Bethany English smoothed out the satiny fabric of her favorite dress, and then twirled around before her massive, full length mirror. Well, it was her favorite dress aside from the one hanging in the very back of the closet; her mother's wedding dress. Every once in a while, Bethany would take it out and hold it up in front of herself while she stood looking at herself in the mirror. She had never seen a dress so beautiful. It had sparkling beads sewn to the fabric and weighed a ton, but its beauty surpassed its weight. When she married William, it would be worth it to bare the burden of its weight.
She sat down on the couch at the end of her bed and sighed.
She wasn't yet engaged, but it couldn't be far off. Her mother and father were a mere eighteen-years-old when they were married, and Bethany had passed that point in her life nearly two years ago. She was absolutely positive that William's parents were pushing him to make things official. After all, they'd been talking about it for years; since the two of them were toddlers, barely able to walk.
William was a handsome young man, just like his father had been at his age, she'd been told. His family was rich, richer than hers, and according to her father, just the kind of lift their family needed. Plans had been made to socialize the children when they turned sixteen, in hopes that they would take to each other, and to everyone's relief, they did. Bethany and William were exactly the same. They both had parents telling them exactly what to do, they always got whatever it was they wanted, and they were both blond and perfect, right down to their sparkling blue eyes. All of their parents friends went on and on about the beautiful children that would come when the two married.
At first, Bethany remembered fighting her parents, scolding them for trying to determine her life for her, but as it happened, William turned out to be quite pleasant, and she liked him more than she thought she would. He wasn't like the boys that lived in the servant's quarters; he didn't run around in the mud, and he didn't yell and laugh. Instead, he was always quiet, spoke in near whispers and read books in his free time. Bethany thought he was quite a gentleman.
There were two taps on her door.
"You may enter," she spoke, not bothering to stand up and answer the door.
The door opened halfway and she saw Eliza, one of the servants, standing there with a few rags in her hands.
"Please, Eliza, next time you decide to enter my room, leave your filth behind you."
"Yes, Miss. Bethany. I apologize. I only came to tell you that Mr. Winthrop is here to see you. He's waiting in the library for you."
"Wonderful," Bethany smiled, but didn't stand until the door was closed. She moved over to her vanity and put a little more powder on her nose, and then ran a comb through her long hair. Once she'd traveled down the elegant set of shiny wooden stairs, she took a left to the front hall and saw William standing with his back to her, obviously reading the titles of her father's books. Sometimes, she thought he would prefer the books to her, but instead, she pushed the thought aside.
"What a surprise," she said in a soft voice, leaning against the doorway and putting on a sweet smile. "I didn't expect you until much later."
William barely glanced over his shoulder at her before looking back at the books. "Yeah... I'm sorry about that. I was bored at home, so I just decided to come over and-"
"And read my father's books?" she ventured, now with her hands on her hips. "Is that all I'm good for?"
That finally made him turn around. "Bethany, dear, you know that's not true. I was only browsing as I waited for you."
She looked carefully at his charming smile and sparkling blue eyes. "So, that's why you didn't turn around when I walked into the room."
"I had to finish reading the title, didn't I, dear?" he asked as he approached her.
She crossed her arms before he encircled her in his. "How long was the title?" she muttered, still upset with him for practically ignoring her. When a woman enters a room, a man should turn and at least acknowledge her presence!
"Bethany," William said, pulling away from her. "I think someone's knocking at your front door."
"So?" She pulled away from him and narrowed her eyes. "Let the servants get it."
They stood there looking at each other for a moment, until there was another rap on the door.
"If you won't answer it, I will," William insisted, brushing past her and out the door to the front hall. She peeked out at him, noticing how his long legs rushed him to the front of the house. He swung the door open and she caught a glimpse of a red-haired man before he quickly disappeared behind William's head. Curious, she followed her boyfriend's trail up the hall.
"Who is it?" she demanded, pushing William aside so she could see.
Standing there in tattered clothes was a man probably in his early twenties. He had dark red hair and bright green eyes.
"We don't need any-"
"Miss, if you'd please listen for one moment," the filthy young man continued. "I was wondering if you had any horses and needed another hand in your stables."
"We have horses," Bethany confirmed. "But you'll have to talk with my father. He runs those sorts of things. Not me." She glanced up at William who was looking down at the man with a small smile. "Get back inside," she told him, pushing him away. "I'll take this man to my father."
The smile disappeared from William's face, but he said nothing as she shut the door quietly in his face.
