Once Upon a Temptingly Ruinous Kiss - Bree Wolf Page 0,17
Why that was, Leonora could not say; however, she felt beyond grateful.
Ever since the day they had met, she had felt more like herself than she had in the past year. Leonora knew she could not lose that. Nonetheless, she did not know what to do about it. After all, once Lord Archibald’s house party came to an end, their ways would part.
It was inevitable.
What would the world feel like without knowing he was nearby? It was that very thought that kept coursing through Leonora’s head for Lord Pemberton simply seemed to be there no matter where she went. Always was he nearby, even when she could not see him. She would feel him, though, all but sense his presence as though he had placed a calming hand upon her shoulder. Indeed, he seemed to have a talent for blending into his surroundings for more than once she found herself spotting him rather abruptly, only to realize that he had to have been there for a while.
On Christmas Day, Leonora unexpectedly found herself descending the large staircase on her own when her youngest sister Harry suddenly spun around and hastened back to her chamber, mumbling something about a forgotten shawl. Leonora herself was about to turn back and follow her before she called herself to reason. She could walk down the staircase by herself, could she not? Had it truly come to this? That she felt so fearful of the world around her, she could not take a single step on her own?
Gritting her teeth, Leonora turned back to face the staircase, her gaze sweeping over the entrance hall below. Her hand came to rest upon the banister, her fingers tightening upon the smooth wood. She inhaled a deep breath, her ears attuned to voices nearby, voices of people walking here and there. Still, she saw no one down below, and so she inhaled yet another deep breath, lifted her head and took a step forward.
And then another.
And another.
Utterly focused on the steps below her feet, Leonora only belatedly took notice of a small piece of greenery hanging halfway down the staircase. Indeed, Lord Archibald had always been very fond of this tradition. Leonora had spotted a number of mistletoes all over Windmere Park. It had been the same last year. Only last year, these small sprigs had not sent terror through Leonora’s heart.
Now, however, they did.
Fortunately, though, the ground floor still looked deserted, and so Leonora took a few more steps forward, her eyes trained upon the bit of greenery dangling above her head. She forced her thoughts to more pleasant considerations, wondering how on earth Lord Archibald’s servants had managed to secure the mistletoe to the ceiling far above her head. Indeed, it had to have taken an act of acrobatics or perhaps a specifically fashioned ladder for that very purpose.
Leonora was so caught up in her thoughts that she failed to notice footsteps approaching. Only when Lord Sedgwick uttered a delighted greeting to have come upon her here did Leonora realize her precarious situation. Indeed, the young lord quickly took note of her—in his opinion—convenient location beneath the sprig of mistletoe. A smile stretched across his face and his eyes lit up before he strode forward, urgency quickening his steps as he climbed the stairs toward her.
Leonora stared at him in shock as though she were facing a stampede heading straight for her. Her heart beat painfully in her chest, knocking against her rib cage as though trying to break free. Her head began to spin, and she felt her hand tighten upon the banister in a painful fashion. She knew she ought to turn around and escape the situation. She felt the desire to do so. Cursedly, her feet would not move. She simply stood and stared, unable to do anything.
It was these moments that confused Leonora the most. They did not make any sense. There was no earthly reason why she ought to react in such a way. Her body was functioning. Her legs did work properly. Frustratingly, somehow the urge to move did not make its way from her mind to the limbs it was intended for. But why?
Leonora felt all the blood drain from her face. Her eyelids closed momentarily, and for a second, she felt certain she would faint any moment now. Never had she fainted before, and although she was not certain what it would feel like, it seemed a fairly efficient way out of her current situation.