior to his painful and less than honorable state. Empty bottles and broken candles scattered around him that testified of an evening of carousing in the always questionable company of Babington and Crowe. Normally, he would retire in due time and leave his two friends to fend for themselves. What on Earth had brought him to stay on the battlefield?

     Swimming. He could remember swimming. Nothing out of the ordinary there. Swimming was a perfectly wholesome and respectable activity….. Unless of course, you exposed your naked body to the ubiquitous Miss Heywood and ruined her reputation… Then it dawned on him. He may be many things; an outlier, a brute, reserved, impolite and too direct in his… tongue lashings, but he was a gentleman first and foremost and as such he surely had done the only right thing to protect her honor and proposed to her. Now the question remained, had he been drinking because she had said ‘yes’ or because she had said ‘no’? Had he even asked her? Before he could contemplate on her answer any further, Crowe and Babington stumbled into the room, too loud and too laughing. He groaned. In his drunken state he had obviously been careless and shared the sensitive incident with his two drinking companions. He wondered what else he might have revealed.

   
     After a bath, a shave and some deviled kidneys he felt better. Physically anyway. There was still the unnerving matter of Miss Heywood and the proposal. Less than enthusiastic about the task he left Babington and Crowe behind and went in search of his possible fiancée. First stop was Trafalgar House. He had to admit that he rooted for a flop. This was a conversation best had undisturbed and in privacy, neither were guaranteed at his brother’s home. No one heard him enter the house and his arrival was perfectly timed with a conversation between Mary and the woman in question. He was not one to eavesdrop but...

     “Did you enjoy your walk yesterday? I didn’t hear you come in.” He could practically hear Charlotte blush and leaned forward, eager to hear her reply.

     “Yes, no. I went down to the beach to gather shells and time….ran away with me.”

     Both Charlotte and Sidney colored when Mary continued, “Anything impressive catch your eye?” It was a perfectly innocent question and Mary could not have known what her unintentionally implied question sparked in poor Charlotte and the eavesdropping Sidney.

     He was trapped. There was no way he could enter the living room now, nor could he leave. Things went from bad to worse, when he heard Charlotte stammer. “Wha..what?”
Oh, dear god. Please don’t let her go into details.

     “Shell wise?” Mary’s voice was still innocent and incapable of suspicion. If she only knew...

     “Oh, no… I came back... empty handed…” Charlotte sounded mortified and he felt bad for not supporting her.

     “How very disappointing.” With that Mary left the room and walked upstairs. Sidney hid behind a column to avoid being seen and only went into the living room when she was safely gone. Charlotte practically jumped at the sight of him.

     “Mr. Parker!” Her normally deep and soft voice was a startled pitch.

     “Miss Heywood….I...I’ve been meaning to say; our meeting at the cove. I hope you were not too embarrassed?” His brain was working overtime to come from there to what he really wanted to ask her, but of course her snappy retort burned any designs to the ground.

     “Why should I be embarrassed? I was fully clothed!” She looked nonchalantly amused and he couldn’t help rewarding her with a short laugh though she didn’t exactly make it easier on him.

     “Yes. Good point. Though it was hardly fair of you, was it? To ambush me like that.” He smiled, relieved that she had opted for banter instead of bashing.

     “I can assure you it wasn’t deliberately on my part.” She quipped.

     “Nor mine. I must ask you… are you..ehm..satisfied with the ehm… resolution of the incident?” His eyes found hers, as he asked. He felt rather clever having found a way to put the question without mentioning the magic word. She returned his gaze with the same defiant expression as she always seemed to have when he was in company. Had her dimpled chin always looked this adorable?

     “Resolution, Mr. Parker? I suppose I am satisfied.” She sent him a small smile, and left the room. His contentment with the conversation only lasted a few seconds, then it struck him that he wasn’t any the wiser than he was before. He had asked her, had he not? And she had answered, had she not? It was all a fog, and none of it made any sense. Resigned, he left Trafalgar House before risking running into his brother.

***

     Sidney was clenching his jaw again, confused. His friends were getting ready to leave and were standing with him on the front porch of The Crown. He had no idea what his conversation with Charlotte had been about anymore. Had he proposed? Had she run away? The bottles he had shared with his friends last night in the bar of The Crown had mixed all of his memories together. He had one memory this morning when he woke, but was that real? His stomach was still lurching on him when he received a note regarding Georgiana. It was the perfect excuse. He could tell his friends he needed to stay to manage a crisis with her and her governess. Yes, then he could try and make sense of it all. Just as he was telling them, he saw her. Actually, Babington nudged him and made him look in her direction. Walking with Miss Brereton, she had obviously seen them standing there and moved to the window of the baker’s as fast as a shot.

     He clenched his cigarette holder between his teeth. He turned away for a moment to compose himself, and took a long inhalation of the acrid and sweet tobacco smoke fully into his lungs. Crowe was saying something about why she would be trying to avoid Sidney. He really wished he hadn’t told them everything. They would never let him live it down, or ever let him forget the shame of it. As he was both trying to look at her, and avoid her at the same time, he found himself unable to look away. Watching how she stood, looking at her through her reflection in the window. He could see her better than she thought he could.
In all his distraction, he had not seen Babington watching him. “Sidney, I think I should stay in Sanditon. If you have to deal with Miss Lambe, and with your brother, you will need reinforcements.”

     Crowe scoffed. “Ha! You’re just saying that so that you can sniff out that Miss Denham, you are not fooling anyone, Babers.” And he shook his head as he rolled his eyes at him. “You two are lost. I will not stay another day or night in this sad little sandy village. Does this mean you are both staying then?” He asked. His friends were betraying their bachelorhood, and he would not stay to witness their collapse into domesticity.

      Sidney looked over at Babington. He watched as his friend answered. “Do what you like Crowe, but Sanditon most certainly has its charms.” He wore a small grin, and then looked over at Sidney. “You don’t mind, do you Parker? If I stay with you a few more days?”

      In his relief he said, “No, not at all. I welcome it. You’re sure you do not want to stay as well, Crowe?” Sidney added, looking at him.

      “Absolutely not. I am quite decided that my trip to London will happen today, that I will sleep in my own bed, after of course, I have spent time in someone else’s.” He leered and grinned at them. “No, definitely leaving! Send word when you return to civilization, and we will have lunch at the club.” He handed his last bag to the coachman, tipped his hat to his friends, and was soon off to greener pastures, in the crowded streets of London.

      Sidney looked over at the baker’s across the street, but by this time, she had gone. He hoped that she would not speak of yesterday at the cove with Miss Brereton. For some reason, he felt that she was not entirely trustworthy.

***

That evening, he and Babington had eaten their dinner at the Crown, and began to repeat the drinking mistakes from the night before. With the second bottle they shared, the topic of the cove returned to the conversation.

     “You’re absolutely sure that she saw you. Saw all of you?” Babington asked for at least the 5th time.

     Sidney chuckled. “All too sure, Babers. She looked frozen in place for a moment, and it was certainly long enough to see… everything.” He grumbled, and drank from his glass. “The only way she could have not seen, is if she had been suddenly struck blind.” He picked up his glass, drained it to the last drop in one toss, then reached for the bottle to refill the offensively empty cup.

     “You know, Sidney, you have an obligation there, now. You do realize that?” Babington was feeling far too sober and refilled his glass just as his friend had done a moment before. Then he took a long draught of the less than stellar brandy. He thought that if they were going to be spending more time in Sanditon, he really needed to speak with the owner of the establishment about the quality of spirits he had available.

     Sidney drank again, and sighed heavily. “I do know. I’m struggling to recollect though. When I woke this morning, I thought,” and he paused, still trying to square his memories with reality. “It felt as though I had made the proposition to rectify my… carelessness.”

     “What exactly are you talking about Parker?” Nothing he was saying made much sense.

     His friend downed his drink before answering. He leaned in keeping his voice low. “I’m saying that I think that I did the honorable thing and proposed to Char… Miss Heywood.”

     You did? When?” Babington was shocked that this had somehow been left out of the conversations they had been having since yesterday.

     “Yesterday. At the beach. I had to do something. What if someone had seen us? Her reputation. She may not like me but I couldn’t do that to her.” Sidney poured another drink but decided to sip this time, he needed his mind to be clear. He continued. “I went to see her today. To talk about the proposal...you see…” His plan to slow down on the drinks went down the gutter and he gulped the drink. “You see… for the life of me I cannot recall what her answer was.”

     “So, you asked her? And for some reason, when you finally asked a young woman to marry you, you cannot remember her answer… This does not make sense, Parker.” Babington was even more confused at this point.

     Sidney leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes. Babington was right. It made no sense. He leaned forward again, his head was already spinning. “To be fair, I cannot remember the conversation, if I asked her or what she said. I am not entirely at fault here! You and Crowe poured drinks down my throat yesterday. I can hardly be expected to take the blame alone…” He knew it was a sad excuse, but anything would do right now. He needed to not have messed this up alone.

     Babington’s slightly inebriated laugh rang through the The Crown pub. “You cannot be serious, Sidney? This situation is entirely your fault!” Once he had recovered enough to keep his voice down, he added. “However, as your friend, and in an effort to rescue your reputation, as well as Miss Heywood's, I am here to help. What can I do? You seem to be at a stand still.”

     Grateful, Sidney patted Babington on the back. “Thank you, old friend… I have two problems actually. The first one you know. How on Earth does one come around asking a young woman not only if one proposed to her, but also to repeat her reply? The second. This is Miss Heywood we’re talking about… I have never met anyone so opinionated and stubborn and defiant as her. She never shies away from anything, especially not me. And we both know from the disastrous luncheon at Lady Denham’s that she will only marry for love.” He was rambling now. Until now her reputation had been more important than her feelings about him. Now, all of a sudden her good opinion of him not only mattered more to him than anyone else’s, he needed it too.

     Lord Babington leaned back in his chair, pulled out his pipe, stuffed it, and lit it until the puffs of smoke curled up from the bowl. This was a difficult situation, and not one that could be managed easily. A few puffs later, he finally spoke, but very softly to keep the conversation completely at their table in the corner. “She may not have much of a choice, Sidney. if anyone were to find out, she would be ruined, as would you. As would Sanditon,” he added in a slightly more desperate whisper. “Would you want the town to be known as the place where young innocent ladies come to be ruined?! And by the brother of the founder of this seaside community. It could ruin not just your reputations, but the prospects of the entire town!” He was speaking softly, but the urgency was still evident. “Is not Lady Denham a heavy investor in the Sanditon venture? It would be like dealing with Medusa herself if you allowed the reputations of everyone to fall to your pride. Or to Miss Heywood’s. No, I think there are no other solutions.”

     Sidney slammed his glass on the table. His voice was too loud at first. “Don’t you think I know all this?” Then he softened, embarrassed at both his outburst and his treatment of a friend who was there for him. “I could do worse than marrying Miss Heywood.” He sat in silence for a while, replaying their encounters in his mind and smiling to himself. “She is beautiful. She is intelligent. She is definitely not boring. She should be able to do much better than me.” An unfamiliar feeling crept up on him at that moment. The feeling that he did not want her to. He poured them both another drink and lit a smoke. Absentmindedly biting the cigarette holder and letting the cigarette smoke itself as he drifted away in his own thoughts.

     Babington had been chewing on his pipe, taking small puffs on occasion as he listened to his friend. He had been watching him, while he was leaned back in his chair, working on his bowl of tobacco. He moved his chair forward, closer toward the table. “Sidney, if she does not marry you, she may not have any other prospects. If this is known, if this comes out…” He leaned in and whispered again, “I mean it, we should probably not be discussing this here! She must be made aware of how at risk she is of being ruined. Is she not one of the eldest children?” He asked.

     “Eldest daughter of 12 children,” Sidney answered swiftly, surprised with himself that he knew this detail.

     “Good god, man. She would ruin the entire family! Her younger sisters would not be able to find suitable matches, and who knows what her brother’s may be able to find. No. No, no, we must find a way to fix this. We need someone sensible, someone who can make her see the importance of the match. Someone who understands the grave realities of society…” He was thinking. Who would Miss Heywood trust? “Mary?” He asked. “Or is that too close to home?”

     “Mary would kill me, if she knew. Georgiana and Miss Heywood are friends, but I don’t exactly need another reason for my ward to hate me…………..”

     Babington was thinking. “Georgiana would only want to see you suffer, from what I can tell. No, I agree that she would not be helpful. Her views of society are not what we need to convince her.” He pondered the question. Who else was there? Lady Denham - certainly not. Clara - she was not a gentleman’s daughter, nor had she been brought up in society. That would not do. Then the only obvious choice presented itself. “How well do you get on with Miss Denham, Sidney?”

     Sidney thought for a while. “Our families have known each other for decades. She is not my biggest fan for some reason, but…” He lit up. “...but she is as good as gold, and trustworthy, if the scheme is interesting enough. It’s not a bad idea, Babington… Not a bad idea at all. She couldn’t care less about Sanditon or my brother or me, but I think she likes Miss Heywood because she stirs up things. And I suppose you wouldn’t mind being in cahoots with her?” His tone turned mockingly innocent at the end as he watched his friend.

     “She would certainly understand the ramifications. She may do it purely for the sake of Miss Heywood. That might work, and I could attempt to gain her help and confidence without revealing ‘all’ to her when I approach it. Unlike yourself,” Babington added teasingly. This would probably be the only way that any young woman would be able to get Sidney Parker to the altar. Even if it wasn’t what she wanted herself.

     “You have to promise me though. Not a word to Edward. He is not to be trusted.”

     “No, I quite agree. He would enjoy the scandal of it all too much. No, only a woman would be able to speak of it to Miss Heywood. I will have to think on how to approach Miss Denham…” It seemed like the best plan. A go-between, an ambassador, of sorts. As a gentleman, he could not do it himself, as that would be improper as well.

     Meanwhile, Charlotte sat across the street in the study of Trafalgar House and sorted out some of Tom’s papers. She found it hard to concentrate though, her mind kept wandering to Mr. Sidney Parker. He was a conundrum. A very handsome conundrum, that she had seen too much of. He was a gentleman and she was a gentleman’s daughter, of course she knew that her reputation could be compromised. But who would find out, after all? It was an innocent mistake on her part. He was careless in his choice of swimming spots, but he also did not intentionally choose to render her less than an innocent young lady on that day. Hopefully, it would all simply disappear, and they could move on. Besides if someone had seen them, word would already be out - and if it had, she was confident that Sidney would have said something. Charlotte was a firm believer in the goodness and kindness in others, and she did not believe that they were in trouble.

     Deep inside she knew that she should have been mortified at the sight of him. Truth was that she had been more surprised than shocked. More intrigued than indignant. No, she had reluctantly had to defy every curious fiber in her and peel her eyes off him. It had not been an entirely unpleasant experience, and that gave her more cause for mortification than the experience itself. Despite having a solid notion of how things between a man and a woman worked - she was raised on a farm after all as the second of 12 children - she had never seen a man naked before. Her father’s tenants would discard their shirts doing hard labor in the summer heat, but that was different. For starters they were not fully undressed, more importantly they were not one Mr. Sidney Parker. The minute the treacherous thought had crossed her mind she dropped her hands in her lap in despair. But her mind had already started wandering down to the cove and recollected him getting out of the water. Before she had spun around, she had followed the water droplets meander down the planes of his body and get caught in the line of hair leading to his…

     “Charlotte? Have you seen Sidney today?” Tom’s impatient voice pierced through the mirage and brought her back.

