Chapter 67: friday morning I

Chapter 67: Chapter 67: friday morning I

Wednesday came.

Then Thursday.

The familiar rhythm of lectures, assignments, and quiet evenings continued as though nothing had changed.

And yet...

To Vivienne...

Everything had.

Every now and then, while copying notes during class, her thoughts drifted back to Tuesday night.

The call.

Anthony’s calm voice.

His quiet,

"Of course."

The memory alone was enough to bring a smile to her face.

Claire eventually stopped asking why.

She already knew.

By Thursday evening...

Vivienne had finally settled on the color of her gown.

Deep emerald.

She had considered several shades before finally deciding.

Elegant.

Timeless.

Now...

She simply needed to tell Anthony.

Every time she imagined that conversation...

Her heart fluttered just a little.

Friday arrived beneath a cloudless morning sky.

Vivienne awoke before the alarm had the chance to ring.

She opened her eyes.

For a few quiet moments...

She simply lay there, looking at the ceiling.

Then...

A smile slowly appeared.

"...It’s Friday."

Across the room, Claire looked over sleepily.

"There it is."

Vivienne blinked.

"What?"

"That smile."

Claire rolled onto her side.

"You’ve been waiting for today all week."

Vivienne lowered her gaze, trying—and failing—to hide it.

"...Perhaps."

Claire laughed.

"I’d say far more than perhaps."

Vivienne couldn’t even argue.

The equestrian grounds were still wrapped in the cool air of early morning when she arrived.

Only a handful of members had come this early.

Stable hands moved quietly between the paddocks while several horses were led out into the soft morning light.

Someone greeted her.

"Good morning, Lady Beaumont."

"Good morning."

She smiled politely before continuing toward the familiar stone pathway.

Unlike the previous Friday...

She didn’t stop beneath the old oak tree.

There wasn’t any reason to.

They had already spoken.

Not merely exchanged greetings.

Not spoken during a committee meeting.

Not surrounded by classmates.

They had shared a private conversation.

Standing openly beside the pathway no longer felt impossible.

She quietly chose a place where anyone walking toward the neighboring Polo Club would naturally pass.

If Anthony came from the men’s dormitory...

He would almost certainly walk this way.

So...

She waited.

Students gradually began arriving.

Members of the Equestrian Club greeted one another as they prepared for the morning’s practice.

Someone asked Vivienne about one of the horses.

She answered automatically.

A few moments later, another student waved.

She waved back.

All the while...

Her attention never strayed very far from the pathway.

She clasped her hands together.

Then relaxed them again.

A little while later...

She caught her own reflection in the dark screen of her phone.

A loose strand of blonde hair had slipped free.

She tucked it neatly behind her ear.

A moment later...

She adjusted it again.

Then paused.

"...Really?"

She laughed quietly to herself.

"What are you doing?"

She already knew.

She was waiting.

The realization alone made her cheeks grow warm.

Minutes slipped quietly by.

More students arrived.

The grounds slowly filled with cheerful conversation.

Across the fence, she could already hear activity beginning at the neighboring Polo Club.

Vivienne glanced toward the pathway once more.

Still no Anthony.

Her heartbeat quietly quickened.

He should be here soon.

Without realizing it...

She smoothed the front of her riding jacket.

Then adjusted the ribbon holding back her hair.

"...Stop."

She whispered the word to herself.

"It isn’t your first conversation anymore."

Unfortunately...

Her heart seemed entirely unwilling to believe that.

Then...

Movement at the far end of the pathway caught her eye.

She looked up.

Blonde hair caught the gentle morning sunlight.

Anthony Ashford.

Her heart skipped.

There he is.

She hadn’t realized just how much she had been waiting until the moment she finally saw him.

Somehow...

The nervous anticipation that had quietly followed her all morning simply disappeared.

He was here.

Walking with the same calm, unhurried stride she had already begun recognizing.

His riding helmet rested comfortably beneath one arm.

His neatly pressed polo uniform looked exactly as immaculate as always.

For one brief, wonderful moment...

Everything else quietly disappeared.

Then...

Another figure stepped into view beside him.

A young woman wearing the Polo Club uniform.

Chestnut hair.

Graceful posture.

Miss Evelyn Sinclair.

Vivienne’s smile softened.

Then gradually faded.

The two of them seemed to be discussing something as they walked.

Anthony said something.

Evelyn answered.

She couldn’t hear a single word.

Somehow...

That made her imagination all the more active.

Of course.

Evelyn belonged to the Polo Club.

There was nothing unusual about seeing them together.

Nothing improper.

Nothing she could reasonably question.

She knew that.

She truly did.

Even so...

Her gaze lingered.

The novel resurfaced almost against her will.

Evelyn Sinclair.

The heroine.

The young woman who already loved Anthony.

The woman Anthony would one day fall in love with.

A small, uncomfortable feeling settled quietly inside her chest.

...Already?

The thought escaped before she could stop it.

Is she already making her move?

Almost immediately, reason answered.

Don’t be ridiculous.

They’re simply walking to club together.

She knew.

She really did.

Yet knowing it did very little to quiet the small, possessive voice somewhere inside her heart.

Anthony...

Was her fiancé.

Just then...

Anthony looked up.

Across the distance...

Their eyes met.

His footsteps slowed ever so slightly.

...Lady Beaumont.

There she was again.

The thought surfaced almost automatically.

Ever since they were children...

Lady Beaumont had possessed an uncanny habit of appearing wherever he happened to be.

The familiar instinct lingered for only a heartbeat.

Then another thought quietly replaced it.

...The gown.

Right.

They still hadn’t settled the color.

This was as good an opportunity as any.

He had postponed enough conversations already.

Anthony turned toward the young woman walking beside him.

"Miss Sinclair."

"If you’ll excuse me."

Evelyn followed his gaze.

Lady Beaumont.

His fiancée.

Of course.

Where else would Anthony go?

The answer had always been obvious.

Somehow...

That didn’t make watching him walk away any easier.

Almost imperceptibly...

Her fingers tightened around the riding gloves she carried.

Only for a moment.

No one else would have noticed.

Only herself.

Her eyes lifted.

Meeting Vivienne’s across the distance.

Vivienne hadn’t meant to look.

She truly hadn’t.

But for one fleeting heartbeat...

The smallest hint of satisfaction slipped into her expression.

...He came to me.

It wasn’t particularly graceful.

Nor especially noble.

But it was honest.

The corners of her lips lifted almost of their own accord.

Only for a heartbeat.

Evelyn caught it anyway.

Almost imperceptibly...

She straightened her shoulders.

Neither young woman spoke.

Neither smiled.

Neither looked away immediately.

No words were necessary.

Between them stood an invisible line.

Quiet.

Unspoken.

Neither intended to cross it.

Neither intended to surrender it either.

Anthony, completely unaware of the silent exchange that had just taken place, continued walking toward Vivienne.

He stopped before her.

"Good morning, Lady Beaumont."

Vivienne smiled before she could stop herself.

"...Good morning, Anthony."

--

Tbc