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Chapter 4
Itwasgettingdarkin the still room.
It was an afternoon, so it shouldn’t have been dark, but the still room lacked windows, so Olivia was forced to work under the candlelight. The candles were burning out, and the scent of the candle wax mixed with every other odor in the room made it impossible for Olivia to concentrate on the scent she was making.
Was it perfume number sixty-three, or was it sixty-four? She looked at the note next to her previous failed experiment. Sixty-four, and still, it wasn’t anywhere near perfect. Olivia wasn’t accomplished in perfumery, as the pile of discarded attempts made it obvious. It was just one of her passions. The other was botany, which she’d followed since childhood and loved every moment.
Mr. Garrett, her old gardener, was the one who taught her everything she knew about botany when she was a child. He used to grow flowers in the garden in arrangements that enhanced their scents, and a walk through his gardens was a delight to the senses. That’s how—walking through the gardens one afternoon—Olivia got an idea of creating her own perfume. She’d devoured hundreds of books on the subject since then and set out to practice the craft every evening.
Olivia was a lonely child, having no siblings to play with. Sure, she had her brothers, but they were way too old for her and were out of the house and at school before she learned how to walk. Her only other companion, aside from Mr. Garret, was Jarvis. And once he went away to school, she was left with her old gardener friend and her flowers.
With the help of Mr. Garrett, she learned to mix various scents of plants that blended well together. She quickly learned that scents had a propensity to smell differently on people, and thus she started experimenting with creating unique scents for people in her life.
She had her own perfume, a mix of jasmine, orange blossoms, woodland lily, and coriander. Sweet and spicy. For her father, she made a scent of lemon peel, amber, and willow bark. Fresh and earthy. Her mother’s scent was the most difficult to make so far. She had mixed many a flower to finally realize that simple tea leaves and rosemary suited her perfectly.
Now, she was working on a perfume for Bradshaw.
She wasn’t intimately acquainted with him to know his scent yet, and that was why it was so frustratingly difficult for her to perfect it. She imagined he smelled of earth and forest after a rainstorm, so she put in as many fresh ingredients as she could find, but the scent kept coming up stingy.
There was a soft rap on the door, and Olivia called to come in. The butler entered and announced that Jarvis was waiting in the parlor. Olivia peered at the clock. Was it visiting hours already? She arranged the potions back into their pouches, wiped her hands on the cloth, and hurried out of the room.
She entered the parlor, leaving the door wide open.
“Olivia, dear, is everything all right?” Jarvis reached her in two long strides, his gaze concerned.
“Yes, all is well. Why? You seem worried.”
“I received your father’s summons, and he emphasized that the matter is urgent. I came here as fast as I was able, but your father was not in, and your butler led me here. Will you tell me what the matter is?”
Olivia bit her lip. “The matterisurgent.” She paused, and Jarvis raised his brow. “I do not know how to dance.”
“Pardon?” Jarvis looked incredibly confused.
Olivia heaved a sigh. “The house party is in two weeks, and I cannot dance.”
“Yes, you can,” Jarvis replied immediately.
“No, I cannot, at least not very well, and you know that.”
Jarvis scratched his jaw. “What do you expect me to do?”
Olivia looked down at her hands. She was nervously picking at her fingertips again. She drew her hands apart and placed them by her sides. “Will you practice with me?”
Jarvis looked miserably at her. He was her closest friend, and even he didn’t want to spend more time with her than he had to.
“It is in your best interest, Jarvis. The sooner we get me married to Bradshaw, the sooner I shall have no need of you anymore.”
Jarvis grimaced. “Olive, I am not opposed to spending time with you or helping you. I am just uncertain I can even help. The house party is in two weeks. I doubt my input will make much difference.”
“That’s what I told my parents, but they are adamant I practice, and I have no one else to do it with. Please?”
“You do not need to plead with me. I shall do whatever you ask of me. You know this.” Jarvis sniffed, moving closer to her. “What is that scent? Were you making perfumes again?”
“Yes, do you like it?”
“It’s a bit…” Jarvis patted his pockets, took out his handkerchief, and sneezed into it. “Pungent.”
Olivia grimaced. “I am making a perfume for Bradshaw, but whatever I am doing doesn’t seem to work.” She pouted.