Steven glanced over at the blond beauty as she led him across the beautiful yard. "Thank you for your time, Miss. You really have no idea how much I appreciate this."
"Don't thank me," she insisted. "There's no guarantee that Father even needs another hand in the stables. Lord knows I rarely visit the place myself. Filthy, if you ask me. Those animals are disgusting."
He raised his eyebrows at her, and then smiled. "I think that if you spent some time with them, you'd feel differently."
"Don't tell me what I think!" she insisted as they crossed over a small hill and the stables came into view. "I have a mind of my own."
"I can see that," Steven muttered.
"What was that?"
"I said, I didn't catch your name."
"It's Bethany. But you can call me Miss. English. I prefer not to be so familiar with the help. Besides, where are your things?"
Steven gulped, remembering how he'd left everything behind when he fled. "I don't have any," he admitted.
"And why not?" she asked, giving him an odd glance. "All of our other servants at least have a few personal items."
"They were burned in a fire," he lied. "That's why I've come looking for help. My old employer couldn't afford to keep us all after the servants quarters burned to the ground."
"Oh," she said, as if she understood. "Well, if Father lets you have the job, you can buy some new things with your wages."
"I'm so grateful," he murmured under his breath.
"Excuse me?"
"I said... you're so graceful," Steven covered quickly.
"Please don't compliment me. It'll save you the embarrassment of my rejection."
Steven would have stopped to stare at her in complete awe if they hadn't arrived at the stables at that exact moment. He'd never met anyone like this Miss. Bethany English before in his life! "The embarrassment of her rejection..." he muttered as she went to go find her father.
Before he could recover from Bethany, a man appeared around the corner. He had the same blue eyes as Bethany, but his hair was dark... and he looked even more snooty than she did... if that was at all possible.
"Sir," he started. "I've come looking for work. I've worked with horses since I was a boy, and would work very hard for you."
The man rubbed his graying beard as he stared at Steven. "My daughter says that your old employer had an unfortunate accident with a fire. You didn't start that fire, did you, boy?"
"Of course not!" Steven answered, almost insulted. "Why would I start a fire if it meant I'd be out of work? All of my few belongings went down with it, and I was left with nothing. It would have been of no benefit to me, I can assure you."
"You look fit enough," Mr. English continued as he looked Steven over. "And by the way you talk, I can tell you've had a bit of education. I can't take any risks when it comes to my prized horses. In case you didn't know, they're thoroughbreds and are worth more than your life. Let's see you with them. Then I'll make my decision."
Reluctantly, Bethany watched as the young man climbed up on a white mare's saddle. "Daddy," she whined. "Can't I go back to the house? William is waiting for me."
"Let the boy wait," Mr. English demanded. "It's good for him. Besides, if you're going to take over some day, you're going to have to know what kind of people to hire."
"Daddy, you know I hate the horses. They're dirty, disgusting and they make me nervous!"
Mr. English put his arm around her shoulders. "Just stay and watch for a moment. I've given this boy my most difficult mare. If he can handle her, then he's hired."
She sighed as she stared out at the field. She'd seen men with horses before, but never one who looked so confident, so skilled... especially when he was much younger than all the others.
The mare was kicking and twisting, trying to rid her rider from her back, but the young man held on with determination. His red hair blew in the wind as he finally got her into a canter. When they reached the end of the field he slowed her down to a trot, turned, and then horse and rider flew back to the fence where Bethany and her father waited. One glance up at her father and she knew he was impressed with his riding skills.
Steven dismounted the horse and took the reins in his hand as the horse snorted at him. She'd been conquered and was obviously not too pleased about it. Mr. English was beaming from the other side of the fence.
"Congratulations, boy, you've got yourself a job. Just one more question. Can you train the horses?"
Steven nodded. "I have some experiences with training, but not a lot. I'm only twenty-two, sir, and I still have a lot to learn."
"And you'll learn here. Welcome aboard. There's an empty room for you in with the other help. Randy here, will show you where to go. You start working at five in the morning and continue until sunset."
"Yes, sir," Steven answered. "And thank you."
"I was looking for another hand in the stables. I'm glad you came along," Mr. English replied, smiling down at his daughter as if thanking her for bringing the boy to him. "But you never told me your name."
"It's Steven. Ste...." he faltered, thinking it might be better not to give anyone his real name. What if someone came looking for him when they found T. E.'s body? "Steven Connor," he finished.
Chapter 2
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