Love at First Glance Read online

  Johnathan brought her to climax, but he didn’t leave her there to go through it on her own. He rode the wave with her and made sure that she felt every bit of the passion that he had for her. She cried out his name and then bit her lip as her body convulsed with the climax. She was not aware that another human being could make her feel so sensational.

  Johnathan was a careful and methodical lover. He paid attention to every sound her body made and he responded to her every need without Lillian even knowing that she needed something.

  She wished that she had more to give him because it seemed that he led their lovemaking. But she knew that she was not experienced and was not able to give him all that he wanted so immediately.

  Lillian could feel him dig his fingertips into her hips and then he quickened his pace. His body shuddered as hers had a few seconds before.

  Johnathan kissed away any of her fears and all of her doubt. She was not ready to leave his side so she snuggled up underneath him and held him close.

  “I so wish we didn’t have to leave each other. I would love to be with you like this every day.”

  Johnathan held her closer. “Someday soon, you will be, my darling.”

  Lillian stayed there in his arms as long as she could. She would have to return back to normal in an hour and she wasn’t looking forward to it. But she would have to manage without her lover for a while. She wasn’t sure how she would, but she would survive.

  Chapter 10

  Lillian was completely in love. On the train ride home, she could do nothing but think of Johnathan Bailey. She craved him in her being and all she wanted was to be near him. She looked forward to the day that he would come back to her and hold her in his arms.

  It had been a week since she’d visited him in London. Her sisters didn’t notice the change in her because they were busy with their own love lives. She didn’t want to share any of her love life with her mother either. The only other person that knew was Elizabeth and as her maid, Lillian wanted to make sure that she didn’t blur the lines in their relationship too much.

  She started a diary and began to write down her feelings. She didn’t know what else to do. She hadn’t heard a word from Johnathan. Lillian thought that maybe he would write her or send her a telegram, but there had been no correspondence.

  She resolved that she would just wait it out. There was no way for her to write to him because she didn’t know exactly where he lived in America.

  Her family met for breakfast every morning and eventually, Lillian became herself again. She began discussing the latest social events with her father and brother as her sisters looked on.

  “Well, Lily, it’s wonderful to have you back. It’s like you’ve been floating on air the past week or so,” her brother Victor commented.

  Her father did nothing but peak at her over the top of the newspaper.

  Lillian sipped her tea. “Yes well, us women are creatures of many temperaments.”

  They all turned when they saw Charlotte enter the room.

  “Hello, darling family. It seems to be a wonderful morning. I’m glad all of you are here.”

  They anticipated what Charlotte had to say.

  She loved the attention and she smiled proudly. “The social soiree we had a few weeks ago is still the talk of both Lanchester and London. Ladies, you will all be so happy to know that the gentlemen who were your escorts spoke the world of each of you. That makes me so happy to know that my girls all have a chance at marrying upstanding young men.”

  Charlotte was beaming. Their father Daniel continued to flip through the newspaper, seemingly uninterested.

  Kate and Olivia both began chattering amongst themselves. Lillian knew that they would be ecstatic about this type of thing. Her on the other hand, Cyril Aimsley was not the first on her mind.

  “Well, ladies, we have brunch this afternoon with a few of the ladies from the Lanchester society. I will expect that you all will be ready.”

  A chorus of “Yes, Mother” rang out from all of them.

  “Very well then.” Charlotte turned to walk out.

  “Lily, darling. Can I speak with you for a moment?”

  Kate and Olivia looked at their sister, then their mother, trying to gauge what was going on.

  “Excuse me.” Lillian rose from her seat and followed her mother out into the corridor.

  “Yes, Mother.”

  “How did you get along with Cyril Aimsley? He’s a nice enough young man.”

  “Mother, he is a proper gentleman, no doubt. He was great company for the evening.”

  Charlotte eyed her daughter, trying to see if there was some way that she could tell if she was telling the truth or not.

  Charlotte crossed her arms. “Well, he spoke very highly of you. But he seems to think that your mind was elsewhere that night. Care to discuss it?”

  “No not at all, Mother,” Lillian said, almost cutting her mother’s sentence off. “I’m not sure why he thought I was distracted. You know that I don’t care for those types of society balls. You throw an excellent party, but maybe he could tell that my heart just wasn’t into being there that evening.”

  Charlotte sighed and gently patted her daughter on the shoulder. “My dear, dear Lillian. At some point, you have got to get rid of this notion that some Prince Charming will come riding in an some horse and sweep you off of your feet. It’s preposterous to think that something like that will happen. Love does not exist in that way. Love is something that develops between two rational people. And my dear, all of this daydreaming is simply not rational.”

  Charlotte spoke softly, trying to comfort her daughter. Lillian was not comforted in any way.

  “Mother, I appreciate the fact that you would like to look out for my best interest. I understand what you are saying and I love you.” Lillian kissed her mother on the cheek. She knew that it was not worth the conversation with her mother. They both viewed love in different ways and nothing would change either one of their minds.

