🕸 VII 🕸

I entered the guest room and five of our maids were present. Maggy sat at the dresser with a mirror as two of our maids assisted with her hair and makeup. Two more were tidying up her dress that was on a mannequin. And the last maid stood by a serving cart with water and tea at the ready.

It was an annoyingly busy atmosphere.

Maggy saw me in the mirror and she did not look surprised to see me dirty and disheveled.

“Really, Gothia? You ruined another dress?” she asked.

“It could not be helped, Lady Maggy. We explored the family crypt and dirt was unavoidable,” I said as I approached her.

Maggy then looked down at my feet and asked, “Gothia? What became of your boot?”

I looked down at my feet and sure enough, I had forgotten to put my boot back on. With all the excitement, I never noticed I was walking with one foot bare. I blushed a bit from utter embarrassment.

I giggled and said, “Oh, I took it off while in the crypt. It is likely still there. That would explain why I have been walking lopsided.”

“Good gracious, what am I going to do with you?” asked Maggy as she stood.

She wore her best undergarments that were designed to bind her massive bosom. Even with such undergarments, her breasts shook after every movement of her body. She approached me with her hands on her hips.

Maggy inspected me from toe to head and said, “And your hair is in such a state. Supper will be ready soon and here you are looking like the living dead.”

“How dreadfully kind of you to say, dear Maggy,” I said as I curtsied.

Maggy rolled her eyes and ordered the maids. “Right, two of you go fetch Gothia’s boot please. Take a lantern with you and have one of the Longroper servants guide you.”

The five maids played rock-paper-scissors to see who would go. Before the unlucky two left, Maggy added an additional order. “Oh, and make sure there are no creepy-crawlies in her boot this time.”

“Yes, mind the tarantulas, they are harmless as long as you leave them be,” I said.

“What’s a tarantula?” asked one of the younger maids with wide frightened eyes before her older superior hushed her and they left.

Maggy then ordered the remaining three to assist in cleaning me up. I refused the assistance.

“I can clean myself, Maggy,” I insisted. “I do not need help.”

“Why are you being so stubborn?” asked Maggy.

Truth was that I wanted no other to touch me besides Lurkson. And maybe Miss Easter. My body yearned to be touched and I was afraid the slightest poke from another would set me off. My sexual tension and frustration was like a fire from Hades ready to annihilate Pompeii.

But I could not outwardly make that known to Maggy and the maids. So I had to concock some plausible excuse. “Because I am not a child, Maggy. I can clean and dress myself.”

Maggy sighed and crossed her arms. Her beasts shook as her arms folded under them. I was very annoyed with her for doing that. I was already at the brink but to watch her full and scrumptious bosom jiggle was too much.

“Will you put a robe on, Maggy,” I asked as I looked away from her. “And do not ask why, just do it, please.”

Maggy raised an eyebrow at me. But I could tell by the look in her eyes she understood. She had a maid give her a robe. She then ordered the maids to leave.

When it was just the two of us, Maggy guided me to the bathroom.

“I will not help you but I will keep you company as long as you behave,” said Maggy. “And you are to tell me what happened with that boy.”

“Nothing, that is what is so frustrating,” I said.

I took my dress off and Maggy shook her head upon seeing more grime on me.

“Look at you,” she said as she sat in a chair by the bathtub. “Your chest is covered in filth. That is your best brassiere and now we will have to settle with a corset. Are you certain nothing happened between you and that boy?”

“Nothing,” I said bitterly as I removed my undergarments. The black rose Lurkson gave me was still in my hair. I took it off and safely placed it on the sink. “Nothing whatsoever.”

“I would like to know what happened because clearly by the state of you something did,” said Maggy. “I am concerned, Gothia. So please, tell me.”

I was not obligated to tell her anything. But she was my step-sister, closest friend, and first desire. I caved and told her everything as I bathed. I left no detail out.

Maggy grimaced when I mentioned Miss Easter’s sexual orientation. “I had my suspicions about that maid. She was giving devilish looks to myself and our maids. I want you to not engage with that woman anymore.”

“Why not? Are you jealous?” I asked with a playful smile.

“No, I worry about you,” said Maggy. “You have always been so sexually curious that I fear you will give into the wrong partner.”