     “Please forgive me, my thoughts were elsewhere.” Charlotte gathered herself and brought her hands to her cheeks in the failed attempt to brush away the blushing she could feel was there before continuing. “Mr. Parker was here earlier but left again.” For once it was a blessing that Tom hardly ever paid any attention to the people around him, otherwise he would surely have noticed her reddening all over and the trembling in her voice.

     “Did he leave a message?” Tom was pacing, fidgeting nervously with his cuffs.

     “I’m afraid not. Did you need something in particular from him?” Relieved that he was oblivious to her reaction made her confident to carry on the conversation.

     “Only if he was successful in keeping Mr. Crowe and Lord Babington in town.” He was talking more to himself than her now and without waiting for further remarks from her. He left the room leaving her to herself, and the ingrained visual memories of his naked brother emerging from the sea.

Chapter Text

     The next day, Babington braced himself and headed for Denham Place to call upon Miss Denham. Sober, it was still the best plan he could think of, though it was not without its pitfalls. The first obstacle was to get Miss Denham alone. Second, it would take some convincing to get her to take a walk with him without triggering the interest of Edward. It would not do if that scoundrel questioned her afterward. He was shown into the first floor parlor, and was surprised, and relieved to find Miss Denham at home, and apparently alone. She was clearly annoyed to see him.

     “Lord Babington. To what do I owe the honor and pleasure of this visit.” As she said it, it was clear that she did not see the visit as an honor, and most certainly, not a pleasure.

     He smiled happily, she was the most thrilling woman he had ever met. “I was hoping to convince you to take a walk with me on the cliff road.” He examined her face for a reaction to his request. Just as she was about to flatly refuse him, he hurriedly continued. “The thing is, I could use your expertise in a rather delicate matter that requires the touch of a woman.” He turned serious and looked pleadingly at her. “I will have to count on your discretion if you choose to accept. The reputation of a dear friend is at stake.”

     She narrowed her eyes. She had been watching him as he spoke. It was not the fawning and flattering Lord Babington she had seen too many times before. She raised a brow and she tilted her head, thinking. “Discretion? A dear friend? Are you quite sure I am the person for this, ‘delicate matter’?”

     Without blinking he nodded. “You are intelligent, a member of society, and you certainly know first-hand that people are not always kind and respectful. The future of someone very dear to me depends on your willingness to trust in me, and your ability to speak your mind. I am standing here in front of you, trusting you with my reputation and honor.”

     She had listened to his pleas, something in his voice and expression made her soften enough to accept. “I tell you this. You can share what you are most comfortable sharing, at first. If, however, I feel that I cannot help, or simply do not want to, I will tell you before you divulge too much information.”

     “Miss Denham, that is all that I have hoped for. I will wait for you outside.” He bowed and left. She left to retrieve her hat and coat, and was downstairs and in front of the lake in a matter of minutes.

     “This sounds like a long story, Babington, you best get on with the details.” She prompted him.

     He cleared his throat. “First, I must ask you for your word, that this conversation, no matter your interest in aiding, will remain between you and I only.” He looked at her.

     “You have it Lord Babington.” She replied.

     He took a deep breath, and looked forward before he began. “A friend of mine likes to swim in the sea, and does so frequently. He knows a spot where no one else goes - he prefers solitude to the crowded beach, you see.” He coughed before continuing. “A few days ago he found… as he emerged from the water, that he was not alone. Someone saw him. A young woman of his acquaintance.” He paused, not sure how to go from there. Her eyebrows raised as she listened to the simplified retelling of the story.

     “I suppose you mean Mr. Sidney Parker? He is from Sanditon and would know all the supposedly quiet swimming spots…” He looked at her and hesitated before he quietly nodded.

     “And a young lady, goodness, that is scandalous. An unmarried young lady?” She looked at him, as he kept his gaze forward on their path.

     He confirmed with a quiet “yes.”

     What a fool, she thought. For a man who had avoided marriage and attachments of any kind, he had put himself in a precariously difficult situation. She began to think out loud. “Surely it was not his ward, Miss Lambe. Mrs. Griffiths keeps a tight grip on her young charges… And no one could mistake Clara Brereton for a lady…” She said, almost to herself. The only other option made her heart sink. “Not Miss Heywood?!”

     Another quiet “yes” crossed his lips. He finally turned his head and sought her eyes before he continued the story. “There is more. Parker thinks he proposed to her, but...but he cannot recall what her answer was, or even if he did.” Esther’s eyes widened and she was about to speak when he held up his hand to stop her. “Please let me finish. This is hard enough as it is. We fear that she is too innocent to understand the possible extent of a scandal. How it could ruin her. He tried talking to her but could hardly discuss the matter in detail while in his brother's house. We need someone of sense. A female mediator to help ascertain the situation, and hopefully clear things up. You are our best shot, Miss Denham.”

     “How can he have not heard her answer?” But she answered her own question herself. “Only Sidney Parker would be fool enough to botch a marriage proposal, even if it was done in haste.” She sighed, exasperated, and closed her parasol from the wind whipping up the cliffs from the ocean below. She looked down, thinking how easy it would be for someone walking to happen upon a naked sea-bather. “Such a careless fool.” Shaking her head. “I will help you, Lord Babington. I commend you for your loyalty, although I am not sure Mr. Parker deserves it.” Her lips were pursed and her words clipped. Then her voice softened just a little. “I will help, for Miss Heywood, and for Mary Parker. She is a guest in his brother’s home! It could ruin the whole of both the families.” The extent of the ramifications were falling into place, one after the other. Finally settling on her aunt, her step-brother, and the investment in the town from her own family. The losses from such a scandal would hit every family and resident in town. As much as she loathed the place, there was no choice. She had to intercede and make sure that this engagement happened. Quickly.

     Babington could have kissed her, instead he settled for offering her his arm. “It is for the sake of Miss Heywood that we’ve come to you. Parker doesn’t care about his own reputation, and he hardly cares for his brother’s risks in this. But Miss Heywood and Mary Parker are very dear to him - he could never forgive himself if they suffered any harm. Any damaging losses to the people of Sanditon, the thought of that has most certainly pained him as well.” He looked admiringly at her. Her grip on his arm had tightened as he spoke. They walked like two confidants and he couldn’t be happier. For a short moment he let himself forget the dire circumstances of their conversation. He stopped and took both her hands in his. Confident above reason he kissed the back of her hands. “Thank you, Miss Denham. I cannot tell you what this means to me. To us. How do you suggest we go about this? You can hardly just knock on the door of Trafalgar House and inform Miss Heywood that her reputation is ruined?”

     “And why not, Lord Babington?” She pulled her hands from his. “If your ‘dear’ friend had been more direct in his address, this would not have had to involve either of us. Do not worry, I shall be discreet. But I can hardly expect her to confide in me the events of the other day. No, direct is the only option. There is no time to lose…” She thought about her plan. “I shall send a note, expecting her for tea tomorrow. Then we shall take a walk, just as you and I have done. I will send word as soon as I have managed to turn her ‘round.” She added confidently. She could not even entertain the idea of failing in this endeavor.

     “Good point, Miss Denham.” He offered her his arm again. “One more thing…” He turned his head to look at her again. “I don’t have to tell you to leave Sir Denham out of this, do I? I mean no offense, but I don’t trust him in this matter as I do you.” He half expected her to either punch him or back out of the deal and leave. Holding his breath he waited for her to reply.
She narrowed her eyes at him, and reopened her parasol to keep her hands away from his offered arm. “Do you really think I need to be told to not involve my step-brother in this? If a woman’s, a Lady’s reputation is at stake, my brother is the last person who should be involved.” She added defiantly. Besides, she thought, he needed to be working on ruining Clara and her reputation, not sidetracked by another scheme, and that is what she would send him to work on tomorrow. Thus leaving the house to her and Miss Heywood, and the necessary private conversation.

     “Please forgive me. I wouldn’t have asked it of you if we weren’t talking about someone as innocent and wholesome as Miss Heywood. The matter is so sensitive and you and I are acting on behalf of others.”

     “Wholesome. Yes, indeed.” She agreed, then added drolly, “I daresay that marriage with Sidney Parker will cure her of that, quickly enough.” Rogue that he was.

     Babington laughed loudly and in a mock indignant voice he replied. “Miss Denham, may I remind you that you are talking about my best friend here? Though I am not inclined to disagree with you. But first things first. They are not married yet.” He was falling even more in love with her. Never had he met a woman like her. Sharp, witty and delightfully disdaining.

     She graced him with a small smirk, and a twinkle in her eyes. “Very well, but I am not the one who indecently popped up from the ocean.” She shook her head at the thought. “Poor Miss Heywood, she must have been mortified.”

     “If you were, I would marry you in a heartbeat.” He winked at her, then realized how inappropriate it was. The punishment dropped on him immediately.

     She turned on him. “Do not forget yourself, Lord Babington! I shall not be married off like Miss Heywood will need to be, in order to cover up a scandal!” She needed to remind him that they were not friends, regardless of their scheme.

     “My deepest apologies, Miss Denham. Clearly I did forget myself. The oddity of this conversation is without precedent, I daresay. I would never dream to insult you in such a manner.” Was that enough?, he wondered.

     She peered down her nose at him. He seemed shorter suddenly. “No, it is truly without precedent in polite company. Therefore we shall not discuss it again. I will send word.” They had reached the outskirts of Denham Place, and she curtsied, signaling to him that his audience with her was over, as she turned to walk back to the house. He followed her with his eyes as she walked away. Unfortunately, he was unable to see the corners of her mouth curl into a smile.

     The unsteady pedestal of sick schemes, shared fate and improper intimacy she had put Edward on was beginning to shake and she turned around for the shortest moment to see the back of Babington one last time.

***

     The sound of the water accompanied Charlotte as she walked. For some reason, the crash of the waves seemed far away, and the air felt stormy. She was bare-footed, and searched for sea shells, but the stones and shells under her feet felt like sand. Fascinated by the pale pink colors of a small shell, she didn’t notice the figure emerging from the ocean, until the splashing sound of something large breaking the water’s surface made her turn around. She felt dizzy, like the wind stopped swirling and the waves stopped pounding the beach. The gulls even stopped their shrieking as she found herself face to face with a naked Mr. Sidney Parker. Blushing quickly, she felt the heat in her cheeks, but her body froze for a moment, before she felt the earth turning her around to face the rocky cliffs, and not the undulating muscles of Mr. Parker bare flesh. The air in her lungs felt like it had left her, and might not ever return.

     “Miss Heywood, am I never to get away from you?” His voice sounded like he was speaking through a dense fog.

     Taking a fortifying breath, she raised her chin, hoping to hide the trembling of her body. “Mr. Parker, I assure you, you’re the last person I wished to see.” She hoped he didn’t hear how short of breath she was. Everything felt so soft and unstable.

     “I beg your pardon, I spoke in haste. Forgive me.” He spoke again, but all she could think of was how he looked as he rose from the waves. The cut of his shoulders, the angle of his chest as it narrowed to his slim waist. The unexpected muscles that created a ridge at his hips....All defined by the ocean’s water that accentuated each definition as it dripped further southward toward the earth. Further downward… where the only thing she had not had a glimpse of were his feet, still in the waves.

     “Of course… excuse me…” She blinked hard, and kept her eyes closed, she turned to where she had come from, and started to run. But her legs did not want to move, like the shells on the beach had reached up to grab her and hold her still. Each step seemed to take more effort, the weight of the shells grasping her were anchoring her in place. He did not seem to have the same problem she did. He went after her and grabbed her by the elbow to stop her, even though she had not been able to move. He turned her around with such an eager force that with the release from the pull of the beach, she stumbled and bumped into his naked chest. She gasped at the cold wet skin. The hardness of his sinewy figure. He was a wall of muscle and bone. She thought she heard him moan. Before this could make any sense, he crushed his lips against hers and kissed her with an unexpected force. It was her first kiss ever and like nothing she had ever tried before. Demanding, yet soft at the same time. He was wet with the ocean, and his mouth was warm. Tasting like himself, and also wonderfully like the salt from the water.

     She melted in his embrace, like her body was being buoyed by the waves, floating, and she linked her arms around his neck to stay afloat. I’m in love with him. The thought came out of nowhere, like a sudden gale of wind sending her back. She tried to lean-in to the gust that had overcome her mind, body and heart. Gales never happened in Sanditon, Tom Parker wouldn’t permit them. Gently, he broke the kiss. She felt the cold, damp flesh of his forehead pressing against hers. It was the only sensation she had. A focal point, his mind propped up against her own. Both of them seemed to be wondering how they had gotten here.

     “I love you, Charlotte,” he whispered through the deafening wind. “Please do me the honor of becoming my wife. Will you marry me?”

     She was still pressed against his naked wet body. She had imagined those words before. A nameless, faceless man, a man who loved her, and she loved in return. One day, a man whose affection she returned and could not deny. Here...was he what she wanted? Was she what he wanted? She didn’t speak.

     His voice began to drift again, like the waves were leaving his body, but taking his voice with them, away from the shore. Looking up into his face, she was struggling to answer. The words would not come out. She wasn’t even sure what the answer was, but she felt it. In her heart and her mind, she knew the answer. She was just opening her mouth, when it felt like his body was leaving now too. He seemed to be dissolving into the sand and the shells. His face remained to the last. “Miss Heywood…?”

     Charlotte woke up with a start, touching her lips as if to prolong the dream kiss, and wanting to answer him. Frustrated she tossed her head back in the pillows and hid her face under her arms. What on Earth was wrong with her?

***

     To say that Charlotte was surprised to receive a note from Esther to come for tea was an understatement. Since their walk on the beach the warning not to trust Sidney had been swirling in her head - he was not easy to read but she did feel that she could trust him not to share the incident with a living soul. Couldn’t she? Had Esther seen them together? Or was gossip already moving like wildfire? Sidney had clearly spent some time in the company of a bottle at The Crown. Had he confided in the wrong people or bragged even? No, surely he would never do such a thing. Questions were lining up in Charlotte’s head and she wore a deep frown for the rest of the day. To make things worse Sidney joined the Parkers for dinner and glared at her through the entire meal as if he was trying to make her out as much as she was him.

     Several times Mary had tried to spark a conversation with no help at all. Tom was rambling about a new pagoda. Charlotte’s replies made as much sense as a goose in a suit. Sidney, her darling brother, did not speak a word. Something had happened and Mary was determined to find out if he had hurt that poor dear girl somehow. She loved him dearly but he was not always easy to be around. It was very confusing indeed. But before she had a chance to solve the matter, Sidney had excused himself as soon as dinner was over and left Trafalgar House.

     Charlotte was not one to shy away from anything and the next day found herself walking with her back straight and her chin up towards Denham Place. Sidney and Babington were standing outside The Crown hidden conveniently in the long shadows cast by the morning sun. “Miss Denham seems to have kept her word. A drink while we wait, Parker?” He slapped his friend on the back.

     “Thank you but I’m too restless for a drink. I need fresh air and bracing exercise. See you later, my friend.”

     “Are you sure that is a wise choice, Parker? As I recall it bracing exercise in fresh air is what got you in this predicament in the first place…” Babington laughed a little too loudly and too much at his own pun to Sidney’s liking. He waved his hand grinning as he walked away. He got to the cliff road just in time to see her small figure disappear in the distance on his left before he turned right for the cove. At least there was no risk of her walking in on him again this time, he thought to himself with a wry smile on his lips.

***

     The closer Charlotte got to Denham Place, the more she had to feign courage in order to bolster her confident appearance. The encounters she had had with Esther so far had not exactly been pleasant - nor the opposite. There was just something about her that made Charlotte unsure of herself. Her sharp tongue and her disdaining attitude was not like anything or anyone she had ever experienced in the small town of Willingden. And so, it was with mixed feelings and a knot in her stomach that she lifted the knocker on the door to Denham Place and let it fall with a gloomy dong.