  “Very well. I will see you this afternoon for brunch.” Charlotte’s comment was not a question but a demand.

  “Yes, Mother.”

  Charlotte walked away, leaving Lillian to throw a mini tantrum on her own.

  “Since you are out here, I thought I’d show you something.”

  Lillian turned around to see her brother Victor coming up behind her.

  “What do you have to show me?”

  He held out an envelope and handed it to her.

  “What is this?” she asked, immediately intrigued. It was addressed to her and sent all the way from America.

  “Oh my goodness. Johnathan sent me a telegram!” In her immediate excitement, she spoke Johnathan’s name in her brother’s presence.

  Victor’s eye brow raised.

  “And who would this Johnathan be?”

  Lillian grabbed her brother by the arm. “Come with me,” she demanded.

  Victor followed her lead and they walked down the corridor to and empty dressing room.

  “You have to promise not to tell anyone.”

  Lillian looked her brother in the eye, letting him know that she was very serious about what she was saying.

  He laughed. “Okay, I promise.”

  Lillian held the envelope close to her heart. “Victor, this is not a game. I am serious. No one.”

  He held his hands up in surrender. “Fine. No one.”

  Lillian sighed. “I have found love with Johnathan Bailey.”

  Once the words escaped her lips, she could not believe she’d admitted it aloud to her brother.

  He looked confused. “Well what about Cyril Aimsley?”

  Lillian stamped her foot in frustration. “That is who Mother chose for me. I chose Johnathan myself.”

  “And how did you meet this mysterious Johnathan Bailey?”

  Victor looked at her seriously.

  “At Mother’s soiree a few weeks ago.”

  “Are you serious?”

  The tone in
Victor’s voice rose. Lillian put a hand over his mouth to hush him.

  “Quiet down,” she said in a loud whisper.

  When she was sure that he was calm, she removed her hand from his mouth.

  “I would like to trust you with this secret, Brother. Can I do that?”

  Victor first looked frustrated, then his facial expression softened. “Yes, you can. You know that you can. And especially now. You need someone to look after you while you run off gallivanting around with this person that our family does not know.”

  “Obviously our families have to know one another. How else would he have been invited to Mother’s ball?”

  “This may be true,” Victor agreed. “But I’m not sure how I feel about my sister running around in love with a man that none of us have formally met.” When Victor said the words “in love” he stressed them in a mocking tone.

  “Say what you want, my dear brother. But I would never get in the way of you falling in love with a wonderfully beautiful young woman of your choice. Never.”

  Victor held on his sister’s arm and pulled her to him so that they were eye to eye.

  “When I saw this telegram addressed to you, I thought you’d lost your mind. You are lucky that I checked the telegrams today. What if this had been delivered to you over breakfast in front of our parents? What would you have done then?”

  Lillian shrugged. She had no clue what she would have done. She was just happy that it had happened the way that it did.

  “Well, that didn’t happen now did it?”

  “No, but do you think that I’ll be intercepting telegrams for you everyday now that I know your secret?”

  Lillian looked down at the ground. “No and I don’t expect you to do that. I will find a way to tell Mother and Father about Johnathan. But in my own time, thank you.”

  “Well, you should figure it out soon. Besides, I don’t know how fond I am of a man that will telegram a woman when he’s never met her family face to face. When does he plan on coming back to England to meet us?”

  “I’m not sure. He told me that he had to go to America to meet with his parents. They are British, but live in America where they own a chain of drug stores or something like that.”

  A huge smile came to Lillian’s face at the thought of Johnathan. She daydreamed for moment before Victor interrupted her thoughts.

  “Aren’t you going to open it?” he said, pointing at the envelope.

  “Yes.”

  Victor watched as she slid her finger along the edge of the envelope to open it. Lillian unfolded the paper that was inside.

  Victor watched as she read the memo. Her eyes scanned the paper at least twice before she began gushing with happiness.

  “Let me guess, it’s full of ‘I love you’ and ‘I long for you’, et cetera, et cetera.”

  Lillian playfully hit her brother on the arm. “Something like that. He says that he will be back to England next month.”

  A devilish grin spread across her face.

  “What are you thinking my dear sister?”

  “Nothing I care to share with you. Anyway, this must remain a secret,” she said as she neatly folded the telegram back in the envelope and tucked it away in one of her pockets.

  “As long as I get a chance to meet this Romeo. I’m not particularly in to my sister dating mysterious men.”

  “Fine. I will arrange for the two of you to meet when he comes back from America.”

  Victor kissed his sister on the cheek and exited the room with a laugh.

  Lillian sighed and flopped down in the nearest seat. She read the telegram over and over until she had memorized each word. She was definitely in love with one Johnathan Bailey.