“Do you believe that Lurkson is wrong for me, dear Maggy?” I asked.

Maggy sighed and said, “Gothia, I can tell this boy suits your fancy like no other before him. In fact, I cannot recall you being so infatuated with anyone else before.”

“There is you,” I admitted without fear.

I made it no secret how I felt towards dear Maggy. And yet again, she rolled her eyes at me.

“Stop it, I saw the way you look at that boy,” said Maggy. “You do like men after all. So please drop this lesbian act.”

“It is not an act,” I said sheepishly. “I can desire both men and women.”

“Enough, Gothia,” said Maggy as she stood. “Just wash up and I will have a suitable dress laid out for you.”

“Explain then why I am always so bashful around you when you are in your underwear?” I asked. “Or when I become speechless when I see you in the nude?”

“Because most people are just naturally embarrassed by such things and you clearly are too,” said Maggy.

“I often dream of your breasts,” I said with a big smile. “Sometimes they are all I think about.”

“You and most of the men I have met,” sighed Maggy. It was clear she thought I was still joking. “Now enough foolishness, Gothia. I will leave you to wash up. You want to be presentable for this boy, right?”

“Do you approve of Lurkson, Maggy?” I asked.

“Gothia, I am happy you are connecting with people outside our family but you just met this boy,” said Maggy. “Do not rush a romance. I understand how you are feeling but please, just get to know him for now and do not be rash.”

Maggy then left me alone. I finished bathing while a phantom of embarrassment hovering over me. My feelings for her continued to fall on deaf ears. That was what made Lurkson so tempting. He understood me after our eyes met for the first time.

I knew Maggy was a lost cause. There was no future where she and I were lovers. I was her step-sister, she was the heiress to a noble family legacy, and nothing more could be between us. If I wanted a future I had to move on and press forward.

Forward into my Lurkson’s arms.

🕷

Maggy assisted me in getting ready for supper. She did not summon back the maids. She apparently wanted more alone time with me. She vented about her time with Earl Alberto Raphael Longroper as she brushed my hair.

“He has been a gentleman to me but annoyingly so. You know what I mean? He speaks in that manner you want to believe is an act but he is actually being genuine. And his topics of conversation are just so dull. He is well read but he reads textbooks and philosophical nonsense. He likes chess and hunting with his father. I am sure our father would get on well with the Earl. And mother would certainly approve of his looks and build.”

“His family’s status is what our parents desire,” I said bluntly.

“Yes, the Longropers are a well respected family,” said Maggy. “But our family is also well off.”

“Does not matter, Maggy, I have told you this,” I said. “It is like the laws of nature. A predator always strives to be on top of the food chain. And we Vineharths are low on the chain.”

“Can I admit something? You must never repeat it,” said Maggy.

“Of course, all your secrets are safe with me, dear Maggy,” I said.

“Well, I do not think things will work out with the Earl,” said Maggy. “I am considering spending the night with him. To test his resolve.”

“You want to have sex with him?” I asked with a sneer. “And here you are telling me not to rush a romance.”

“This is not a romance, it is purely political,” said Maggy. “It is a test to see what kind of man he truly is.”

“You rarely want to spend any time with a suitor at night,” I said. “And please answer my original question. Do you want to have sex with the Earl?”

“I plan on offering him my body and we shall see where that leads us,” said Maggy. “And like I told you, this is a political move. It is business and nothing more. You have an actual romance that needs to be handled delicately.”

“I feel you are being a hypocrite, dear Maggy,” I said.

“Perhaps I am but I care for you and I do not want you to have any regrets when it comes to love,” said Maggy. I watched her in the mirror. Her face grew sorrowful. “Trust me, love is painful when mishandled.”

“Right, there is something I do not know that I should know,” I said as I took Maggy’s hands and removed the comb from her grasp. “Please, tell me what—”

“I am in love with someone I cannot be with,” admitted Maggy.

The color left my face. All the time I had spent with her and I never knew she had an unrequited love. I could not help but take advantage of the situation.

“Is it me?” I asked with all the hopefulness in my black heart.

Maggy rolled her eyes and said, “Oh, come now, Gothia. I am being serious so I ask you to do the same.”