     Shortly the maid appeared, and bade her enter. She was shown to the parlor on the first floor, where Miss Denham was waiting with a small closed-mouth smile.
“We will have our tea now,” Esther announced to the maid behind Charlotte. She quickly curtsied and turned to leave. Esther returned her attention to Charlotte. “How nice of you to accept my invitation Miss Heywood. I feel that we have not had much opportunity to know one another better.” She motioned for Charlotte to sit on the small sofa near the windows, and she sat herself in an adjoining chair.

     Charlotte sat down, studying Esther - trying to determine whether she should be alarmed by the situation or not. But her host’s expression gave away nothing. “Thank you for having me. I hope you and Sir Edward are both well? I haven’t seen you in a while.” Her voice was soft and polite as always.

     “We are well, thank you for asking, Miss Heywood. Edward is visiting friends today, so it seemed a perfect opportunity for a quiet tea among ladies.” Esther tried to smile a little more warmly toward Miss Heywood. She could sense her uneasiness at the unexpected invitation.

     Poppycock, Charlotte thought to herself and blushed immediately for thinking in such terms. She did relax a little knowing that Edward would not suddenly walk through the door and speak too freely to her. “I am always pleased to spend time with my friends in Sanditon.” Her big doe eyes watched Esther carefully to see if she caught the slight hint. She could not shake the feeling that this was an ambush.

     Esther almost let a small laugh escape at her comment. “Yes. Our group of friends here in Sanditon is small, and limited. But you seem to have gained the trust of the Parkers. That is not something to ignore.” She looked up to see the tea tray arriving, and it was placed on the small round table next to her hostess’s chair. She inquired as to how Miss Heywood preferred her tea. She graciously presented Charlotte with her cup and saucer, perfectly made. As she started to make her own cup, she added, “I was hoping to entice you to take a walk around the grounds with me after our tea…” It wasn’t a question, but she smiled gently as she waited for an answer and then quietly sipped at her cup.

     Charlotte looked at her over the rim of her cup, taking a careful sip of the hot drink. “I would be delighted to. I love walks in the invigorating fresh sea air.” Though still not convinced that she was only here for a walk, she was still Charlotte and as such compelled to do her best to lift the mood and small talk. “And how is Lady Denham? Does she still swear to a glass of ass’s milk and a tumbler of seawater every day?” She could not help but smile a little.

     At this, Esther did allow a small laugh to escape. “I’m afraid that my aunt is quite set in her backward ways. I however, prefer a stimulating walk every day if the weather permits. I have been forced to try the ass’s milk, but I have so far escaped a mouthful of seawater!” She was enjoying the frankness of Miss Charlotte Heywood. It was refreshing.

     At this Charlotte did laugh. “Of the two drinks, I would most certainly choose the ass’s milk too. I gulped more than enough seawater to secure a long lifetime of health the first time I tried the bathing machines.” Slowly she began to feel more at ease. If Esther had meant her any harm by inviting her, she would surely have said or done something by now. Trusting as she was by nature, she decided to enjoy Esther’s company. Young female company was a rare commodity.

     “I have only tried the bathing machines once. They are still quite new. And I am afraid that the cold water is quite discomforting to me. I could not stay in the ocean for very long, and shivered the rest of the afternoon trying to stay warm. I am hoping that I may feel more enticed to use them in the heat of the Summer.” She took more of her tea, hoping that Miss Heywood would do the same, and they could talk more on their stroll.

     Sensing that she would not learn more about the reason for this visit drinking tea, Charlotte finished her cup as quickly and as ladylike as she possibly could. Placing the cup and saucer carefully on the small table, she rose from her chair and smoothed the skirt of her dress to signal that she was ready for the next and actual item on the agenda. “The sun is shining from a clear sky today, Miss Denham. I would advise bringing a parasol.”

     It was not long until they were walking past the lake on the way towards the treeline of the park of Sanditon House. Esther inquired after Charlotte’s family, and all 11 siblings' names and ages were shared.

     “I cannot imagine how busy your household must be. You must never be bored with so many little ones running about.” She had either been an only child, or the step sister of Edward. Suddenly, having a large family seemed to be a comforting thought. But also noisy.

     “Indeed, I am never bored. I must admit though, that I have enjoyed the luxury of having my own room here and the possibility of solitude very much. That is not something I am used to. The Parker children make sure that I don’t miss my younger siblings too much.” She shot Esther a sideways glance. Being curious and defiant by nature she decided to grab the bull by its horns and stopped. Turning toward Esther, she lifted her chin a little. “Miss Denham, as much as I enjoy your company, I don’t imagine that you called me here for a walk alone. Forgive me for saying so, but you do not seem to be the type to follow the more tedious elements of etiquette. Why am I here?” She let out a breath at the end of the question that had been trapped in her throat as she spoke.

     Esther had a somewhat pensive look, while she attempted to manage being quite taken aback from Charlotte seeming to demand an explanation for the invitation to tea. “I can see that you are as sharp as you appear to be, Miss Heywood. Therefore I shall not tarry in my purpose this afternoon. A mutual acquaintance has made me aware of an incident of a rather alarming nature.” She looked to see how Charlotte reacted, then took a deep breath and continued. “It has come to my attention, that through no fault of your own, that you have been placed in a most compromising position, Miss Heywood.” She stopped under a large sprawling tree, and turned to look directly at her.

     Charlotte turned pale as she grasped where Esther was heading. Yet, she felt some kind of relief that this was all it was about. Yes, it was not the most optimal situation to have been in but she still clung to the fact that not a word had been uttered about it - until now. And she did know by now how quickly gossip traveled in Sanditon. Though Sir Edward was not at home, she had not been fully convinced that the visit did not involve him in some way. Or Georgiana. Or… even more likely perhaps, Clara. So yes, for now the incident was not too bad. She took a fortified breath and lifted her chin even more stubbornly. “That is correct, but I can assure you that nothing happened. And I am quite convinced that no one witnessed it. May I be so bold to ask how this was brought to your attention, Miss Denham?”

     “As I said a mutual acquaintance, mutual friend, asked me for my assistance in speaking with you today.” It was strange to think of Babington as a friend, but there it was. After the two of them were now involved in this situation, they could be nothing less than friends. “I can assure you that only two people, besides yourself and the gentleman in question”, she rolled her eyes having to speak of Sidney Parker as a gentleman, “have been made aware of the incident. That is why I have been asked, you see. It was the other gentleman who felt that you may need a woman to speak to about what had happened.”

     Charlotte gasped. This would mean that Sidney had told someone. Why would he do that? Her mind was flipping through possible suspects… It couldn’t be Tom nor Arthur… Babington. It had to be Babington. “Are you telling me, Miss Denham, that Mr. Parker told someone about our… encounter at the cove… and that this someone told you? And am I correct in assuming that this mutual friend is Lord Babington?” She hoped it was, Mr. Crowe would be like having Mr. Hankins announcing it in a sermon like a town crier.

     Esther’s eyes softened at seeing her panic, and she gave a small smile. “You assume correctly, Miss Heywood. It appears that… Mr. Parker is quite broken up about the situation, and sought the advice of Lord Babington.” She paused a moment. “Miss Heywood, your father, he owns his estate, does he not?” Charlotte nodded, stunned by this conversation. “He is a land-owning gentleman, and you, are his eldest daughter from what you have told me earlier, yes?” Charlotte nodded again, hoping to figure out where this was going. Esther took another deep breath. “You are aware of the predicament this ‘encounter’ has placed you in, then?”

     It had not really occurred to Charlotte until now that she and Sidney were in some kind of predicament. Their short banter on the subject yesterday had been more than sufficient in Charlotte’s eyes. Hearing Esther painting a picture of scandal and ruination of not only herself but her entire family, her Papa, made her heart drop and the blood disappear from her head. She was not the fainting type but right now she felt faint. The smell of the sea that she normally breathed greedily, now reminded her of Sidney and how the seawater had trailed down his body, and suddenly made her feel nauseous. Her head was spinning as she tried to wrap her head around what had happened at the cove and what Esther was trying to tell her. Slowly, she nodded. She was painfully aware, now.

     Esther was watching as a range of emotions and realizations seemed to be crossing over Charlotte’s face. She wanted to make absolutely certain that she took her full meaning, without misunderstanding. “When I was little, and Sandition was simply a small fishing village, Edward and I used to visit the fishermen’s boats when they returned with their fresh catches. On more than one occasion, they returned with their nets torn, their catch lost, and fear that I have never seen matched on another person’s face. You see, sometimes, when they were out at sea, a shiver of sharks would descend upon the already trapped catch, swirling in the water, frantically feeding on the fish in the nets. I used to have nightmares about it. Maybe that is why I am less inclined to swim in the sea…” She took a moment for this to settle in. “Miss Heywood, society is not unlike the experience those fishermen had on those dark days. Everything is fine, until a weakness is spotted by someone, and is taken advantage of. You are the fish in the net, Miss Heywood. You will either be brought into the safety of the fisherman’s boat, or you and your entire family will eventually be left to the sharks.”

     Esther’s words barbed their way through Charlotte’s belief that she and Sidney had walked away from the experience with nothing but a little embarrassment. On the contrary, she had felt that for once they had formed some kind of friendly understanding with each other. It was one of the few times where a conversation between them had not ended in an argument. I have to move, she thought to herself, like the shark - otherwise I will drown. The irony of her analogy was not lost on her and she snorted at herself. She started pacing back and forth. A deep frown in her forehead indicated that she was thinking. Contemplating her options. After a while her mind returned to the surface for air. She had come up with nothing. There was nothing to pull them out of this predicament. Desperate, she sought Esther’s eyes, grateful that she had not been judgemental in her approach. Just kind and thoughtful. “What can be done?” The words were whispered so quietly that the soft gusts from the sea picked them up and carried them away.

     It was plain to Esther that her words had resonated with Charlotte. Her asking for assistance was what she had been hoping for. “When Lord Babington came to me with this information, we were of the same mind. There is only one solution, and it appears that Mr. Parker understands this.” She took a moment, and rolled her eyes. “The day of the incident, he was so distraught by what had occurred that he drank himself into a stupor. The memories of your conversation, that day on the beach became quite… muddled.” She looked over at Charlotte. “Do you remember what was said between you? That day?”

     Charlotte snapped out of it. She remembered the conversation word for word and gave a half smile. “Yes. He was quite arrogant actually for an… undressed man… and asked me if he was never to get away from me. I answered that he was the last person I had expected to meet. He apologized and…. and I ran. Fled to be precise.”

     “And that was all that was said?” Esther asked curiously.

     “Yes. Until yesterday. Mr. Parker came to see me at Trafalgar House.” Charlotte tried to recollect the conversation but somehow it was muddled by her feeling, that he had had more on his mind than what he had said.

     “Yes. Well, it appears that he has since come to his senses, if not his courage. This is why Lord Babington volunteered to help, and in so doing, asked me to approach you. You have not asked me about the solution to this series of events? Do you know what must be done?” She looked to see if the life-sentence she had accidentally set upon herself, had dawned in the mind of Miss Heywood.

     Charlotte was naïve but not stupid. Looking Esther directly in the eye, she understood clear as water what her friend - because she considered Esther a true friend now - was implicating, and she nodded. She felt oddly calm and brave. “I do…” Her voice was confident and strong. Then a deep sigh escaped her lips. “Does Mr. Parker?” This time her voice was faint.

     “He does. I believe he wanted to be sure of your understanding before an offer of marriage was made.” She answered quietly. “He will, of course, still want to ask your father for permission, but he will need your answer first.” Her head was tilted as she looked at Charlotte's shocked little frame. When Charlotte had spoken up against her aunt at the luncheon the other day, she had seemed fortified. Right now, she could have been another leaf dangling from the tree they were standing under. The wind blowing her this way and that.

     Not one to turn her back at a challenge, Charlotte pulled herself together. Thoughts, feelings and flashes of Sidney yelling at her, teasing her at lunch, standing naked in front of her, whirled through her mind and she was suddenly brought back to her dream last night. Somehow, she did not feel as crushed by her fate as she felt she ought to be. She should be mortified and terrified in equal measure but she was not. Instead, she felt warm in an unfamiliar way. Again, she lifted her head and looked at Esther. “Since you are in on Sidney’s plan, how does it work from here? Do I go see him? Will he come to me? Do you report directly to him or to Lord Babington?”

     Esther smirked at her tenacity. For having been forced into an engagement, or near to, she certainly was trying to regain some control over the situation. “I shall send word to Lord Babington, discreetly. I should imagine it would happen soon after, this evening, or tomorrow perhaps…” She hoped Sidney Parker would not waste anymore of Miss Heywood’s time, or her and Babington’s nerves for that matter. It was still early in the day, and once he knew the situation, he could mend what he had broken.

     “Very well then, Miss Denham.” She took both her hands in hers. “Thank you for being a friend. This cannot have been an easy conversation for you. I hope that you will someday find me worthy of your kindness - I hope however, that you will not ever be in need of a similar favor in return." She said smiling quietly. "Please forgive me. It’s getting late and I must return to Trafalgar House. Please thank Lord Babington for me. It was quite unexpected that the two of you would unite in saving my reputation. Thank you.”

     “Yes. Quite unexpected.” She looked at Miss Heywood through her discerning eyes. “I don’t have many friends, but I would be most happy to call you one.” She smiled. “And as we are now friends, you must call me Esther. But as for thanking Lord Babington, I am sure you will be able to do that yourself. The less said in writing, in matters such as these, the better.”

     “And you must call me Charlotte.” She took a deep breath. “And you are right, Esther. Thanking Lord Babington in person should be less embarrassing than seeing Mr. Parker au naturel.” She blushed as she realized that she was probably going to experience that again sometime soon, and her stomach flipped at the thought.

     Esther shook her head. “I do not envy your situation, Charlotte, but at least I believe your spirited nature should help in managing some of his… less gentlemanly behaviors.”

     “Oh, Mr. Parker is a perfect gentleman. Just not a very easy one to be around. I wonder if we will be able to get through the proposal without arguing." She said with a small laugh, but also with some insecurity. "I seem to have a talent for courting his tongue lashings. Maybe someday we will be able to conduct a civil and pleasant conversation.” She sighed, curtsied with a small smile, and turned to leave.

     “Good luck Charlotte, I shall be awaiting the good news,” Esther added. She waved discreetly as they parted. On returning to Denham Place, Esther moved quickly to share the information. At her writing desk, she thought for a moment how to tell Babington in a way that was not obvious, in case someone else would read the note. With fresh ink on her quill, she took out a small piece of parchment...

The Fish is on the hook.
- E-

Chapter Text

The Fish is on the hook. 

- E-

     Babington laughed out loud as he read Esther’s note over and over again. If he hadn’t already been wildly in love with her, he would have been now and he was more determined than ever to win her over. And this was an opportunity not to pass. 

     “What does this mean?” Sidney waved the note as he was now more frustrated than before. “I’m not any closer to know if I proposed or not!”

     His friend sighed deeply. “Parker, you fool. It doesn’t matter if you did. Miss Heywood accepts that she must marry you. And she deserves that you propose to her in a proper manner . So thoroughly, in fact, that you will remember it yourself afterwards.”

     Sidney ran his fingers through his hair. The other hand rested on his hip, as his fee kept shifting. He was pondering. “You’re right. Thank you, old friend.” He smiled and shot Babington a sideways glance. “And please thank Miss Denham for me. I gather you will use this to get closer to her?”

     “Absolutely!" He said with a grin. "In fact, I’m going to write to her now. You better prepare for dinner at your brother’s house. May I suggest you clean up a bit. You are, after all proposing to the woman of your dreams.”

