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“Lydia,” Edmund said seriously, “I want to marry you. Full stop and period. But I cannot ask for your hand if I am not completely certain that you will not continue your relationship with the Duke of Wexley. It is not that I do not trust you, it is that if you are continually seen with him, I’m afraid others in society might get the wrong idea.”
Lydia’s head was swimming. The room was stiflingly hot with all of the bodies in motion inside of it, the music rang loudly in her ears, Edmund was staring at her expectantly with his promises of marriage and spending the rest of their lives together, and to top it all off, the drink that she had chugged down was not sitting well in her stomach.
She knew that she had to make a hasty exit, but she couldn’t do that without giving Edmund an answer. And so, she took a deep breath, looked him in the eyes ... and then paused.
Her heart was breaking. She knew that she needed to do what was right for her future and her family, and right now, the only man who seemed to be taking a relationship with her seriously was Edmund. Percy had many chances to tell Lydia that he wanted to spend the rest of his life with her, or to speak with either of their parents about the possibility of marriage.
And yet, he hadn’t. Time and time again, he had delayed doing anything except making advances at Lydia. While she had enjoyed them immensely and treasured the time she had spent with him even more ... he had not done what was necessary to be with her. He had failed her in almost every way possible, and so standing there in front of Edmund, she knew that she had to say yes to his proposal. But in her heart of hearts, she knew the man she really wanted to be with was Percy.
And so finally, Lydia’s brain melted enough that she could speak again, and she simply responded, “Yes.”
It took a few seconds for Edmund to realize what she was saying yes to. “Are ... are you telling me ...” Edmund stuttered.
“Yes,” Lydia confirmed for him. “I am going to marry you, Edmund Russell, and I will put an end to my relationship with Percy Wentworth tonight. You have my word.”
Having said her piece and still feeling sick to her stomach, Lydia gave Edmund the quickest of pecks on the cheek and then ran outside to get some fresh air. She desperately hoped that Edmund wouldn’t follow her, and for a moment, she thought he hadn’t.
She leaned into the bushes and emptied the putrid contents of her stomach. When she was finished being sick, she could finally feel the cool night air upon her skin, hear the gentle music quieting down in her ears and smell the flowers that were dangling right in front of her.
But then, to her dismay, she heard the door to the ballroom open behind her, and someone walked outside onto the patio. She presumed it was Edmund, and so she called to him, “I am so sorry for leaving you like that. I was just feeling so overwhelmed by everything, and …”
When Lydia turned around, however, she saw that for the second time that night, she had been wrong about the man who was standing behind her. It was Percy, and he looked so concerned she thought that he was going to pull her into am embrace and hold her for as long as she wanted him to. Or maybe, that was what she was hoping was going to happen.
“Lydia, what happened?” he asked, his voice shaking with worry. “Were you ill? Would you like me to take you home?”
But all Lydia could do at that moment was brush off his comments and sit on the bench far away from where she had been ill. Percy, of course, came and sat beside her and began rubbing her back gently.
“There, there,” he whispered softly. She knew that he was trying to comfort her and make her feel better, but all his kindness was doing was making her feel far, far worse. “Have you had anything to eat tonight? Can I get you something?”
Lydia shook her head but still couldn’t say anything. She knew that she needed to tell Percy what had happened with Edmund, but she didn’t know if her heart could take it. She needed to end things once and for all if she was going to have a chance at staying with Edmund, but her nerves were getting the better of her ... as was her love for Percy. She couldn’t say it just yet.
“I ... I just got feeling a little too warm inside,” she said quietly. “I could do with some water, though.”
Percy nodded wordlessly and disappeared back inside the ballroom. Lydia took a moment to breathe and shut her eyes, but when she heard the door open again, she came out of her trance. Percy looked so endearing standing there holding the glass of water that it made her want to forget about Edmund entirely.
Percy came and sat down beside her again, placing the glass in her hand and saying, “I won’t let you say another word until you’ve drunk this whole glass. And,” he pulled his hand out from behind his back and produced a few sweets, “eaten these.”
Lydia couldn’t help smiling. She obeyed Percy and thirstily gulped down the glass of water. She hadn’t realized that it had been such a long time since she’d had a drink that wasn’t alcohol, and that probably contributed to her awful feeling a great deal. When she’d finished the water, she hungrily ate the sweets and then smiled at Percy.
“There,” she said happily, “are you satisfied that I have obeyed your conditions, doctor?”
Percy chuckled. “You’ve been the easiest patient I’ve ever had.”
Percy leaned in towards her and planted a soft kiss upon her lips. Lydia didn’t even try to fight it because she wanted it, and by extension, him, so very, very badly. After they had gently kissed for a moment, Percy pulled back.
“I’m afraid that we might be a bit too ... public in our advances right here, Lydia,” he whispered. “If I laid out my jacket on the grass, might we …”
“Yes,” Lydia said hastily, and the couple joined hands and dashed behind a tree a little distance away.
Percy laid out his jacket as he said he would, and Lydia lay down on it. When he lay down on top of her, her mind was free from worry or concern about what she needed to tell him, and all she could focus on was him.
Percy started out just by kissing her gently, and his lips felt so soft and inviting that Lydia never wanted to part from them. His tongue slipped between her lips a few times, and she found herself gently biting his in return. She started breathing heavier and could feel herself getting wetter by the moment.
But Percy wasn’t making any moves beyond that, and for that, Lydia was grateful. She assumed that he was moving slowly because he thought she still wasn’t feeling well, and so to let him know that she was fine, she ran her hand down the front of his body and started stroking him on the outside of his pants. When she felt him getting harder, she pushed him off of her playfully and clambered on top of him.
Percy looked so surprised and aroused that he didn’t say a word. Lydia shifted her skirts so that she was pressed right up against his throbbing member. When she did, he closed his eyes and opened his mouth, letting out a quiet moan.
Lydia leaned forwards and started kissing Percy’s neck. She could taste the perspiration that had collected where his neck met his shoulder, and when she nibbled his ear, he put his hands on her lower back and dug his fingers into her. Lydia chuckled, her voice low and sultry, and then began kissing down the front of his chest.