“Sorry,” I said, withdrawing my personal desires. I still teased her though. “Well, who is she then?” Maggy glared at me and I flashed a smile. “Sorry again, I could not help myself. Do continue, dear Maggy.”

Maggy took a deep breath. Her wonderful bosom was coming dangerously close to the back of my head. I yearned to press my head upon her dreadful breasts. And I braced myself to learn the name of the man who had stolen Maggy from me.

“Well, do you remember the Gloombrights?” asked Maggy wearily. “The family we visited about three months back?”

It took me a moment to recall that visit. “Yes, it was during the thaw between winter and spring. The family was successful in the gold trade and they became a rags to riches tale. I think mother and father sent us to the Gloombrights so you could meet with—”

I recalled the eldest son. I forgot his name but could not forget his wretched appearance. He was round, chubby in the face, hairy, lacked any manners, and had a lazy eye. I sneered and almost gagged from the mere thought of him.

“That fat moronic eldest son of the Gloombrights?” I asked in disgust. “He is your—”

Maggy too became disgusted. “What?! No, that was Royaland and I wanted nothing to do with him. And he secretly prefers the company of older women. No, not him, Gothia.”

I recalled that the father was a widower. “The old man was looking for a new wife, yes?”

“Oh, for pete sakes, Gothia. Never in a million years would I demean myself by becoming someone’s second wife,” said Maggy. “It is Young Deacon Gloombright I am referring to.”

I thought for a moment then I finally recalled him. “The youngest son? But he was only fourteen when we visited!”

“He was fifteen when we met him and he just turned sixteen last month,” said Maggy.

The Young Deacon Gloombright was present when we visited the estate. But he was the kind of person who blended into the background. He was short, had dark hair and eyes, was rather meek in the face, and was overall very unremarkable.

Our meeting with the Gloombrights was mostly with the eldest son Royaland and Mister Gloombright. Deacon Gloombright never engaged in conversation. But he was there during the meetings, as I recalled.

“He played the viola the whole time,” I said.

“Yes, that was him,” said Maggy as she smiled brightly.

“I thought he was a servant at first,” I said. “He was dressed like a butler.”

“It was a black suit of silk and oh the wondrous music he played, he is such a prodigy and—”

Maggy had a grin on her face as she went on about Young Deacon Gloombright. She was positively smitten with this boy. And I never picked up on it during our visit to the Gloombright estate. I was impressed with how well Maggy hid her feelings for Gloombright from me.

And I grew jealous of this Young Gloombright and let my venom fly.

“You call Lurkson a boy yet here you are drooling over someone who is not of age,” I said.

“Well, Deacon is sixteen now and suitable for marriage,” said Maggy.

“What is the issue then?” I asked. I then added, with dark hope, “Does he not reciprocate?”

“Well, I believe he does,” said Maggy. “We write to one another regularly. I am amazed that he still finds me interesting enough to write back.”

“You are an attractive woman with lust blonde hair, the face of a goddess, and a bust that could kill,” I said. “Any man, regardless of age, would have you.”

“Yes but I worry he would think I was only after his money,” said Maggy.

“If you are sincere in your feelings for him, and convey them properly, I doubt he would question your motives,” I said. “And yes, he is very young but I fail to see the issue here. Why is he someone you cannot have, dear Maggy?”

“Because the Gloombrights are not looked upon favorably by the nobility,” said Maggy. “Mother and father only sent us because Mister Gloombright sent an invite. It would have been rude to turn him down.”

“Yes, the Gloombrights are a new money family and ours is quite old,” I said. “Marrying into the Gloombrights would bring the Vineharths considerable wealth but it would be a black eye on our reputation as nobility. I can see your dilemma, dear Maggy.”

“Yes, thank you, Gothia,” said Maggy as she took the comb from me and resumed brushing my hair. “I must put our family’s reputation before my own desires. Young Deacon Gloombright will have to remain a penpal and nothing more.”

I felt relieved to hear that. I was very territorial towards my dear Maggy. I knew I would have to surrender her to a suitor eventually. My step-parents would not have their only flesh and blood daughter become an old maid.

I had to move on, I had to give Maggy up.

I had Lurkson as my new prospect. And I was not going to listen to Maggy’s hypocritical advice. Like the Cretan Bull, I wanted to charge forward into my dreadful romance!

🕷