     The last words were said in jest, but Sidney found that they sat well with him. He may not be in love, but he was most definitely not the opposite either. Miss Heywood was intriguing, fascinating, entertaining, challenging, intelligent, defiant, brave, beautiful, alluring, soft… his mind wandered to her smile, her eyes and her curves.... If nothing else she was the woman of his thoughts. He took care to dress properly. Smoothed his curls, had they always been so unruly or did they just choose to be so today to spite him? One final adjustment to his tie and he was as ready as he would ever be. 

     To the good citizens of Sanditon, Mr. Sidney Parker looked like his normal brooding unapproachable self as he purposely strode the short stretch between the hotel and Trafalgar House. Little did they know how nervous he was inside.

***

     Meanwhile Babington sat at his desk. A Freshly sharpened quill in hand, staring at the note from Esther and a blank piece of parchment waiting on on the desktop. 

The cook has the fish. I’ll let you know how it tastes.

Thank you,

-B-

***

     When Esther saw who the note was from, she felt a small flutter in her stomach. “Wait for a reply. I shall only be a moment” she commanded toward her maid.

I hope no one chokes on a fish bone.

-E-

***

     If Sidney had thought that it would be easy to get a moment alone in his brother’s house, he was soon the wiser. It surprised him more than it should have, knowing Tom. But until now, Charlotte had popped up whenever she was least expected, heck it was why they were in this mess in the first place. But of course this wasn’t an unexpected meeting. His musings distracted him, and he missed Henry running towards him and throwing his small arms around his legs, causing Sidney to lose his footing and instinctively grab for something to hold on to. His hand succeeded and he found himself hanging on to a soft warm body who had suddenly appeared.

     “Mr. Parker!” Charlotte’s voice sounded more amused than astonished.

     Sidney composed himself in an instant and picked up Henry to shield himself. “Miss Heywood! I was hoping to bump into you but not quite as literally as this. Please forgive me for my clumsiness. This little bull caught me by surprise.” He moved his eyes from Henry - where they had been hiding themselves - to meet hers. To his relief he was met with her signature teasing look. 

     “All is forgiven, Mr. Parker. I am happy to have been of support to you in a delicate situation.” She gave him an quiet smile, and he was just about to suggest a small walk in the atrium when Tom barged into the room in his normal frenetic manner. 

     “Ah, Sidney. Well met, brother. Have you talked to Charlotte yet?” Tom grinned enthusiastically. 

     “Ehm, not yet. I was hoping to find a moment alone w... “ Then it dawned on him that his brother was not talking about the proposal and he stopped himself. “No, Miss Heywood had only been here seconds before you.” He turned to her, his voice softened. “What did you want to discuss with me, Miss Heywood?” 

     A deep frown suggested that she didn’t know but before she could say anything, Tom continued himself. “The pagoda of course! I’ve had the most brilliant idea and Mr. Stringer has made the design. Charlotte found it most…”

     Sidney shook his head trying to deconstruct his brother’s words. A new whimsical idea, he should have known. He interrupted. “A pagoda? You want a pagoda now? Don’t you think that you should finish the other constructions first?”

     It ended up being another unfinished conversation because dinner was served. To give Charlotte a secret hint of his intentions, he offered her his arm as they walked to the dining room. Mary picked up immediately on the unusual gesture and watched the two of them closely as they took their seats across from one another. Tom kept talking about the bloody pagoda and she tried desperately to signal to him to stop talking. She needed a moment of quiet to find out what was transpiring between her young guest and her favorite brother.  

     Naturally, it would take more than a look to silence her husband and she wasted no more time changing tactics. If he wouldn’t stop talking, someone else would have to commence. “So, what did you do today, Charlotte?” She observed Sidney through the corner of her eye.

     Charlotte blushed. “I went to have tea with Miss Denham, followed by an enlightening talk and walk on the grounds.” Sidney choked on the sip of wine he had just taken. The deliberate change of subject was only lost on Tom, who still talked about his pagoda. 

     The tension in the room was palpable. Sidney looked uncomfortable and desperate. Charlotte was blushing and hardly touched her food. Both seemed befuddled and flustered and Mary was determined to keep probing and testing. 

     She gently touched Sidney’s arm. His coughing fit was slowing down. “And you, Sidney? What have you been up to?” There was something in her voice that made him examine her face before he answered. “I was with Babington. Waiting for a message to be delivered.”

     “Oh my, you make it sound as if it was very important.” Mary looked at him intensely for a moment before shifting to elegantly take a small bite of carrot, and waited for the puppet theater to respond. Sidney squirmed a little in his seat, and quickly glanced at Charlotte. “Life changing, perhaps...”

     Tom had now realized he was not part of the conversation, and ruined the inquisition that his wife was conducting. “Are you even listening to me?” His fingers were eagerly drumming on the white table cloth. Mary shot him a cold look. “No, we are not, Tom. There are other and more important topics to discuss at a dinner table than your building schemes.” 

     The mood changed from awkward to tense. Charlotte and Sidney now found themselves in the crossfire between Mary and Tom. Desperate to lighten the atmosphere Sidney did the stupid thing and asked his brother to explain about the pagoda. He was rewarded with a grateful smile from Charlotte, but the joy met a swift death as Tom used the opening to go from excitement over a new fantasy of his, to discussing finances. When Sidney realized what he had done, it was too late. 

     “I wonder if… next time you are in London you could stop by the bank for me, see if they might consider extending me a little more credit?” Tom’s eyes were glistening with agitated excitement. Mary’s hopes of finding out what was going on between Sidney and Charlotte was not to be. She had hoped to find out if they had come to some kind of understanding - oh, she dared to hope! It was almost too much to ask for. Neither of them had inclined to tell her anything, in fact, they had seemed to be at odds most of the time, but something today had changed. It was obvious the way they had been looking at each other that something had happened. Or perhaps there was simply a promise of something happening. It would be so good for Sidney, she thought.

     All her hopes crashed to the ground as she listened to Sidney’s retort to Tom's request, and the retort was delivered promptly. “For goodness sake, Tom. It’s not like I don’t have my own affairs to tend to! It is not enough to be a visionary, you have to be responsible too. Or you will end up bankrupting us all.” He was unable to keep his irritation and anger out of his voice. 

     Charlotte looked positively mortified to be caught in the middle of what was clearly none of her business. Tom, dim-witted as he was when it came to his beloved Sanditon, continued, unaffected by the looks from both his wife and guest. “Is it too much of me to ask of my brother to do this small thing for me?” Charlotte looked in wonder, his dark blonde curls became unruly all by themselves as he spoke, as if they were an indicator of his state of mind. 

     Trying to get his temper under control, Sidney leaned back in his chair taking in a deep breath with his jaw clenched. His anger had turned into disbelief that someone he shared blood with could be so different from himself in nature. “It is.” He sounded tired. Charlotte wished she could go around the table and comfort him somehow.

     It only took Tom a second to spark the anger in Sidney again. “It is what?”

     “It is too much to ask, Tom. You could go yourself, you know!” He was leaning forward again, like a cat getting ready to pounce, his body language warning his brother to stop. 

     He didn’t. “You owe me, Sidney. I bailed you out when you needed me. I need you to go to London and talk to the banks for me!”

     Sidney was trembling with anger. His jaw clenched so tightly that you could hear the uncomfortable sound of his teeth gritting. Charlotte slumped down in her seat as she tried to fade into the chair itself. Normally, only she seemed to invoke this kind of anger in him. He slapped his fist on the table and rose from his chair. He seemed to grow larger and more imposing as his anger with his brother also grew. His years of boxing, working on the sugar plantations in Antigua, riding his horse from Sanditon to London and back,  had cut his figure into a defined one of muscles, that flexed from habit when his anger rose. 

     “NO, Tom!” He bellowed, then looked softly at Charlotte and attempted to give her a half smile that showed more in his eyes than his mouth. “I’m not going anywhere,” he declared with finality. With that, he left.

     Charlotte sat frozen for a while. She had been watching Mary discreetly, trying to decide her next move. She did not want to be rude to her hostess, but staying at the table may have been more of an intrusion than a help. Mary was clearly wanting to have words with her husband, and she decided that it would be best to do what she wanted to do, and leave. She took a breath and used a headache as an excuse to leave the table, but she did not go up to her room to rest. Without even thinking,  she went through the front door and out into the street. She could hear Mary’s words cutting into her husband, but she could not make out what she was saying. That wasn’t her concern. Her concern was nowhere to be seen, and she could hardly go and knock on the door to his hotel room. With a deep sigh she went back inside, she walked quickly and without notice from the husband and wife who were arguing for all to hear in the dining room, and escaped to the quiet of her room. At least there she could think about what Sidney had said to her. What she hoped he still wanted to say to her, or if he would even remember after that disaster of a dinner. She thought back to her conversation with Esther, and was sure that she needed to find him tomorrow. If he didn’t find her first.

***

     Meanwhile, unaware of the drama unfolding between brothers in Trafalgar House, Babington and Esther had their own conversation going. Small notes traveled back and forth between Denham Place and the Crown Hotel. After Esther’s second note he had been contemplating what to do next when his eyes had stumbled upon a book on a small shelf in his room - probably forgotten by some guest before him. A wry smile curled on his lips. He picked it up and leafed through it until he found what he was looking for. Then he wrote something on a piece of parchment and placed it inside on the chosen page. He wrapped it to the best of his ability, and sent for a footman to deliver it. 

     Esther rolled her eyes but the corners of her lips made small swirls when a servant brought her a small parcel. “The man has been instructed to ask if he should wait for a reply?” Her hands were already breaking the seal. She nodded. “I’ll just be a minute.”

She stifled a laugh when she saw what was inside. The Compleat Angler , by Izaak Walton and Charles Cotton. A short note marked a page. 

I never found fishing interesting before now.

-B-

     She read the page. 

      The question is rather, whether you be capable of learning it? for angling is somewhat like poetry,—men are to be born so: I mean, with inclinations to it, though both may be heightened by discourse and practice; but he that hopes to be a good angler must not only bring an inquiring, searching, observing wit, but he must bring a large measure of hope and patience, and a love and propensity to the art itself; but having once got and practiced it, then doubt not but angling will prove to be so pleasant that it will prove to be like virtue, a reward to itself.

     Tapping her finger on the desk, she absentmindedly ran the feather of the quill slowly down her cheek and neck, before writing. She folded and sealed the note and handed it to the maid. “Have this sent in response.”

     Babington was pacing the floor in his room. Anxiously waiting for a reply. A knock on the door made him startle. She would most likely have told his servant to bugger off, and he almost hugged said man when he handed him the small white square. 

An incomplete angler should begin with smaller catches. May I suggest crabs.

-E-

     He burst out laughing. This was more than he dared hope for. He wrote a reply instantly, and called again for a servant. 

Tempting, but I have my eye on a beautiful fish with red fins. I’m told it’s hard to catch, but I am a very patient fisherman.

-B-

     Esther could feel a warm blush creep up on her cheeks as she read the few words written carefully on the parchment. “Tell the man to wait for a reply, Hetty.”

Beauty in nature is often a warning of poison. Don’t waste your time fishing for something that would be ill-suited to you.

-E-

     Her words made his heart break. Not for him but for her. He had noticed the power Edward Denham held over her. There was something about the way he acted around Esther that did not sit well with him. His next note was more carefully composed.

You are right, I’m not a compleat angler. I don’t wish to catch the fish, or own the fish. I want it to swim free.
Maybe one day it will swim to me...

-Yours, B-

     Uncharacteristic tears pooled in Esther’s eyes, she wiped them away with the back of her hand. Swiftly she scribbled a reply, folded, sealed and handed to Hetty. 

Maybe we should leave the fishing to others? Please call on me in the morrow. I am eager to know how the cook prepared the fish.

-E-

     Babington fell back onto his bed. Happy and hopeful. She would never have asked him to call on her if her defence was not beginning to crumble. More than ever, he was determined to bring her back to his estate someday soon as Lady Babington.

***

     The sun had barely emerged behind the horizon when Sidney undressed at his cove. He had been drinking in his room for the first part of the night, scolding himself for losing his temper with Tom. Or rather, letting his anger toward his brother delay the matter between himself and Charlotte, leaving it still unresolved. It would not do. He had fallen into his old pattern and numbed his frustration with alcohol - but the constant image of Charlotte’s big brown eyes in his head had made him stop midway through bottle number two. Instead, it was time to seek the beach and to walk himself sober. He was restless but feeling better, now he needed to submerge himself into the waves before he would return to the hotel for a bath, a fresh set of clothes and a hearty breakfast. And then! Then, he would call on Miss Heywood and ask her to take a walk with him. He plunged into the frosty water with a contented sigh. 

***

     It annoyed Charlotte that once again, she and Sidney had not been given the opportunity to talk together the evening before. To her surprise she found that she sympathized with Sidney and his angry outburst - even his abrupt departure. She was beginning to see the strain that Tom caused on his younger brother, leaving any kind of problem at his feet expecting him to solve it and tie a nice bow around it. It pained her that though she had been correct in her initial assessment of the two brothers, she could not have been more wrong in her judgement of his character. He was the best of men and as such, he took on the world upon his shoulders without support, aid or even the slightest gratitude from those he helped. Those were the thoughts that had kept her awake all night. 

     She had to find him. Breakfast was still hours away, and before that hour she could do nothing. Restless, and in need of the calm chuckling sound of the morning waves, she dressed and headed for the beach. As she walked along the shore near to the water line, the sun rose and painted the sea in a palette of pinks and yellows. She leaned back her head and took a deep contented breath of salty sea air.    

     Lost in her thoughts, she didn’t notice where her feet had carried her until she found herself back in Sidney’s cove looking at a pile of clothes, carelessly discarded in the sand. Her heart started beating and propriety dictated that she should leave immediately, but like in her dream her feet were locked to the ground. Her gaze was fixed against the surface of the sea, innocently reflecting the colors of the sun. A big hand cutting through the water was the first sign of him. Then followed his head as he came up for air. He disappeared into the abyss again, returning to his natural kingdom. God of the sea, Poseidon. 

     Her breaths deepened, her eyes locked on the spot where she expected him to emerge in his full… She should leave. She didn’t. A splash was followed by a naked Sidney. Closer in distance than last time. He ran his fingers through his hair and down his face. He had not seen her yet and she allowed herself to take him in. The sound of her heart beating wildly was deafening in her ears. He spotted her. She could see that he spoke to her, as he trotted through water towards her. Their eyes were locked. 

     Charlotte picked up her skirts as if she was ready to run. But dropped them again and remained standing. He was only a few yards from her. Was this right? Sidney remained standing too. She couldn’t move.   

     “Miss Heywood?” His voice broke midway. She snapped out of it and managed to turn her back to him. 

     “Yes…” She was breathing heavily, waiting for him to do something, or for her feet to carry her away. Her stomach had flipped at the sound of his deep voice. She turned her head slightly over her shoulder, awaiting the rest of his question, but she did not allow her eyes to wander down his body. His eyes darted back and forth between her and the clothes. 

     “My clothes… could you? Would you mind…?” He was accustomed to the chilly water, but if he stayed there too long, his teeth would start to chatter from the wind against his wet skin.

     Of course, he wanted his clothes. That made sense, did it not? Was she disappointed? “Of...of course…,” she stuttered. 

