Honor and Desire (Gold Sky #3) - Rebel Carter Page 0,3
target dead on. The men had welcomed him as the son they never had, and with four girls in the family, August’s presence had been appreciated as a brother of sorts. Now that he was here for Seylah on the night of a dance, it was plain to see that both Forrest and Will were reconsidering their estimation of August.
“Are you bullying August?” Her mother’s voice rang through the foyer, and Seylah squeezed her eyes shut at the grumbling sound her fathers made at the question.
Of course they were bullying August. Once a friend, now a foe given that he was here to escort their daughter to a dance. Gathering her skirts, Seylah set her chin and cleared her throat.
“Leave him alone!” She called, rushing towards the foyer. She skidded to a stop when she saw her fathers looming over August with crossed arms and stern faces.
“You have her home by seven,” Will said.
“You’ll keep room for the holy ghost between the two of you while you dance, you hear?” Forrest ordered.
August nodded, his face and ears turning red. “Y-yes, sirs. I promise.”
“Seven? That’s when dinner is served! She won’t have any time for fancy dancing!” Delilah cried from the staircase.
“She must fancy dance, Papa!” Florence chimed in from beside her sister where she clutched the banister.
“FANCY DANCE!” Rose cried from the second floor, and Seylah bit back a groan. This hadn’t quite been the scene of romance and sophistication she had imagined when daydreaming about this moment. She had anticipated August looking gallant, herself like a maiden with effortless beauty, and they would smile and go together. It would all be perfect, but instead…
She blushed furiously at seeing her fathers crowding August further against the door. This was not romantic or what a lady imagined when being escorted to an event. At least, Mrs. Rosemary hadn’t told her about this. She cleared her throat and took a tentative step forward. How she would restore order she wasn’t rightly sure, but she had to do something, and it must be done now. Thankfully, her mother appeared, effectively rescuing both August and Seylah from the scene of familial mayhem. Julie bustled forward towards her husbands with a frown.
“Stop that this instant,” she ordered, hands on her hips.
Her husbands automatically dropped back, ducking their heads. “Aw, Julie, we were just givin’ him a talkin’ to about tonight,” Forrest supplied.
“I know precisely what the pair of you were doing. You were scaring August to death and embarrassing Seylah within an inch of her young life. You’ve scarred the poor girl.”
Her fathers glanced back to see her standing red-faced, hands fisting in her green skirts. In unison, they cringed and stepped back from August, who looked as if he might faint at any moment.
“Shoo, the pair of you,” Julie flapped her hands at them and then gestured for Seylah to come forward. “Come on, darling. Let’s get you and August out the door before I have to put your fathers in line.” She smiled at August, smoothing a hand over his suit jacket. “Don’t you look dapper, August!”
August offered a weak thanks as Seylah came forward to her mother’s side. “Now you two have a lovely time tonight. Come back by nine, not seven.” Her mother kissed their cheeks and bustled them towards the door with a warning look at the men who were still standing in the hallway, albeit with a recalcitrant look on their faces.
“Sorry about that sweetheart,” Forrest offered, giving her a quick peck on the cheek.
“Home by seven,” Will repeated, pointing at August as her father bent to hug Seylah.
“Yes, sirs.” August managed to get out. Seylah had had quite enough of her overbearing fathers and looped her arm through August’s.
“Come on. If we don’t go now, we will never make it,” she said, stepping out of the house and into the early evening. August stumbled after her and was silent as she continued to march up the path towards the lane that led to town. Quite a few homesteads had sprung up on the lane, leading from the school to their home, but it was still blessedly quiet, a respite after her family’s chaotic scene.
They walked in silence, August stiffly beside her as gravel crunched underfoot. Seylah glanced at him and winced when she saw that he was still pale and shaken looking.
“They won’t do anything to you, you know that.”
He blinked as if coming out of a trance and looked at her as if realizing for the first