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<\/a><\/div>\nA Regency Short Story ~ by Susan Karsten<\/p>\n
\u00a0Upon awakening the next morning Virginia lay back with her fingertips laced behind her head. She\u2019d just woken up from a dream. One of those that replayed again and again. A good dream, though. In it, she danced the night away with a tall man. A man who looked like Quentin Ashleigh.<\/p>\n
A tap on the door signaled the maid with a breakfast tray, she and her mother having decided in advance to breakfast in their own rooms. The kitchen maid placed the tray on the bedside table. Next, to her surprise, a housemaid entered with a large bouquet of flowers.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere would ye like this put, Miss?\u201d The maid staggered under the ungainly weight of the large display.<\/p>\n
\u201cOver there.\u201d Virginia pointed to a table near the window. \u201cPlease hand me the card, Ruthie.\u201d<\/p>\n
Savoring the moment, she waited to open it. When both maids left, she propped and fluffed her pillows, then smoothed her hair, before prying open the envelope\u2019s seal.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u2018As you have danced your way into my affections, I would like to see you today. A walk in the Primrose Hall gardens perhaps? I shall call at two. Fondly, Quentin Ashleigh, Esq.\u2019<\/i><\/p>\n
Virginia\u2019s hands flew up to her warm cheeks.\u00a0Oh my, a beau! Nothing I ever expected here in Beckston. I\u2019d anticipated withering away on the shelf without a backward glance. No sooner do I submit my life completely to the Lord and he brings me a man. This time, maybe a good one. The one intended for me.<\/i><\/p>\n
There was no doubt in her mind Quentin was interested. She\u2019d been plagued by boys and men since she was thirteen. Her looks drew them like flies and made her a target. Oh, it was sometimes fun to get the attention, but mostly it was a bother, finding a way to let them down without bruising their\u00a0amour proper<\/i>.<\/p>\n
It wasn\u2019t until Randall came her way that she succumbed to any of them. Why did it have to be? Why couldn\u2019t Randall have aimed his potent brand of seduction at another beautiful girl? Providence could be a hard pill to swallow, but the whole experience had brought her to a place where she threw herself on the Lord\u2019s mercy. She\u2019d truly put it behind her. Praise the Lord the world didn\u2019t know of her fall.<\/p>\n
\u00a0***<\/p>\n
\u00a0 He spotted her. She was sitting on a garden bench under an arbor, a portrait of feminine loveliness. \u201cThe maid sent me around \u2013 told me you were out here.\u201d<\/p>\n
Quentin picked up her hand and kissed the air above it.\u00a0 He held her hand longer than necessary, then caught himself and dropped it as if scalded. \u201cSorry, I lost track of my mind, I mean my thoughts. For a moment.\u201d<\/p>\n
What a buffoon I am<\/i>. Seeing her in the light of day had thrown him. He knew she was a pretty girl, but daylight revealed her true exquisiteness. Never mind that her intelligent wit and charm drew him \u2013 she was also a diamond of the first water. He hoped she wasn\u2019t above his touch.<\/p>\n
\u201cI thank you for the flowers. Roses are my favorite. How did you guess?\u201d She tapped his arm with her fan.\u00a0Thank you, Lord, she\u2019s flirting like she likes me<\/i>.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey are my favorite as well, and our succession house had some beauties in bloom. I couldn\u2019t think of a better place for them than to grace your vicinity.\u201d<\/p>\n
There. That should make up for my earlier cloddishness<\/i>. The combination of her lithe yet lush figure, dark glossy long hair, classic features, and soft brown eyes caused him to go silent, wanting only to drink in the sight of her.<\/p>\n
\u201cShall we walk the garden paths?\u201d She began to rise from the bench, and he slipped his hand under her elbow to assist.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019d love to go down the garden path with you, Miss Mortimer.\u201d This sally brought a delightful fluttering of her eyelashes, a delicate hand to her bosom, and a smile perking the corners of her mouth.\u00a0Be still my heart.<\/i>\u00a0She likes me so far. Good, that\u2019s a start.<\/i><\/p>\n