     She moved. Somehow her feet took a few steps forward, she picked up his clothes, and turned around. She walked the small distance back to hand them to him. Her eyes were determinedly locked on his, very careful not to look at anything else. She was so focused on the safe parts of his body that she misjudged the distance, she suddenly felt the shells sliding under her feet, they dug into her shoes as she walked, and as he reached out for his clothes, the soles slid over the wet shells, taking everything balanced on top of her shoes with them. As she attempted to ‘catch’ herself, she fell forward and dropped the clothes on the beach. Her hands were cold from the morning air and felt large, clumsy, and numb to the fabric that had been in her hands. He caught her in both his arms as she fell towards him, and he pulled her close. The skin of his upper arms under her palms felt cold and wet. His Adam's apple bobbed as he swallowed, and drops of seawater fell from his hair, onto his face and down his bare neck. As she looked up at him she froze, unable to move. He was so beautiful in the morning light, and his eyes were fixed on hers. His gaze was so intense that she both wanted to look away, and have him look at her like this forever. He still had a firm grip around her as she was pressed to him. 

     “Miss Heywood…” His mind failed to continue his sentence as his voice cracked. Her eyes, her lips, her body pressed against his. How was he ever to move-on elegantly from here? When her lips parted to whisper “Mr. Parker…” basic instincts took over, he swallowed, and he crushed his lips against hers in a kiss that reversed from greedy and passionate to soft and slow. She followed his lead as he led her, dancing in her first kiss. He broke his lips away without letting go of her. 

     “Forgive me… This is not what I planned. Miss Heywood,” he paused, he was still out of breath from the rigorous swim, the shock from seeing her again on the beach, and then his ungentlemanly approach to their kiss. “ I know that I’m not the man of your dreams. That you would never have chosen me if the situation had not called for it,” he hung his head down in shame before he collected himself and continued. “Which, we have somehow managed to repeat, aggravating the necessity of a quick resolution, and now has left you with no other choice.” He took a moment to study her face, looking deeply into her eyes to convey the sincerity of what he was going to say. “I promise to always protect and respect you. I promise to give you a home where you can feel safe… in every room. I will treat you as an equal partner. Miss Heywood... Charlotte, will you marry me?”

     For a proposal made out of necessity and not love, it was close to perfect. She had found her feet, but enjoying the feeling of his arms around her, his hard body against hers and the tickling in her lips from the kiss, she did not move. She flattened her hands onto his chest and gasped at the feeling of his skin. He was blazingly hot to the touch and she wondered what it would feel like when she too was undressed. She blushed at the thought, and averted her eyes to the rocks next to them. She should have been ashamed of her thoughts, and perhaps even her feelings, but she suddenly felt that this was everything she wanted. It distressed her that she was so far from the girl her mother and father had raised. That she could so easily be turned to thinking of Mr. Sidney Parker in such a way. 

     He could see she was thinking. The small frown in her forehead was endearing, as the blush continued to rise up to her cheeks which had turned more to red than pink. He couldn’t help himself and kissed the line between her brows to reassure her. She let out an adorable gasp, a shortness of breath as her heart pounded against his chest. He was pleased that she was not indifferent to his body. It was a start. 

     In a gentle whisper, just loud enough to be heard over the waves behind him, he spoke. “I don’t mean to rush you, Charlotte. But I need your answer, I’m not exactly... in a public state.”

     “Perhaps it would be more prudent to postpone this conversation until you’re in more appropriate attire, Mr. Parker?” The tease was back in her voice, even if it was shakier than usual. 

     Now it was his turn to blush. “You are right. I hope you are not too embarrassed?”

     “Why should I be embarrassed? I am fully clothed.” She laughed gently, and he gave her a shy smile in return. 

     “Yes, good point. Would it be presumptuous of me to ask you to wait for me to get dressed?”

     “Yes it would, but I will wait for you just the same.”  

     She turned her back to him and waited for him to put his clothes back on, chuckling at the sound of him stumbling over his own feet and cursing as the fabric stuck to his wet limbs which was slowing him down in this moment. Nothing between them had ever gone as it should, he thought. He was now determined to change that immediately. Almost fully dressed, he gently turned her around, signaling that he was fit to be seen again. She rolled her eyes, laughing as redid his cravat and adjusted his jacket over his shoulders. When she nodded with satisfaction with the result, he offered her his arm and they started walking back along the beach. He took her hand and brought it up to his lips. 

     “Forgive me, but I am falling apart here. Please allow me to repeat my request. Will you marry me, Charlotte?” His eyes searched for her answer. Surely she could not refuse him, he thought, but his insecurity was still present.

     She looked up at him, the mischief in her eyes was gone. Her cheeks tinged with an adorable pink blush. “Yes.” The little word dropped from her lips like a rose petal, he caught it in another kiss. Slow and tender this time. She responded in kind, to his great relief and joy. 

     “Do you think that you could love me in time? This marriage is not what you wanted.” He looked down at her. She met his eyes. 

     “Nor what you wanted, I imagine.” She stopped and turned toward him, stepping closer to him, biting her lip. “Would you think badly of me if I asked you to kiss me again?” He looked surprised but pleased. They had kissed twice now, but somehow the third mattered. She was testing him, testing them together. How they fit together. Gently he smiled at her sweet request, and cupped her face with the palms of his hands. He brushed his nose against hers before he slowly kissed his way from the corner of her mouth to the center. His lips nipped her lower lip lightly, brushing it with the tip of his tongue. She parted her lips and let him in. This time they took their time to let their tongues explore the taste and sensation of the other. Their lips brushed softly against each other. When they finally broke apart, they were both breathless. He rested his forehead against hers. She spoke. 

     “To answer your question. It seems our bodies are very well suited for each other. I believe our hearts will soon follow.”

     Sidney let go a relieved breathy laugh. He smiled at her words. She was right. His heart was already in pursuit of his body. That she was feeling as he did, was more than he had hoped for just the day before. That they both seemed to feel this way. He had wanted to do his duty, to be the gentleman he was raised to be. Now it seemed that his gentlemanly actions were leading to very ungentlemanly thoughts, as he did not ask but simply took her lips again with his own. With passion that he was finally letting himself feel, with her soft sweetness in his arms, it was impossible to deny that his feelings were in fact, driving his lusty thoughts. The feelings he had been suppressing since he had first laid eyes on her were suddenly allowed to release themselves. He was in this far deeper than he had realized. He finally pulled back to take a breath. He looked down at her and her eyes were still closed as in a trance. Her body wavered just slightly before she opened them with a start as she caught her balance. His wife… She was going to be his wife, he repeated to himself over and over, and it made him happier than he could remember feeling before. It was a shock, and it must have shown on his face before he realized what was happening.

     “Oh.” She said as she watched him. “You do not feel the same,” she said quietly, and tried to remove herself. Suddenly embarrassed and humiliated that her observation and assumption had again been so terribly off the mark. He would never be able to think well of her, she thought.

     His eyes widened in desperation, he could not let their miscommunications come between them again. “No! No, no, Charlotte! That...That’s not what I was thinking.” He was trying to catch her eyes again, afraid that she might start crying, dipping his head to meet hers. “No, Charlotte,” he searched for his words again. Why was it always so difficult for him to speak with her? He really needed to fix this now. “Charlotte, please. Dearest Charlotte...” Her eyelashes slowly rose up, and her eyes followed until they met his. She looked almost wounded, and he took a deep breath as he gave her a small smile. 

     “Charlotte, I have spent the last 10 years separating myself from my feelings. Keeping everything locked up and hidden away. I have not wanted to risk losing myself to someone again. The hurt was too great. I could not manage it.” He shook his head at his past weaknesses, and paused a moment to collect himself. “When… when I am near you, or even thinking of you, I want to… I want to spend more time with you. I want to get to know you. I cannot stop thinking on it.” He certainly wasn’t ready to confess love to her, but he needed to explain the change he was feeling. He smiled at her again. “I find that I am surprised at my own thoughts. That is all. That I feel as though I am becoming a different person, or perhaps it is just the person I used to be.” He added shyly. “Please do not think that I am displeased with this arrangement. In fact, I find that I am quite pleased with it.”  

     She returned his shy smile. Grateful, that with the scandal they could have created, at least she could expect him to be happy with it. “I see,” she said as she smiled a little more coyly than before. “I confess, I find that I am also quite pleased with this arrangement.” 

     She was rewarded with a wide smile that showed all of his lovely white teeth. His eyes squinted a little as he smiled, and he looked relaxed in a way that she had never seen him before. It felt special. A privilege to be shown this side of his character. “I suppose we will have plenty of time to learn of each other’s likes and dislikes, opinions and… observations. Now that we are to be husband and wife.” The words coming out of her mouth made the reality of the situation permanent. 

     He chuckled a little before saying in his deep voice, “yes, I daresay we will have plenty of time.” His eyes roamed over her face as he looked down at her. She was so close, and the flecks of gold in her eyes shone from the rising sunlight. Soon others would be on the beach, and he needed to get her safely back to Trafalgar House. There were letters to write, arrangements to make, and a trip to Willingden to plan, he thought with some nerves but mostly with excitement at seeing her family home. She smiled back at him. He wrapped her arm under his, resting her hand around his forearm, and held on to her tightly. If she had any doubts before, his intent to keep her close would hopefully absolve any more that she might have remaining. 

     He had walked her to the door to his brother’s house before the streets were filled with people, and helped her inside. He bowed as he kept her gaze, and she smiled at his manners. “Miss Heywood,” he took her hand and kissed the top of it. “May I call upon you this morning? I would like to announce our good news to my family.” He looked up at her hopefully.

     “Yes, Sidney. You may.” Her eyes danced as she used his first name, and she could not help but to enjoy how it felt as it fell from her tongue. It was only proper to use his Christian name, now that they were engaged. He smiled his lovely wide smile for her once again, obviously pleased.

     With a whisper he said, “until later, my dear.” He gave her a slight wink, and she blushed for him once again. He moved to return to the hotel, and glanced back over to her before the door to the house was closed. “Yes,” he thought. “I am quite looking forward to arranging to make Miss Charlotte Heywood into Mrs. Sidney Parker. Quite pleased.” He bounded up the low step onto the porch of the hotel and looked over at his brother’s house, thinking of her. The warmth in his chest was increasing. “Quite pleased,” he whispered, only to himself before he went inside.

Chapter Text

“...Maybe one day it will swim to me…”

-Yours, B-

Esther was not sure why this note she kept close. She had hurriedly placed it in her reticule when she heard Edward reenter the house from his ride. When she had the chance after their evening repast, she did not leave it with other letters and notes that she kept. Instead, she placed it with some small treasures and handwritten notes that she had kept from her mother, hidden in a small compartment in the secretary writing desk in her room. She told herself it was because she did not want Edward to accidentally come upon the note. That was a lie, she knew it, but she did not know the truth of her feelings, or if they were feelings at all. What she felt for Edward was so much more essential, like breathing. She knew that he was the most important person in her life, and had been since her mother had died.

***

After Sidney had escorted Charlotte to Trafalgar House, he ran back to the hotel and took the stairs to Babington’s room two steps at the time. He couldn’t wait to tell his friend that she had said yes. For some reason he felt lighter than he had in… honestly he couldn’t remember when. For a man who wasn’t marrying for love he was strangely happy, and he wanted to share it with his best friend - telling someone, anyone really, would make it seem real. And he wanted to shout it from the rooftops, oddly enough. Out of breath he pounded on Babington’s door.

“Wake up, Babers. I’ve got news!”

Drowsily, Babington opened the door, just in his shirt and pants. His feet were bare, why Sidney noticed he didn’t know. “She said ‘yes’.” A wide smile lit up his face.

“What? Who? When?” Babington rubbed his eyes, trying to keep up with his friend and understand what he was saying.

“Charlotte. She said yes, I met her this morning at the cove.” When Sidney realized his slip, it was too late and he hoped that Babington was too tired to notice. But he did.

“The cove!?! Are you telling me that it happened again? That she saw you naked again?” Babington was awake now and whispering loudly. “Please tell me you were dressed when you proposed!”

The look on Sidney’s face gave away that he hadn’t been. Babington shook his head in disbelief.

“Well, at least you remember that you asked her. I guess that’s something. How are you feeling about it, old friend? It’s not a hypothetical situation anymore, it’s real. You are going to be a married man soon.” He examined his friend.

Sidney slumped down in a chair. “I cannot explain it but I am happy. For the first time in a very long time I feel good about the future. She is… I don’t know… she just seems to bring out the best in me. We kissed. It felt so... right.” He turned serious. “I think I’m falling for her, Babers.”

“Considering that she is going to be your wife that is not the worst thing that could happen. Now, if you’ll excuse me. I need to get ready - I promised Miss Denham I would call on her when the fish was caught.”

“Fish?” Sidney asked. Maybe Babers wasn’t really awake yet. “What fish?”

Babington rolled his eyes. “Fish, net. You, Miss Heywood...” He felt that was obvious.

“I’m not following Babers,” Sidney needed clarification as he shook his head in confusion.

Babington sighed. “Just… an analogy… if you will. Something Miss Denham said. A play on words so that we could keep the situation private when we were sending notes.

Sidney remembered the note from Miss Denham. The fish is on the hook. It made sense to him now. “Well, she has always been rather clever,” he added.

“She is, isn’t she?” Babington said dreamily.

After a little more talk about the wonders of women, Sidney left Babington to prepare for his visit and went to his own room. He took care in making himself presentable. He didn’t expect Tom to be very enthusiastic about the engagement but he hoped that Mary would be in his corner. She was the closest thing he came to a parent and her opinion mattered a great deal. The only uncomfortable issue might be that Charlotte was their houseguest. He suddenly got a case of nerves in his stomach. The sun had barely risen, and he would have rather had a drink than a cup of tea. Maybe that wasn’t a bad idea, he thought. Realizing, of course, that it was a terrible idea. What kind of husband would he make if he couldn’t talk to his own brother and sister-in-law about marrying a young woman they considered a friend. No. This had to be done sober, for Charlotte, even if not for himself. He finished dressing, arranged his hair, grabbed his hat and walking stick and headed for the stairs, and the new life that was waiting for him. He smiled as he left The Crown. He couldn’t contain his pleasure at his engagement any longer.

***

Babington could hardly eat a bite for breakfast. The butterflies in his stomach fluttered nervously. He looked at the clock on the wall, negotiating with himself when it would be proper to call on her. It was not yet 9am… Definitely too early. He would have to wait… To pass time he decided to send her a note that he expected to call on her at 10.

Kippers for breakfast. Shall meet you at 10 for tea.
-B-

“Esther!” Edward called. Finding her in the parlor, he came in waving a small note. “This came to the house this morning. What a load of nonsense! What on earth can it mean?”

Esther’s heart dropped when she saw the handwriting waving in Edward’s hand. Pulling her mouth into her signature sour expression, she narrowed her eyes at her step-brother, and then rolled them for effect. “What are you going on about, Edward? Is it not in English?” She loved to tease him, and languages had never been a strong subject for him. Edward was pretty but not always the brightest candle in the room.

He sighed in exasperation, and flipped the note dramatically under her nose. She looked down at it, and then raised her eyes in annoyance at her “brother.” Nonchalantly, she took the note in between her thumb and index finger. Handling it slowly just to torture him. She straightened it as she read the short note.

Thinking quickly, “Oh, it’s just Lord Babington.” Rolling her eyes. “He’s been boring me with stories about the lack of delicacies available at The Crown. I told him to come for tea, merely as an excuse to get him to stop talking. He must have taken me seriously.” She said it as coolly as her icy exterior allowed, and flipped the note back at her brother.

Luckily, he bought the story. “What a fool! You should consider marrying him. He is an easy catch.” Edward laughed at his own pun. Esther rolled her eyes again. Had he always been this stupid? Babington could be Prime Minister compared with Edward. Suddenly, the thought of not moving forward with Edward and their scheme, appeared before her, for the first time since their parents died.