  Chapter 11

  The next month couldn’t come fast enough. Luckily for Lillian, Charlotte backed off of her matchmaking and left well enough alone. She hadn’t had to be paired up with Cyril Aimsley again against her will. Her sisters were very happy to make the acquaintance of whomever their mother picked. Kate was still courting her beau and Olivia hadn’t shown much more interest in her escort since the night of the ball.

  Lillian filled her days with gardening and trips in town. She’d even taken to volunteering at the local hospital. She had to do something to take her mind off of Johnathan. Thinking of him had become a daily activity. He’d sent several more telegrams, and she’d taken to going to the butler to check on the telegrams so as to intercept them before her parents found out.

  She’d been successful in doing so thus far.

  Lillian couldn’t wait until the day that Johnathan held her in his arms again. That day wouldn’t come soon enough.

  His last telegram said that he would return to England in two days. Lillian wanted nothing more than to meet him at his home in Lanchester, but she didn’t want to appear too forward. So she decided to wait until he gave her word on when and where they should meet up.

  That evening, Lillian took her journal outside to the garden and began writing what was in her heart. Some came out in poetry and some came out as letters to her lover. Whatever it was, she wrote about how she was feeling for Johnathan and how she hoped that he felt for her. Through his correspondence, he professed his love for her and said that he would always be true to her.

  Lillian hoped that he was telling her the truth about how he felt. She had never had a man profess his love to her and it was a bit scary. It scared her to know that she was responsible for a feeling so strong in another person and that that other person had the ability to make her feel immense happiness or tremendous lows.

  And she started feeling those tremendous lows as the days dragged on with no word from Johnathan. She checked the telegrams and mail daily and there was nothing from him. At first she tried to tell herself that maybe he was wrapped up in family business and that business was keeping him from sending her word.

  But that was not totally realistic. There had to be some point during the day in which he thought of her. And when he thought of her, he should be sending her word that she was on his mind and in his heart. Then it dawned on her that he could be on a ship on the way from America to England. Surely that could be the reason why he’d not sent her any messages. Surely he was sitting on a ship, writing her love letters every day and when he stepped foot on British soil, he would call on her and hand her a stack of letters that professed his undying affection and love.

  Maybe she could do the same for him. Lillian decided to not just write in her journal, but to write Jonathan letters that she would give him once he was back in her presence. That would surely make him happy to know that she’d thought about him as much as he’d thought about her.

  Lillian decided to write the letters to Johnathan. She hoped that he would appreciate w a woman that could share with him how she was feeling. They had never really talked about feelings, but the passion and love between them was undeniable. He was an attentive lover and he did nothing but make her feel comfortable while they made love.

  Lillian giggled at the thought of her and Johnathan in his bed. It seemed like right there, under that down feather blanket, it was the perfect place to be.

  With Johnathan, she felt a sense of security and she hoped that he wouldn’t break her heart. She wondered how he would describe what he felt about her in his own words?

  All of that she would soon find out. He was to return home shortly and she wouldn’t have to daydream about him anymore.

  Chapter 12

  One day came and went. Two days came and went. Three, four, five. When seven days came and went and there was still no word from Johnathan, Lillian felt like something was wrong. Surely he would have contacted her by now to let her know that he was back in England.

  She was becoming a bit frantic. She didn’t want to think that she’d bared her heart and soul, and body to a man that neither appreciated all that she’d given, nor respected it.

  Her frantic feelings soon gave way to anger. She was beginning to feel her fairy tale unravel.

 
; She decided to go into town and call on Johnathan just to see if he was alright. It wasn’t the type of think a lady did, but Lillian was sure that society’s rules would approve a woman who was concerned about her lover going to check on his well-being.

  Once she got to the village, she went straight for Johnathan’s home. When she arrived, nothing appeared out of place. She knocked at the door and waited. There was no answer and she knocked again.

  Still no answer. Her heart swelled. Where could he be?

  Maybe he’d gone into town to the market or to the pub for a drink. That would be an innocent enough thing to do.

  Just as she descended the stairs, an older woman appeared from the house next door.

  “Can I help you dear?”

  Lillian felt like she should hurry up. There was no way that she wanted anyone to know that the daughter of the Countess and Earl of Lanchester called on gentlemen.

  “No. Not at all,” she said gingerly stepping down the stairs.

  The woman waved, but still looked concerned.

  “You sure dear? You look like you got a lot on your mind.”

  “Alright. I do have a question for you, if you please.” Lillian stopped halfway down the steps and turned toward the woman.

  “Do you know that man that lives here?”

  A look of relief came across the woman’s face as if she’d just avoided some tragic circumstance.

  “Yes dear. Why yes I do. Known the family for quite some time. Nice folks. I think the son is there mostly now. Nice fellow. Helps me bring my bags from the market. Haven’t seen him in a while though.”

  “Why thank you ever so much.” Lillian had heard all that she needed to hear.

  It was just possible that he’d not returned as scheduled from America. Jillian walked down the front steps and got into her car. She’d driven herself to town that morning so she could spend as much time as she wanted there.