She placed her hand on his proffered forearm, and they strolled off. Quentin noticed she was just the right height for him. Not too short or too tall. He liked that.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is the herb garden. Mother and I make medicines and so forth with some of these plants.\u201d She broke off a stem of rosemary, rubbed it, and passed it close in front of his face.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy yes, I can see, I mean smell, that would be quite medicinal, Miss Mortimer.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cLet\u2019s go to the fountain. It\u2019s over there.\u201d They moved off in another direction and were soon out of sight of the house. \u201cWe should stay closer to the house, but you must see the fountain first. I think you\u2019ll like the inscription.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI love inscriptions.\u201d Quentin wanted to say \u2018I love\u00a0you<\/i>,\u2019 but held his smitten tongue.<\/p>\n
\u201cAh, here it is.\u201d He struck an orator\u2019s pose and read from the fountain\u2019s rim, \u201cThe law of the wise is a fountain of life, to depart from the snares of death. A Proverb.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cApropos, don\u2019t you think?\u201d She looked up to him, as if he held the key to wisdom.<\/p>\n
Dropping his self-mocking pose, he grasped for a response. \u201cApropos? The whole of Scripture is that, Miss Mortimer.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI have a request, sir.\u201d She turned from perusing the fountain to face him.<\/p>\n
Oh no. This sounds serious. Have I spoiled it?<\/i><\/p>\n
\u201cSince we are going to be friends, might you call me Virginia, and I call you Quentin?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIndeed. Yes, that would be fine.\u201d He almost choked with relief.\u00a0She\u2019s going to be my friend? How sweet.\u00a0<\/i>He\u2019d be her best friend if she\u2019d let him.<\/p>\n
They moved back onto the main path and toward the house. Her parents were standing on a terrace off one of the rooms on the west side of the house. Mr. Mortimer waved. Disappointed their idyll appeared to be at an end, Quentin comforted himself that he\u2019d made wonderful progress, both in getting to know Virginia, and in gaining her favor.<\/p>\n
\u201cHello, Mr. Ashleigh. Won\u2019t you come inside before tea? I want to show you a folio I just added to my collection.\u201d Mr. Mortimer hooked his thumbs in his vest pockets.<\/p>\n
Mrs. Mortimer waved Quentin on. \u201cThat\u2019s quite fine. We\u2019ll see you back out here for tea in a trice, when Mr. Mortimer\u2019s done showing you his new treasure.\u201d<\/p>\n
The two men looked over the folio, and Quentin was taken aback when Virginia\u2019s father shoved it in a drawer, and said, \u201cI wanted to speak with you.\u201d<\/p>\n
He mustered up his courage, and answered, \u201cHow amusing, I wanted to speak with you as well, sir.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou first, then, young man.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI, sir am a man of thirty years, of good fortune and good repute and I\u2019d like permission to court Miss Mortimer. She\u2019s a real treasure and I must make her my wife. Do I have your permission?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMy, you\u2019re a blunt one. Charging right to the point, no? I\u2019ll consider it, but there\u2019s something you must know. She\u2019s more fragile than she looks. I mean her spirit. You must promise to value her, never hurt her, and be a valiant champion for her. You see, she needs that, after all.\u201d<\/p>\n
After all?<\/i>\u00a0What does he mean?<\/i>\u00a0\u201cYou have my word on that, sir.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cGood. Since I have your word to prize her happiness, I shall let you proceed. We can discuss settlements another time, after you\u2019ve secured her heart.\u201d<\/p>\n
***<\/p>\n
Weeks of rides commenced, Virginia always chaperoned by Lizzy, who hovered in the background. A picnic with Annabelle in attendance, dinners and lunches at both Primrose Hall and Fairbrook took the couple to the point of knowing their minds.<\/p>\n
On a warm afternoon, Quentin found Virginia alone in the garden when he came to call. \u201cHallo! The maid told me where you were.\u201d<\/p>\n
She watched his approach, drinking in the good looks of this man who\u2019d become so dear. Finding true love came as such a surprise, but her secret made her sad. The time had come to tell Quentin the truth about her. She couldn\u2019t let him propose, which she sensed imminent, without knowing all about her.<\/p>\n
\u201cVirginia, you must know that I have something I must ask you.\u201d<\/p>\n
He looked down at the ground, and suddenly she knew the time had come. He was going to drop to one knee. Forestalling him, she held up a hand face out. \u201cBefore you do, I have something I must tell you.\u201d<\/p>\n