“Well Edward, you can hear for yourself when he comes for tea. He should be here shortly, especially if he brings his curricle.” She added off-hand.

Edward considered his options. Stay for tea at home and a boring conversation, or walk to visit their aunt and possibly see Clara as well. If he wanted to ruin her, shouldn’t he attempt to gain more of her confidence? No innocent, was she, but also not independent. Yes, time and energy would be better served visiting his aunt and finding Clara, preferably on her own. He cleared his throat. “No, thank you Esther. I am expected to visit our aunt today.”

“Suit yourself, Edward. Give my love to our dear aunt. And do your worst to Clara.” She said as dryly as the breath she was holding allowed her. “It will probably be easier for me to discourage the fool if you are not here.” With that she rose from her seat to get dressed. The thought of Babington calling on her had never seemed less disagreeable. Plus, it sounded like he was delivering good news, and Edward always had a way of ruining that.

She left notice to the maid that his “Lordship” would be attending for tea. She changed into her most flattering day dress, and was sitting at the edge of her seat when the clock struck 10. More nervous and expectant than she cared to admit, the corners of her mouth were curling treacherously into a smile as she heard him walk up the stairs. She managed to straighten her skirt on her lap, and her lips into a slight grin before he entered the room.

“Miss Denham.” Babington did nothing to conceal how pleased he was to see her again. He looked around. “Are we able to speak freely?”

She nodded. “Edward has gone to Sanditon House. For some reason he did not find your company attractive.” She brushed away an invisible piece of lint from her skirt, trying to maintain her disdaining composure.

“Well! All the better for me, I dare say.” Babington was beaming, and the prospect of having Esther to himself was delightful, and unexpected. “It shall also allow us to speak in something other than ‘fishing code.’” He said in a quiet conspiratorial tone.

Esther gave the smallest laugh. “I kind of liked our fishing code.” She was just about to tell him about Edward intercepting the note, but stopped herself. They were not quite that close with each other. “I trust you have news?”

The maid entered with the tea, and Esther expertly prepared their cups before they spoke. They could now expect to have the privacy their conversation required. “Now, Lord Babington, please continue.” She lifted the cup to her lips and took a discreet sip. Babington was enchanted, but knew that he had to continue, in spite of wanting to simply watch her movements.

“Yes, it seems that early this morning… I shall spare you the details, Miss Denham. I am afraid that my friend cannot seem to do anything in a traditional, nor controlled manner.” He said sheepishly. “But, the outcome is what we have been hoping for. He has asked Miss Heywood to marry him, and she has accepted him!” His smile really could not be contained. “We have you to thank for that, Miss Denham.” And he tipped his head in a small courteous nod of respect.

“Are you telling me that he proposed to her in an… attire not normal for a proposal?” She looked at him over the rim of her cup as she took another sip, knowing the answer before he confirmed it and rolled her eyes with a big sigh, and placed her cup back on its saucer. “And she still said yes? … Of course now she had even less of an option. I suppose we shall both be relieved that he remembered the conversation this time.”

“I will add, that it did seem to be ‘accidental,’ again... But he really needs to find a new place to bathe.” He clarified, shaking his head at the ridiculousness of it all.

Esther laughed. A rare reaction from her. But she could not help herself. The absurdness of the situation. The amusement in Babington’s voice, and kind green eyes was more than she could resist. She worked to compose her relaxed state and changed the subject.

“I must go and visit Miss Heywood, and see how she is doing.” Esther spoke her thoughts out loud without realizing it. “Do you know how she took it?” She inquired next.

“Sidney seemed quite happy this morning. Although, that could have been that the necessity of the proposal had finally been resolved.” He was not sure how much of his friend’s feelings he should share with Miss Denham. “But he was determined to make the announcement with her to his family this morning. Hopefully that has been settled. He did not mention Miss Heywood’s reaction, though.” Her concerns for the young lady were now also his own.

“I’m sure it is not too late to visit, I really must go and see how she is doing. Such a sudden and drastic change. And she is still young,” she added. “Or at least appears to be.” She said with a sympathetic far-off look.

“May I accompany you, Miss Denham? I believe the two may need reinforcements this afternoon. And I can bring you in my carriage. The weather is fair, and we can keep the canopy down.” he paused. “I would not wish to endanger your own reputation after the events of the past few days.” He gave her a sweet and pleasant smile. Complete with sincerity and also concern for their friends.

She nodded. “Quite!” She added with a look of agreement, but also a knowing smile after the conversations they had been having after Sidney Parker’s colossal misstep. “I appreciate your thoughtfulness, Lord Babington. It would not do, to have two such scandals so close together in such a small fishing village.” She added with a coy look.

Babington laughed heartily at her reference. “Sidney did say that he thought you were ‘rather clever,’ today. I am inclined to agree with him.” He was ready to flirt his way into a proposal if she would let him, and he let his voice soften.

“I suppose even Sidney Parker has a moment of clarity every now and then. But I wouldn’t get too comfortable with asking for my help, Lord Babington.” She raised her chin slightly and her back straightened. She looked down at him through her narrowed eyelids. He really did need to be kept in line, she thought.

He scolded himself for giving her an opportunity to back away. He hoped that she would still let him escort her to Trafalgar House. In a faint attempt to salvage their more friendly understanding he leaned forward and lowered his voice. “I would never take advantage of you in any way, Miss Denham. Parker and Miss Heywood would not have made it to this understanding without your assistance. You must allow me to praise you for your help in the matter.” He leaned back again, hoping that he had not overstepped his boundaries once again. Better turn the charm down a notch, Babers, he thought to himself. She scares easily.

“I would never allow myself to be taken advantage of, Lord Babington, but I do appreciate your understanding of that.” She said primly, but her eyes displayed more of her acceptance of him than her words did. After a sip of her tea, and a pause, “I would appreciate your company in visiting Trafalgar House this afternoon.” It was very matter of fact.

He could not shake the feeling that she had been hurt badly in her life, perhaps the loss of both parents. Now the urge to protect her had become a mission. And then there was something about Sir Denham… something unseemly about him. Something that rubbed more and more against his feathers with each encounter. He switched tack for a friendly, “I would be happy to.”

***
Outside, Babington helped Esther chivalrously up into the curricle. She sat straight up, trying not to look too comfortable with the situation. As they drove away from Denham Place, Edward appeared from the small forest on the grounds. His jaw clenched as he saw them chatting intimately with each other, and sitting too closely for his own tastes. Maybe she wasn’t as indifferent to Lord Babington’s advances as she let believe? He could tell that something was off.

His own day had been a disaster. Clara had not been willing to be alone with him and his aunt had been exceptionally tedious. Going on and on about marriage. How Esther would do well with a husband with a title and wealth, just as she had. And how he should “scale up” his attempts, when it came to the wealthy heiress Miss Lambe. He had never included Esther in all his plans. Of course, plan A was to secure the inheritance of their aunt. But plan B was all about saving his own neck - he did not love her enough to risk poverty. No, a man with a title such as he, was destined to a more leisurely and comfortable way of life. It would not do if she found a safe harbor of luxury without him. Edward knew that a husband would not be inclined to let her provide sufficiently for a stepbrother.

***

Unknowing of Edward’s conspiratorial thoughts, Esther allowed herself to enjoy the ride with Babington. Not that she would ever show him, but when he handed her the reins, she could not help herself and laughed out loud. For a short moment she was unconcerned about the future and Lady Denham’s fortune. Not even Edward crossed her mind.

They arrived quickly into the streets of Sanditon with Esther guiding the team of horses. Being from Sanditon, she knew the path from Denham Place to town well. Babington had never been so impressed with a woman in his life. The only other woman he knew that was such a fine carriage driver had been his grandmother, The Dowager Countess. He wondered if it was a sign of her breeding and social standing, or perhaps she was adept at maneuvering in many situations, also not unlike his grandmother. This only piqued his curiosity for what went on in Miss Denham’s mind even more. He was grinning from ear to ear by the time they reached the steps of Trafalgar House. They may have arrived just before their tea was being served, but Babington was willing to risk the social faux pas of appearing without an invitation, in order to check on his friend.

He alighted from the small open carriage as soon as the horses yielded to their driver’s command, and offered Miss Denahm his assistance down from the high seat before a footman could get there before him. The horses and carriage were attended to by a stable boy, as the front door opened for the afternoon callers.

***

“Lord Babington, Miss Denham, what a delightful surprise!” Mary Parker had been ecstatic with the news of the engagement this morning, that seeing this odd pair in her foyer did not seem in any way out of the ordinary. The two were made free to enter by the butler, as he attended to their coats, and Babington’s hat and cane. “Please, please come in! We are celebrating this day, a most joyous occasion!” Mary could barely contain herself. If she had felt it was her place to make the announcement, she would have shouted it in the streets!

Sidney had heard the sounds of his friend’s voice, and came out to the foyer to greet them. His smiles were contagious, and he shook his friend’s hand after an appropriate bow to Miss Denham. “I am so happy you have come, Babington, and you as well Miss Denham. Please, come in, Charlotte will be most anxious to see you both!”

“Goodness Mr. Parker! I have not seen you so animated since your youth! Whatever could be the cause of such a change in demeanor?” Esther could not resist the opportunity to give Sidney a little difficulty after all of the troubles he had caused. He hung his head down in the attempt to suppress a laugh at Miss Denham’s comment. Maybe she really was as witty as Babers kept saying.

“Well, Miss Denham, perhaps I am happier today, than I have been since my youth.” His eyes showed genuine mirth and ease. He was relaxed and it seemed nothing could change his excellent mood. “Or maybe I should let Charlotte have the honor of sharing the news?” He turned toward his fiancee for some guidance.

“I believe it is you who should announce it, Sidney.” Charlotte bit her lip, she knew she should not have used his christian name, but in the house this morning after their announcement, she couldn’t seem to stop using it. In fact, Esther shot her a look of amusement as soon as she had said it.

“My honor, Charlotte.” Sidney smiled and gave a swift wink. “It is indeed my very great honor to tell you that I have asked for Miss Heywood’s hand in marriage, and she has accepted me.” He said it all to the new visitors with a great degree of humility. He knew that they knew the whole story of it, but they did not know that he was now genuinely happy with the arrangement.

Esther freed herself from the two gentlemen and moved to where Charlotte was now standing in front of the chair in which she had just been sitting. A brief embrace, and Esther’s searching eyes were examining Charlotte’s face and body language for any signs of distress. She found none. She clasped her hand and whispered quietly to her to confirm, as the men were talking loud enough to cover the conversation. “Tell me, Charlotte. Are you well? Are you content with this situation?”

“Yes, Esther. I am surprisingly content. More than I thought I would be when we first spoke of it. Sidney, Mr. Parker, has been most attentive, and seems very happy to have been matched with me. Even if it had been unplanned, and unintentional. And I find myself feeling much the same way. I cannot explain it. But I am truly happy, and seeing him happy seems to increase my own happiness.” She giggled slightly.

Esther let out a small sigh. “I am greatly relieved that you are seemingly quite thrilled with the outcome. Perhaps Mr. Parker did not do so badly in recommending himself.” She patted the top of her hand, and they moved to sit next to each other on the small settee.

“I never dreamed that I would find a husband while visiting Sanditon.” Charlotte’s face became more serious. “He will still need to talk with my father, and plans to leave tomorrow for Willingden. I shall write a letter to my parents for him to take to them. That way they will know that I have accepted, and want the marriage to take place.” She shivered and then smiled discreetly. “It seems so strange to talk about marriage and weddings, and a… husband.” Her eyes drifted to where Sidney was standing next to Babington. The look she was giving him softened as she continued to gaze upon him. The firm foundations of love already taking root in her heart. She blushed at the intensity of her feelings, realizing that she should not be looking at Sidney that way. At least not among other people.
“As I recall it there is a lovely garden out back. Why don’t you show me and we can talk!” Esther asked in a low voice. Why it was so important to her that Charlotte became as happy as possible in all this she could not explain. But she had to admit that she enjoyed the “project” and that it made her feel happy in return. She rose elegantly from her seat and offered Charlotte her arm.

“That is a wonderful idea.” Charlotte replied. Both women noticed the looks the two men cast in their direction and exchanged a crooked smile.

Outside Esther decided not to beat around the bush. “How are you, Charlotte? Did Mr. Parker propose to you in a proper manner that made you feel optimistic about your marriage?” Her eyebrow arched knowingly at the end and she was rewarded with a blushing Charlotte.

“He did. I think he tried to yesterday, but dinner in this house does not always leave room for… private conversations. I happened upon him this morning and we….” She paused, not sure how to account for the events. “And we were able to reveal the issues at hand, and then Mr. Parker proposed to me.” She turned a deeper red as she recalled the feeling of his lips on hers and the passion of his kisses and the sight of him…

Esther stifled a laugh. “Revealed, indeed.” She said quietly to herself, she then looked at her innocent friend and felt badly for a moment but also too amused to resist continuing. “And, pray tell, where did Mr. Parker propose? What did he say to you to make amends?”

“I happened upon him at the cove.” Like Sidney, Charlotte only realized her slip when it was too late and she clasped her mouth per reflex. She looked at the amused smile on Esther’s face and quickly regrouped. “You already knew, didn’t you? How?”

Esther had to give Charlotte that, though innocent, she was not as naïve as she had thought and definitely not unable to read the people she was around. A quality Esther put in very high regard. “Apparently, your Mr. Parker was so happy with the events this morning that his heart spilled through his mouth to Lord Babington - who made a similar slip. Well, at least now you know everything you’re getting into.”

Both couldn’t help but laugh, though Charlotte was blushing more. Esther would soon feel her friend’s wit and quick observant mind. “And what of you and Lord Babington, Esther. Only a fool could miss that he’s very smitten with you. Am I much mistaken if I sense a softening towards him on your part? Or is that merely your sense of charity to come to my aid?” Charlotte added with a side glance at her new friend

A rare thing happened. Esther blushed, rather speechless. “As relieved as I am that you have found yourself in a happy circumstance, that has not been my intention. However, I must say that Babinginton has made a good account of himself. Helping a directionless friend out in a praiseworthy manner…” She paused, and reflected on her own feelings. “I do not find him as much a nuisance as I did two days ago.” She hoped that would satisfy Charlotte.

It didn’t, and the other looked at her with penetrating, big brown eyes. “You like him, don’t you? I cannot claim that I understand the nature of your family’s expectations. Or how your brother may have influence on who you might consider for courtship. Or if it is purely up to Lady Denham to make that decision?” Her voice was soft and serious. She truly had no idea what a lady of society, coming from a titled family could and could not control about who she might want to wed.

Esther was confronted suddenly with her own prospects. Her brother did have some influence as the title holder, but their aunt held the reins to the fortune, and money always won out over title in such matters. And Babington out-titled Edward. If he truly wanted to court her, Lady Denham would find a way to make it happen, regardless of Esther’s feelings. Again, Esther found herself on new ground. What exactly were her feelings? Toward Babington, toward Edward, toward marriage? The confusion and mixture of emotions were suddenly overwhelming. Very uncharacteristic for Esther. Very uncharacteristic, at least, in relation to anyone that had not been Edward for the past few years. She stopped walking, and Charlotte realized that Esther was not answering. Or was unable to.

Before she had found out how to continue Esther interrupted her with tears in her eyes and a barely audible voice. “Please, don’t…”

Charlotte squeezed her hands. “Esther? I understand that the change in feelings is… well, it seems to make the ground quite unsteady. At least it has for me. I won’t press you on the subject, especially if you find it upsetting, but please remember I am your friend. A very indebted friend. “

Sidney and Babington joined them and the topic was dropped. Mary had tea ready and they had been sent to escort the two ladies back inside. The two pairs fell naturally into step as they walked inside.

