Bittersweet Endeavors (6 page)

“You are speaking of
our
neighbors, our friends
, and I
’ll not
have it!”  Anvil rose
and
moved away from the hearth.  A wary glint shadowed his
eyes and he shook his head.  “
Tis true there are times
that
the men who joined our co
mmunity
kno
w not when to use best judgment.
”
  A
guilty flicker
sparked
in his eye
s
.
“
B
ut
I shall hear no more of your criticism of them.  They are still our
neighbors
and
friends
.  Is that understood?”

“Aye, father.” 
Seth held back saying anything further
since the
subject
came as one
his father knew
very
well
. 
Seth
made
his
way to
ward
the door and
intended to leave
,
but
he
turned around when his father called out.
 

“What are your plans for this new servant?”

“Her name is
Myra
.”  Seth liked the way her name rolled from his
tongue and passed
over
his lips
, but he prevented the smile that tugged at the corners of his mouth.  “As I have stated, I think she
shall
make an
agreeable
maid for
m
other.” 

Before his father
gave
argument
, Seth quickly shut the door behind him
, b
ut not
soon enough
to avoid
hearing
his
father shout out his dismay
. 

For no
w, Seth thought with a smile, ‘t
would seem kitchen chores
would
ser
ve
Myra
best.

*                    *                    *

Seth’s
light
-
blue eyes held a stern ray of command that demanded
Myra
’s attention
,
but
she didn’t particularly want to offer
him
the courtesy.

“I insist that you behave appropriately
whilst
you are here.  Do you understand?”

Myra
reluctantly nodded
and resisted the urge
to
scratch the itch beneath the hem of her
gray
wool skirt.  Surely he, the man before her, would take offense
by
the
action.

His hand strewed through blond tufts of windblown hair. 
Betwixt that
and his unshaven face,
she thought h
e looked quite the blackguard. 
Although, t
he unsavory look suited him well
, she silently and reluctantly admitted
.
   T
he
pompous man chose the kitchens
—
the mo
st public place at the plantation
—
to
reprimand her.  Ten other servants lollygagged
and
watch
ed
t
he scene.
T
he more he berated her, the
harder it
became
keeping
her anger in check.
 
Her irritation worsened with t
he
combination of the kitchen’s
heat
and the wool of her
skirt
,
which
made it near impossible
to tolerate
the itch
that
she couldn’t soothe. 
Nevertheless,
s
he
remain
ed
calm
and
nod
ded
at each order
that
he barked out.

After he finished stating the house rules, h
e
proceeded
to rattle
off all the Blue
Laws of Jamestown which he
insist
ed
she
also
abide.  However, she took exception when his brow quirked upward, emphasizing the rule of no unmarried couples kissing. 
She wondered
why he thought
that
would be the one that she
’d
most likely breach
.
  What kind of lady did he think her to be? 
She
finally
concluded that the man was
insufferable
, and t
he urge
to admit
her identity overwhelmed h
er
. 
She
considered pointing out that she
was
his better
, but
a
raised temper
couldn’t
overrule common sense. 
F
or the sake of her sister,
she
continue
d
the façade of being amenable.

Each moment passed
was
e
xcruciating,
but
she
continued nodding curtly
.
  His voice
thundered out
strong, deep, and sounded outright superior. 
She wondered if he thought
he was
The King of England
.
  She
was able to
indubitably
vouch he
was
not, and
her
desire
in telling
him
such
tempted her near as much as the urge
came
to scratch
her itch.

Myra’s
patience
ran out.
 

He turned his head away from her
,
and
Myra
didn
’t resist the
impulse
. 
After
she took
a moment
to relieve h
er itching
, she made an unladylike face at him
. 
In the time it
required for
the cook
to prepare
the noon meal
, he
towered domineeringly over her
.  His
unspoken threats and insinuations
annoyed her
in
to distraction
. 
Although the gesture was a small victory
, and
certainly unbecoming of her true station
, she saw it the
only recourse
in venting
her anger without admonishment.  What he didn’t see
c
ouldn’t hurt him — but
raised
her spirits immensely.

Regrettably
, the
self-indulgent
act
caught
the attention of a young servant girl. 
The girl pelted out into a burst
of
giggles, but when Seth scowled at the young woman, the girl raised her hand and covered her mouth. 
Myra
noticed the
girl’s unusual blue eyes
and saw something oddly familiar but couldn’t quite place what
. 

“What’s the meaning of
this sudden outbreak, Lucia?”

Myra
immediately
realize
d
that Seth disliked the girl
, and
it wasn’t
for
the
reason of
the
laughter she
released
.  He glared toward the servant
through eyes of hatred.  He
h
arbored
ill feelings
for
Myra
,
too, but he
didn’t
display
such depths of
disgust
as
he
aimed at
the
other
servant.

 
             
“T’
was I who
m
she was laughing at, not you.
”
Myra
didn’t want someone
in trouble at her expense
and felt
a confession was
needed in order to protect
the girl
from his wrath
. 
She held a challenged, unblinking stare
aimed
directly a
t those beautiful blue orbs
Seth
possessed
. 
She found it difficult
to maintain
her
resolve
, but she
stayed
composed.  He turned
and
faced her
, and then
leaned
down until his nose almost met her
s
. 
A
smile
brightened
his face
, but
it was
an
ominous smile that didn’t hold a whit of warmth. 
It was at that moment
that Myra
recognized
that
she
had
caused herself more
trouble
than planned
. 

“And what
would it be that you’ve done
to have
cause
d
such an outburst from one of our
other servants
?”

Myra
observed
the fullness of his lips
but
discarded the thought when the image of how they’d feel upon her own mouth invaded her mind.  Such indecent thoughts never crossed her mind until that moment.  It took her by surprise.
S
he lowered her
lashes
, ashamed for having such impure thoughts
.
She
glance
d
back
toward
his direction
but lost
all sensibility
once she realized he moved and stood
very close
to her
.
His
frown
set
so close
near
he
r
lips
that it
made her quiver.  Myra
surveyed his mouth and sighed inwa
rdly.  His
lips
outlined into
a feature of perfection
,
as well as
his
light, sky
-
blue eyes.  What
came
over her? 
She wondered if she caught a f
ever on the ship
and
it
cursed
her
into
such improper thoughts
.
  H
is eyes reminded her of a
cloudless
sky on a summer morning
, and
it
lulled her into distraction
. 
If not
for his poor disposition,
Myra
believed
he was
the most handsome man
that
she
’
d
ever made an acquaintance
. 
In spite of his appearance
,
though,
he
proved
he had
the temperament of an aged mule
.

“I am
a
waiting
your
reply
,” Seth impatiently snipped.

“T’was,” she thickly mimicked
his tone
, “My tongue sticking from
my
mouth in your direction.”