A shadow passed across his face. The poor man, he probably thought she was about to let him down easy. The silly man, she\u2019d go to the ends of the earth with him, if she could. \u201cSit here.\u201d She patted the bench.<\/p>\n
Hating what she had to say, she forced out the words. \u201cI must inform you that I was taken from here by a cad, and cruelly mislead. The good Lord saw fit to restore me to my home without anyone else finding out about my shame. Before you say anything more, I need you to decide whether you can see past this blot on my maidenly escutcheon.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSay no more. This must be heartbreaking for you and your parents. But I see no stain on you, my lovely. God doesn\u2019t either, since you\u2019ve certainly repented, correct?\u201d He put his arm around Virginia\u2019s shoulders and lifted her chin with his other hand.<\/p>\n
\u201cOf course I have, but this society of ours \u2013 so harsh on a woman who errs, and giving a blind eye to the sin of the males. Never have thought that fair.\u201d She shuddered and Quentin gave her shoulder a comforting squeeze.<\/p>\n
A tear rolled down her cheek and she let it fall, not caring a whit about hiding her sorrow. \u201cDon\u2019t rush into this. Take the night to think it over. Make sure you can forget.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDarling, now I must tell you a secret. The reason my sister and I moved to the country, is that she was seduced and abandoned. Removing from society seemed best at the time. The fact that I fought a duel over her lent urgency to our departure. And I\u2019m glad we did, because that led me to you, darling Virginia.\u201d<\/p>\n
In one smooth move, he went down, not on one knee, but on two. Before Virginia could get out a word of protest, he asked her to be his wife.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy dear. I would be highly honored if you would grace my life with your presence all my days. Nothing would make me happier than to settle down with you and enjoy our life together, come what may. Say you\u2019ll be mine?\u201d<\/p>\n
She couldn\u2019t resist his dark blue eyes beseeching up at her. \u201cI will. And I will never disappoint you. I\u2019ll always be your proper prodigal.\u201d<\/p>\n
The End.<\/p>\n
Dear readers, nay, I shall call you friends…I’d love to hear your comments! Thank you for reading this, my first Regency short story. Susan Karsten<\/em><\/p>\n Originally posted 2014-03-06 10:00:00. <\/small><\/p> A Proper Prodigal (Part 2) A Regency Short Story ~ by Susan Karsten \u00a0Upon awakening the next morning Virginia lay back with her fingertips laced behind her head. She\u2019d just woken up from a dream. One of those that replayed again and again. A good dream, though. In it, she danced the night away with […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[84,85,35,4,356,1],"tags":[376,122,206,388,207,387,390,29,352,209,389],"class_list":["post-3703","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-courtship","category-love-and-romance","category-marriage-proposals","category-regency-romance","category-romance","category-uncategorized","tag-christian-fiction","tag-england","tag-free-regency-story","tag-free-short-story","tag-inspirational-regency","tag-prodigal-daughter","tag-quentin","tag-regency-england","tag-regency-fiction","tag-susan-karsten","tag-virginia"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/vanessariley.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3703","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/vanessariley.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/vanessariley.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vanessariley.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vanessariley.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3703"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/vanessariley.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3703\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3839,"href":"https:\/\/vanessariley.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3703\/revisions\/3839"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/vanessariley.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3703"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vanessariley.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3703"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vanessariley.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3703"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"Listen](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/vanessariley.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/SubstackAd.png?fit=1080%2C1350&ssl=1\")
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