Babington sent Esther a sideways glance. “Excuse me for asking, Miss Denham, but are you quite well? You seem a little out of sorts. Is it the excitement of the morning, or do you need rest?”

She smiled coolly. “Yes, just a little out of sorts... More so, less enthusiastic about tea with Mr. Tom Parker.”

“Ah, yes. He can be a lot to ‘chew on’ whilst running his mouth.” He grinned. Proud at his pun. The short laugh she bestowed on him was enough to make his heart race.

Esther’s deception and deflection came to pass. Tom was agitated, rambling and too much to bear. The prospect of showing Sanditon off as a wedding destination, took everyone in the parlor hostage, in his ongoing brainstorm on how to exploit his brother’s wedding to the fullest. Sidney kept his eyes locked on Charlotte who looked absolutely mortified over being made into a spectacle, a commodity for the beau monde.

Sidney’s patience with his brother was at an end, despite the current of joy running through him. One more glance at Charlotte, and his temper flared. “Tom!” he barked. “I have not even had the opportunity to speak with Mr. Heywood, and the last time I checked, it was the BRIDE who planned the wedding with her family. As I do not anticipate marrying you on my wedding day, you may want to refrain from getting ahead of yourself!”

Tom blustered as he tried to speak, “I was only making suggestions, Sidney. Really!

“Tom, I know that you are a man of many ideas, but Sidney is correct. You did not even contribute to the planning of our own wedding. That was done by my mother and grandmother. I almost did not have a say in anything but the dress!” One had to give Mary credit for doing her best to contain Tom’s bombardment of half-baked ideas, but it was like herding cats. The tea had been served and drunk, and Mary was now trying to keep the brothers from starting another argument. She was, however, saved by an unlikely ally.

Much to Esther’s own surprise she found herself standing up, and suggesting that Sidney, Charlotte and Babington escort her back to Denham Place, “...as the weather is delightfully sunny today.” Not something Esther would have said under any other circumstance, but the brothers needed to be separated, and the newly engaged couple needed a moment alone. It was not unusual for Esther to remove herself from a place she didn’t want to be, but it was unusual, since she didn’t do it for herself. Charlotte was shifting between pale and a boiling red, and if she continued to bite her bottom lip, there would be none of it left.

Mary jumped to her feet, all too happy for a way out for her young guest and favorite brother. Expressing, perhaps a little too excitedly, how fully she supported the idea. That was how Sidney and Babington found themselves walking the cliff-road, each with the subject of their happiness, if not yet quite love, at their arms.

***

Babington noted Sidney and Charlotte walking a short distance in front of them in deep conversation, both smiling foolishly, their heads unacceptably close. But given their recent history, Babington realized that it was more propriety than Sidney had shown before. “They seem very well suited for each other. I know Parker well enough to know he will always put her first and respect her. Not a bad foundation for a marriage if you ask me.”

“I didn’t.” Esther’s voice was cold as ice but her inside was a boiling turmoil of mixed emotions. The closer they came to Denham Place the more reluctant her feet were to carry her there. If only she could come up with some excuse to waste more time.

“I beg your pardon?” He looked puzzled at her.

“I didn’t ask you.” She turned her head to meet his eyes but regretted immediately as his kind green eyes seemed to see right through her defense.

Babington’s head tilted back quickly with his laughter. “Truly, Miss Denham, you are the wittiest woman of my acquaintance.” He looked back, locking his green eyes with hers, each encounter with her had left him further enchanted than before.

The way his eyes seemed to bore into her soul was unnerving. They were even softer than Esther had noticed before, and she looked away quickly. However, this kind of exposure was also uncomfortably comforting. She huffed in an attempt to push those feelings away.

“We should do what we can to help them plan the wedding. Otherwise that fool Mr. Tom Parker will crush the sprouting affection you seem to see in them, and drive them to despair.” She tried to sound casual and disinterested. Babington seemed to nod in agreement. They did not hear the hooves closing in on their merry party from behind. The wind over the cliffs seemed to deaden any other sounds, other than those of a close companion’s conversation.

The rider quickly dismounted, and with stumbling strides, made his way to the couple that was not formally a “couple.” Steps closed in on them from behind. It was Edward. Drunk and spiteful. “Well met, sister dearest.” Edward paused for her reaction, which was what he had expected. Surprise mixed with disdain and disappointment. “You’ve been very busy this morning. I say, were you not driving a cosy carriage for two just a few short hours ago?”

Babington stiffened as from what he was witnessing, Edward was drunk. Not only drunk, but drunk before luncheon, and his words toward Esther were far from kind, or even concerned for her welfare. He had not seen Edward before in this light, and suddenly became concerned that this might not be an “off-chance” occurrence. He wanted to answer for her, as he had not been directed with the question, but Esther did not seem to be the kind of woman who wanted someone else to speak for her.

Esther saw the danger of the situation, and did the only thing she could. She stiffened her back and pursed her lips while her eyes narrowed toward her brother. “Edward. You are drunk.” She declared.

“Not as though you haven’t seen me drunk before, dear sister.” He replied with a twist of his lips and tilt of his head. Watching her, and waiting.

“True. However, this early in the day, in the middle of the week, seems extreme even for you.” Her barb hit where she wanted it to.

Edward laughed. “Yes, well, my standards seem to be falling, as of late.” He sneered at her and saw her flinch at the insult. Pleased with himself he turned to Babington. “Really, Lord Babington, I would think that you could choose from a bevvy of beautiful, well-bred women. Tell me, what is it that has you so enchanted with my sister? She is practically a spinster, has no fortune, and no proper education that would befit a Lord of your stature. It would seem that you might be playing with her affections.” He laughed scornfully. “That is, if she has any for you.” He sneered.

Babington pushed Esther behind him. Putting himself between her and her vengeful brother. “Careful, Sir Edward. You’re drunk and I would hope, do not know what you are saying.” He bellowed to be heard over the wind, and it carried to the couple still walking, and now far ahead of them, completely unaware that any confrontation had been taking place. Sidney turned to Charlotte, telling her to stay back.

Edward laughed viciously, then spoke in a familiar and knowing tone. “She hasn’t told you, has she?” He stepped closer to the now enraged Lord Babington. “How she and I love one another? No?” Edward clocked the confused look in Babington’s expression. “Not like a brother and sister,” he spoke menacingly. “As, of course, we are only step-siblings. You knew that right?” He spat the words, and his grin was cruel.

Edward didn’t hear the hurt and terrified whisper from Esther, begging him to stop, but Babington did. He pushed her further behind him, unaware that she was having trouble standing. “That’s enough, Denham!” The commanding growl reached Sidney and Charlotte just as Sidney was turning to run toward him. Charlotte moved right behind him, to catch Esther and pull her away. Sidney knew that when two gentlemen entered into a fight, expectations were to allow them to finish it themselves. But when Sidney saw the drunken state of Sir Edward, he towered behind Babington’s shoulder, blocking the way for Edward as he tried to pass them to reach his sister. Still yelling indiscretions.

“Leave Edward!” Babington’s voice deeper, and more sure of itself. The look in Edward’s eyes was not one of cooperation.

“It is YOU who should leave, Lord Babington. It is time I take my sister home.” As Edward had been given the care of his sister at the death of his father and her mother, he was well within his rights and expectations to insist on her returning to Denham Place with him.

It was not, however, within Lord Babington’s nature to leave a lamb to the wolf. “No.” He answered succinctly.

“No?” Edward’s drunkenness seemed to be fading as the anger increased his heart-rate. “NO?” He repeated more angrily. It may have simply been the alcohol that caused his blood-shot eyes, but the fact that his eyes were decidedly red was not lost on any of the four other people present. He looked mad, feral, and beyond any reach of reason.

Sidney finally spoke, understanding the look on Edward’s face. “Come now, Edward. Take your horse, and head back home. Sleep this off, and we will all forget this ever happened.” Sidney spoke like he was almost talking with a child, but the tone of civility was marred by the undertones of an ultimatum.

Edward’s lip curled in a sneer, disregarding Sidney’s suggestions of gentlemanly behavior, he lunged in an attempt to get through the two men on the path. He could see his sister cowering with that penniless Miss Heywood. Both of them, worthless in his estimation, except for maybe a little fun. He took another step when he felt two large hands against his shoulders, pushing him back several paces.

Babington had stepped forward, blocking Edward’s way toward the rest of their party. “GO, Edward! NOW!!” He repeated forcefully, his fists now ready at his sides..

“I am taking my sister with me!!” Edward had taken another step forward after his backward stumble.

“NO!” Bellowed Lord Babington, yet again. He took his own step forward, meeting Edward squarely in the middle, glaring at him. “I will NOT allow IT!”

Edward stared him squarely in the face, thoroughly disgusted with the “Lord” in front of him. “How DARE you interfere?!” He demanded. “What gives you the RIGHT, Lord Babington,” spitting the words in his face.

“Honor, gives me the right, Sir Edward. Something that you dearly lack!” Babington spat back.

Sidney was standing behind them, and witnessed the encounter in its entirety from a few steps away. He watched as Edward lunged forward, trying to put his hands around Babington’s neck, missing and only getting his shoulders, as Babington had moved quickly, anticipating the attack. He grabbed one of Edward’s wrists, and twisted his arm up and behind his back, holding him in place.

“Leave, Edward, or I will hold no quarter against you!” Babington was yelling directly in his ear behind him. Edward struggled at first, then breathed more slowly, waiting, and finally relented as he nodded. He looked to be heeding the warning when he was released, until he spun on his heel, and his right fist made contact with Babington’s jaw. Sidney had just taken two steps toward them when he saw his friend punch Edward squarely in the stomach. With Edward doubling over from the impact, Babington moved again with a swift right haymaker to his nose from his other fist, which sent Edward flying onto his back into the tall grass.

Sidney could hear the wails from Esther behind him, shocked, upset, ruined by all accounts, but his friend was poised to throw another punch as he stood over Edward’s limp body. It took him a moment to absorb the scene. Babington had instinctively remembered the instruction they’d had in boarding school through their sporting classes. Babington had rather excelled in fencing, and wielding a rapier, but the moves he displayed were directly from the boxing sessions in which they were required to participate. Then suddenly, he was concerned that his friend had somehow killed the very drunk Sir Edward. He hurried over to where Edward had been laid out by the punch, and bent to check his breathing. He was out cold, but still breathing normally, if a bit slowly.

He turned to Babington, still focused on Edward in the grass, wound like a coil, ready to unleash if necessary. “Babers,” he said softly. “Babers, are you alright?” He had noticed the bruising starting to form on Babington’s left jaw. Edward had landed a solid punch.

Babington’s breathing was still quick, and deep, and he kept his eyes still focused on Edward. He nodded finally, and with one large exhalation, he relaxed his arms, and then his shoulders, still refusing to look away from the threat that had faced them. A few moments later he stepped back, wiggled his jaw to see if anything was broken, and then looked over to where the women were sitting on the grass, holding on to each other. Charlotte was rubbing Esther’s back, trying to shush her fears away, telling her it was over, that she was alright, that Edward was not going to hurt her, dabbing some of her tears with a handkerchief, as Esther tried to bury her face away from everyone.

As Sidney kept watch over Edward’s unconscious form, Babington worked to calm himself as he slowly walked over to where the ladies were. As he approached he could hear some of what Esther was saying to Charlotte, clearly in shock and still terrified.

“What must you think of me Charlotte? I am ruined! What will Babington think of me now? The whole town will know before the church bells ring at sun down.” She was torn between hanging on to Charlotte for dear life, and running away as fast as she could.

Charlotte whispered consolingly, “No, they won’t. Mr. Parker and Lord Babington will not tell a soul. And no one will believe an imbibed man who attempted to attack the four of us. As for what I think…” she paused, waiting for Esther's tears to subside just a little. “I would hope that you would know that I would not judge you harshly... Edward has shown himself to be an abusive and manipulative man. How could you ever think that I would abandon you when you need me most?” She asked gently. “Especially when you showed me every kindness when I needed you.” Esther finally looked up at Charlotte’s sympathetic eyes.

Esther broke in. “He was not lying.” She sounded like a wounded animal, as she looked away, unable to take the kindness Charlotte was showing to her.

“I don’t care, Esther.” She looked up at Sidney near Edward, and then looked at Babington, as he had stopped just two yards away from where they had collapsed onto the ground. His eyes clearly full of concern. “ We have to get you away from here.” She added. “You cannot go home to Denham Place, it is not safe. You cannot stay with him. Let me take you to Sanditon House.”

They heard the sounds of Edward groaning, slowly returning to consciousness. Then the distinct sounds of him retching, no doubt from the deep gut punch Babington had given him combined with the alcohol he’d had instead of his tea..

Babington finally spoke. “Please, take Miss Denham to Sanditon House, Miss Heywood. Parker and I will take this scoundrel back to Denham Place and have her things packed and sent over for her.”

Esther finally dared a glance at Lord Babington. What she found there was not judgement, or disdain. She found only concern, and empathy for her situation. She never thought that anyone would understand, or believe the way that Edward behaved. This confrontation on the cliff-top was far more dramatic than any other previous episode with her brother. His anger was not usually placed against her. Once she had seen it first hand, she did not want to see it again. She was still looking at Babington’s caring green eyes, completely unable to speak. What could she possibly say to him now, she thought. She looked back at Charlotte, and simply nodded.

Charlotte stood, “Come…” She helped her up, put her arm around Esther and led her away. Babington watched as Charlotte held onto Esther a little tighter as the pair started to move down the path that would take them to Sanditon House.

Babington and Sidney managed to pull Edward up and onto his horse. Legs astride, and his head and body leaning forward against the withers and mane of his horse. Dropping him off at the doorstep of Denham Place. They rang for the servants, and tipped their hats as the door opened, and immediately turned to go and check that the two women had made their way safely.

After a few steps, Babington turned back to the confused maid, “Ah. Miss Denham shall not be returning to Denham Place. Please make sure that all of her personal effects and possessions are packed accordingly, and sent to Sanditon House.” The maid curtsied and bobbed her head before she turned back toward the open door, calling into the house for a footman to help her with the man on the horse.

***

“What in heaven's name has happened?!” Lady Denham was not a woman of physical action, but when she was alerted by her footman that Miss Denham had been seen approaching the house, under the obvious aid of Miss Heywood, she had practically flown from her writing desk to the foyer, where she found them. Both of the young ladies looked shaken and had traces of the cliff-side grasses on their skirts, with Miss Heywood finally answering.

“Lady Denham, we have had… a spot of bother along the cliff-road.” She paused to look as Esther.

“Were you robbed?! Set upon by ruffians?!” Lady Denham’s imagination was taking her in every direction. Esther simply shook her head no.

“Please, Lady Denham.” Charlotte whispered softly as she looked at the servants around them. “This is not the time nor place for details.” She looked at her knowingly.

Lady Denham composed herself. “Quite right, quite right.” Turning toward her footman. “Help Miss Denham into the parlor,” she commanded. Toward the maid, she loudly added, “Tea, girl! why are you still standing there!?”

Esther was placed on the chaise, and she was given tea by Miss Heywood once the tray had arrived. Charlotte offered her a biscuit, which she waved away. Her stomach could not have taken it. Lady Denham was wringing her hands, desperate to know what condition her niece was in. She looked again at Miss Heywood now that the room was empty, save for the three of them.

“Are you going to tell me, or am I to stand here and guess at every possibility of harm that could have befallen my niece?” She asked in her clipped tone.

Charlotte bit her lower lip and looked toward Esther for a sign of whether she should speak about what happened, or to stay silent so that Esther could give her version of events. She was twisting her hands when Esther placed her saucer and cup on the small table next to where she had essentially collapsed. The movement took Lady Denham’s attention from Charlotte, and she waited in the quiet cavernous room for Esther to speak.

She simply said, “Edward.”

“Edward?!” Asked Lady Denham, very surprised, and then she looked at Miss Heywood for confirmation.

She nodded, “Edward,” Charlotte responded softly.

Lady Denham’s head spun quickly over to look at Esther, desperate and fearful, she asked, “What has he done?”

Esther took a long breath and very slightly licked her lips in preparation to speak, or to stall for more time. “Edward was drunk.”

“Very drunk,” added Charlotte quietly. Lady Denham looked between the two of them, trying to understand why and how Edward would be drunk at such an hour of the day.

“Yes,” Esther continued. “He was... very drunk. We were walking... with Mr. Sidney Parker, and Lord Babington, along the cliff-walk... They were walking me home…” She paused to let that pass. “I had visited at Trafalgar House to see Charlotte, and… suddenly... he was there, behind us. On his horse.” She paused again as she placed her outstretched fingers over her stomach to compose herself. “He was angry, I’m still not sure why. He insisted that I return to the house with him immediately. When I told him he was drunk, and said no, he insulted me in front of the gentlemen, and they refused to let him take me with the state that he was in.” Esther was working doubly hard to keep anymore tears from falling.

Lady Denham’s eyes were wide with shock and disbelief. She looked at Charlotte again, who merely pressed her lips together, and nodded as she caught her eyes. “Yes, Lady Denham.”

Esther took a few more moments before continuing. “He was belligerent. Lord Babington continued to refuse him,” she needed another moment. “Before Charlotte and I knew what happened, Edward was becoming violent.” Her voice finally broke, recalling the events. Her aunt’s eyes narrowed as her mouth scowled, and her nostrils flared like one of her prized donkeys.

“He attacked Lord Babington, who subdued him, and when he let him go…” The memory of the anger and hatred in Edwards' eyes finally broke the dam that had been holding back her tears, and her voice shook. “When he let him go, he swung at Lord Babington, hitting him in the face.” Lady Denham gasped at the savagery that could lead two titled gentlemen to fisticuffs. “Lord Babington fought him off quickly... Valiantly,” she added softly.

“Oh my dears!” Lady Denham was not ordinarily one for sentimentality, but this was not an ordinary occasion. She reached for Esther’s hand as she sat next to her on the chaise. She once more looked at Charlotte, who only now looked pale and shaken from the experience, and motioned for her to take a chair and sit down.

“They sent me here, with Charlotte...and took Edward home.” Home… would it ever be her home again? If her aunt did not take her in, she would be without one. Esther finally allowed her chin to drop, which only helped the tightly held tears to drop onto her pelisse.

“Would that they had taken him to the Constable, that would have been what he deserved! Scoundrel! How dare he besmirch the name Denham!” Lady D was standing now, pacing in her anger. “A disgrace as well as a disappointment!” Her frowning scowl had only grown deeper, the further she processed the information. She was still muttering what a “Foolhardy, errant waste of a title,” her nephew was, when the butler opened the doors announcing the arrival of “Lord Babington, and Mr. Sidney Parker,” and asking if they should be admitted.

“Yes, yes, man! Right away!” She instructed with a flip of her wrist.

“Lady Denham,” Babington bowed stiffly, still on edge from the encounter, “Miss Denham, Miss Heywood.” Sidney repeated the gesture behind him, but stayed quiet. Babington looked at Esther with a look she had never seen before, and then returned his gaze to the homeowner. “Lady Denham,” as he walked closer to her. “Please, accept my apologies for intruding,” he added.

“Nonsense! From what I have just heard Lord Babington, we are greatly in your debt.” She looked over the young Lord. “In fact, we may have Esther’s life to thank you for.” She looked behind him at his companion. “Would you agree, Mr. Parker? I believe you were there to witness the whole of it.”

“Indeed, Lady Denham. Although, I fear that my presence was completely superfluous during the… unpleasantness. Babington showed great mettle, and determination to keep Miss Denham safe.” He looked over at his friend, who was still watching Esther on the chaise. “Yes, it was precarious, I have never seen… your nephew, in such a state.” He refused to say his name in front of Babers or Esther at this time. The wounds were too fresh.

Babington wanted nothing more than to run to Esther’s side but that would both be highly improper and ungentlemanly to impose on her so soon after the trauma, so he held his distance. For once he was the silent one and Sidney did all the small talk, mostly addressing Lady Denham. It was most unusual.

Esther noticed too, frowning. Maybe the encounter with Edward had managed to cool his affection for her, it was to be expected she thought. She smoothed her skirt out of habit, trying to find a way to test where he stood on things.

“How were the kippers this morning, Lord Babington? I hope you did not choke on any bones?” She looked at him, lifting her chin to brave herself.

There was the smallest smile on his part, it reached his green eyes. “The kippers did not match the tea later, Miss Denham. That was much more to my liking.”

“Kippers! What are you going on about Esther?” Lady Denham wrinkled her nose. “You should try ass’s milk instead, Lord Babington. A glass every morning will keep your gut healthy. I can send for some now if you like? It will do you good after the ehm… ordeal.” She motioned for a servant to fetch a round.

“Maybe some other time, Lady Denham. I fear that we have already taken too much of your time. We merely wanted to check on the wellbeing of Miss Denham, and escort Miss Heywood back to Trafalgar House.” Sidney jumped to Babington’s rescue.

Babington quickly agreed and stepped forward to kiss the back of Esther’s hand, and bowed trying to decipher how she felt. He wanted to tell her so much, to leave a little hint, but Lady Denham was standing right behind him, listening in.

“If I may, Miss Denham, would you permit me to call on you tomorrow, to see that you are well?” He finally dared to ask.

She nodded silently as she looked up at him. “You may,” Esther answered quietly and simply.

Sidney bowed to both the Denham ladies and offered Charlotte his arm. The second her small hand found its place, his heart beat in the most pleasant way.

Esther felt lost as she saw her new friends leave the room and the door closing behind them. It was a new sensation to her, that brought mixed emotions in her. Her relationship with Edward was poisonous, so was every relationship she had ever witnessed. The selfless actions that Babington had performed first for Charlotte, then for her, made her warm inside. It was very disturbing. She both wanted more and to run away. To let go, to let her guard down, that would mean trusting in another human being, and trust was not within Esther’s vocabulary.

Edward’s bloodshot eyes and filthy mouth spitting accusations at her kept flashing before her eyes. Her heart beat violently and she felt sick to her stomach. Lady Denham cried out for a footman, when she finally fainted, and slid down the chair.

When Esther came to with the acrid smelling salts, she took a moment to reflect, and remember what had happened. The letter with Edward in the morning, him leaving, tea with Lord Babington, Charlotte and Sidney, the cliff-walk, so much had happened in a few short hours. But she also recognized that what she had known was a lie, before today. She decided that trust was a safer path to follow, after her recent experiences with Edward. But trust with the right people. How would she know whom to trust after she had been deceived for most of her life?

Through all of Esther’s thoughts, she finally heard Lady Denham call for an additional footman. “Send to Denham Place for all of Miss Denham’s things, I want everything brought here at once! She will not set foot there again, and we will not wait for her things to be sent.” She turned to walk back toward Esther, but stopped to continue her instructions. “And another thing, Sir Edward Denham is never to set foot in Sanditon House ever again! Make that clear to everyone!” He bowed, and left the room.

The housekeeper had been summoned to make one of the best rooms into Miss Denham’s bedroom, and as soon as it was prepared, Esther had been brought there with the help of Lady Denham’s own Ladies’ Maid to help her undress and rest before dinner. As soon as her things were brought to her room, she searched the smallest trunk with her personal belongings. When she finally sat with The Compleat Angler in her hand, she browsed through it, flipping the pages to find a fitting passage. Tapping her fan against her chin as she skimmed the pages. A smile curled on her lips as she carefully underlined a few lines and inserted a small note. She had butterflies as she wrapped it carefully and handed it to a footman as she came downstairs for dinner. “Please bring this to Lord Babington.” She was risking more than she ever had, but she needed to know.

***

Babington had just finished a long soothing bath and a dull dinner when there was a knock on his door. “This came to you from Sanditon House, Lord Babington.” He tossed the man a coin and closed the door after him. He immediately recognized Esther’s handwriting. Before he could pace himself he had ripped the paper open and smiled when he saw the book inside. He flipped to the page marked with the note.

“I shall stay no longer than to wish him a rainy day to read this... discourse; and that if he be an honest angler, the east wind may never blow when he goes a-fishing.”

He read the lines over and over again, trying to extract her meaning from them. The note simply said;

To a truly honest angler,
Thank you,
- E

The sun was rising outside when Babington was certain that he understood her meaning. Drop your pursuit if you do not mean it wholeheartedly. But if you do… It was turning into a bad habit of his to spend his mornings waiting for the clock to strike a proper time to call. He had long underlined a passage too, hoping that she would understand his intentions, and wrapped the book to the extent of his abilities.

***

Babington was shown into the large parlor, where Esther and Lady Denham were sitting in front of a roaring fire. An embroidery hoop was sitting idle on Miss Denham’s lap, untouched, whilst Lady Denham held a magnifying glass to read the book in her other hand. They slowly rose to greet him as he stepped down into the room. Bowing he addressed both of the women.

“Lord Babington, how lovely to see you this morning” Lady Denham squinted her eyes, watching the two people standing in front of each other. She brought the magnifying glass to her eye as if it would make her able to enlarge and reveal the feelings between them. A wealthy Lord would be a most suitable match for her niece. Lady Denham considered herself a master of the heart, and to her the young Lord looked very smitten, if not already in love. Yes, he would do very nicely.

When Esther had arrived yesterday, shocked and pale, the old woman had realized that she actually liked this niece and wanted her to be happy. Happy, meaning being loved and being in control. Edward on the other hand had pushed her last button and she had instructed her staff not only to ban him, but to hand him over to the magistrate if he neared Sanditon House. She was yet undecided on what to do with Clara. Her company was tolerable, she ran errands well enough, and played the pianoforte better than Esther did. If Esther managed to wheel in Lord Babington, she would be leaving soon anyway. It would only make sense to keep her as a backup companion. Plus, Esther’s qualities would shine by comparison, if Lord Babington needed one. From what she had seen yesterday, he seemed almost sunk in his admiration of her. Standing in front of them now, at the earliest hour possible was another sure sign of his admiration of her niece.

“How are you doing this morning, Miss Denham? I hope you slept well?” He was speaking as lowly as he could to Esther, hoping to engage her in a private conversation even with Lady Denham in the room, watching them like a hawk with her one eye popping up three times the size through the magnifying glass she was clinging to. He smiled to himself, it was the perfect image of the old lady meddling at every turn. He had seen it at the disastrous pineapple luncheon and every other encounter where he had witnessed her.

“I am doing as well as can be expected.” She wanted neither to lie nor cause him to be overly concerned for her. “And you? The bruises look worse today than yesterday.”

He touched the sore spot. “It’s nothing. It looks worse than it is and it was worth it to protect you. I hope you know that I would do it again. In a heartbeat.”

“What hearts?” Lady Denham interrupted. “Are you discussing card games? Esther is not much of a card player, I will tell you that much. But she is witty enough without it, I suppose.”

“No, Lady Denham. We were talking about fishing. I caught a big fish the other day in the river but didn’t have the heart to drag it on land and set it free. Now, when I sit on the river bank, it sometimes comes and nibbles bread crumbs from my hands. What better catch than the one that comes on its own free will.” He looked at Esther as he spoke the words.

“You don’t sound like much of an angler, Lord Denham. May I recommend you to read The Compleat Angler by Izaak Walton if you want to improve your fishing!”

Babington and Esther both tried to stifle a laugh but failed and he suggested that they took advantage of the fine day outside and went for a walk. Lady Denham accepted eagerly on Esther’s behalf before said woman could say anything.

***

Outside she slipped her hand around his arm. He put his hand on top of hers for a short second to show her he appreciated her gesture. They walked in silence for a while, the only sounds were the odd bird chirping and the gentle rustle of the leaves.

“How are you really, Miss Denham?” He shot her a sideway glance.

“I am alive, thanks to you.” She looked at him without revealing any emotion. “My brother… well, I hope I never see him again.” But her voice shuddered when she mentioned him, and the fear behind the sound was evident to him.

“Would I be speaking out of turn if I told you that I am very grateful that you have been removed from his power? You deserve so much more.”

“I would not consider it out of turn,” she answered cryptically. “I am not sure what I deserve…” She looked off into the distance. “I have been so deceived, to believe he would take care of me. He is incapable.” Refusing to look at him, she whispered sadly. “Aren’t you afraid you’ll be tainted by my disgrace?”

He reached into his inner pocket and pulled out the book. “Not in the least. Don’t you know how I feel about you? Here.” He wanted to say so much more but feared he risked more by speaking than by letting her set the pace.

Her trembling fingers broke the seal and unwrapped the book. She smiled quietly as she opened it on the marked page.

“And though it is most certain, that two lutes being both strung and turned to an equal pitch, and then one played upon, the other will warble a faint audible harmony in answer to the same tune: yet many will not believe there is any such thing as sympathy of souls, and I am well pleased that every reader do enjoy his own opinion.”

“I have no desire to be your property.” She whispered with tears in her eyes.

“Good, because I have no desire to own you. I just want to make you happy. To love you. Do you trust me?” He lifted her chin with his knuckle.

“Yes.” Strange, she thought, as she truly meant it.

“Then please marry me. Become my wife.”

“She stepped back to look at him more directly. “I wasn’t expecting this,” she added with a small shake of her head. Yesterday her world collapsed around her, and now it seemed that Lord Babington was building it up even stronger than it had been before. “You are quite sure?” She needed to know that he meant it.

“Never more sure of anything in my life, Miss Denham.” He spoke sincerely as he dropped to his knee before her with her hands, and the shared book, clasped in his. “Miss Denham, would you do me the honor of becoming my wife?”

The sounds of the garden around her seemed to build in her ears, but she could only hear the noise of her heart beating, and his question as he knelt before her. Slowly a smile graced her face as she looked down at him. “Yes, Lord Babington, I will.” It almost felt like someone else was answering for her. Like she was watching the entire scene as a third party. That changed as his smile relaxed from her answer, relaxed and grew as he stood on the heels of his boots, and clasped his hand on her cool cheek.

“Miss Denham, you have made me the happiest of men!” She laughed at how freely he spoke of his emotions, but stopped when she felt his lips pressed against hers. A small kiss before he pulled back to look at her, to see how she had received it. The flutter of her ginger eyelashes matched the redness in her cheeks. She seemed younger, and different. Now that he had gotten his permission, he kissed her again, his lips strong and guiding hers as she responded. He could have held her like this for the rest of the day if it would have been appropriate. But it was not, and propriety had been thrown to the wind enough in Sanditon for the past few weeks.

Instead he smiled. “You swam back to me.”

“Yes, Lord Babington. It seems that I cannot resist a proficient angler.“ She added with a twinkle in her eye. “As long as he maintains his skills…” added with a slight upturn of her nose to keep him dangling.

He laughed, “Ah, Miss Denham, I daresay that any angler fortunate enough to have you swim to them would want to keep you near.”

“Esther,” she said.

“Esther,” he breathed her name as it fell from his lips. They sought hers once more, before it was time to go and reveal the wonderful news to her aunt.

He took The Compleat Angler from her hand and tucked it safely inside his inner jacket pocket. Who would have taken Sir Izaak Walton, angler extraordinaire, for a matchmaker?

The End

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